Areas of action of Cleaner Production
Increasing of efficiency by means of reducing pollution. They main areas of action of Cleaner Production are:
- Waste Reduction: Like in the case of pollution prevention, the term waste refers to all types of waste including hazardous and solid waste, liquid and gaseous wastes, waste heat, etc. The goal of cleaner production is to achieve zero waste discharge.
- Non-Polluting Production: Ideal production processes within the concept of cleaner production take place in a closed-loop with zero contaminant release.
- Production Energy Efficiency: Cleaner production requires the highest level of energy efficiency and conservation. Energy efficiency is determined by the highest ratio of energy consumption to product output. Energy conservation on the other hand refers to the reduction of energy usage.
- Safe and Healthy Work Environments: Cleaner production strives to minimize the risks of workers in order to provide a cleaner, safer and healthier working-environment.
- Environmentally Sound Products: The final product and all marketable by-products should be as environmentally friendly as possible. Health and environmental factors must be addressed at the earliest point of product and process design and must be considered over the full product life-cycle, from production to use and disposal.
- Environmentally Sound Packaging: Product packaging should be minimized wherever possible. Where packaging is necessary to protect the product, to market the product or to facilitate ease of consumption, it should be as environmentally friendly as possible.
In a majority of the cases, pollution prevention and cleaner production programs have actually saved money. Finally pollution prevention and cleaner production programs have been more successful than simple pollution control methods in providing social benefits for the public.
The principles of pollution prevention and cleaner production are universal in nature. Their application though, depends on the local context. Each country, region, or locality presents a unique set of challenges and opportunities for the implementation of pollution prevention and cleaner production. Technical, financial, scientific, and engineering resources available to develop and implement a pollution prevention or cleaner production program may limit its success or sophistication. Even more important is the ability and willingness to change. In general, dynamic and motivated enterprises and people will more effectively be able to think about new ways to work and find ways to enact them, as opposed to more mature or bureaucratic organizations.
- Even without large financial resources, creative and flexible people and organizations can find innovative ways to implement ways to reduce waste and improve their environment, especially if given some tools to find them.
- Effectiveness of pollution prevention and cleaner production programs will also be determined by the degree to which environmental quality is a national, regional, and local priority.
- Success is often affected by the willingness of the responsible parties, or society in general, to change their practices and to envision goals in a new light.
- Each locality experiences different degrees and forms of pollution and feels differently about their priorities related to the generation of that pollution.
These factors reinforce the need for a universal pollution prevention and cleaner production framework, followed by the unique local application of these principles.