POLLUTION PREVENTION:
International

FUNDAMENTALS

AND PRACTICE

Editions 2000

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Pollution prevention:

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fundamentals

Data

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I Paul L. Bishop.

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I. Factory and trade waste - Management.
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I dedicate this book to my wife, Pam,for her patience, understanding, and
encouragement, and for putting up with all of the time I spent on the
preparation of this book.


McGraw-Hili Series in Water Resources and Environmental
Engineering
CONSULTING EDITOR

George Tchobanoglous,

University of California, Davis

Bailey and Ollis: Biochemical Engineering Fundamentals
Bishop: Pollution Prevention: Fundamentals
Bouwer:

and Practice

Groundwater Hydrology

Canter: Environmental Impact Assessment
Chanlett:

Environmental Protection


Chapra: Surface Water-Quality Modeling
Chow, Maidment, and Mays: Applied Hydrology
Crites and Tchobanoglous:
Davis and Cornwell:

Small and Decentralized

Wastewater Management

Systems

Introduction to Environmental Engineering

deNevers: Air Pollution Control Engineering
Eckenfelder:

Industrial Water Pollution Control

Eweis, Ergas, Chang, and Schroeder:
LaGrega, Buckingham,

Bioremediation

Linsley, Franzini, Freyberg, and Tchobanoglous:
McGhee:

Principles

and Evans: Hazardous Waste Management

Water Resources and Engineering

Water Supply and Sewage

Mays and Tung: Hydrosystems Engineering and Management
Metcalf & Eddy, Inc.: Wastewater Engineering:

Collection and Pumping of Wastewater

Metcalf & Eddy, Inc.: Wastewater Engineering:

Treatment, Disposal, Reuse

Peavy, Rowe, and Tchobanoglous:

Environmental Engineering

Sawyer, McCarty, and Parkin: Chemistry for Environmental Engineering
Tchobanoglous, Theisen, and Vigil: Integrated Solid Waste Management:
Principles and Management Issues
Wentz: Hazardous Waste Management
Wentz: Safety, Health, and Environmental Protection

Engineering


ABOUT

THE


AUTHOR

PAUL L. BISHOP is the Herman Schneider Professor of Environmental Engineering
at the University of Cincinnati. Dr. Bishop received a B.S. in civil engineering from
Northeastern University and an M.S. and Ph.D. in environmental engineering from
Purdue University. He spent 16 years in the Department of Civil Engineering at the
University of New Hampshire as professor and department chair, and for the past 12
years he has been in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the
University of Cincinnati, serving for 5 years as William Thoms Professor and head of
the department. He spent one year as visiting professor at Heriot-Watt University in
Edinburgh, Scotland, and another in the same capacity at the Technical University of
Denmark, Lyngby, Denmark. Dr. Bishop's specialties are pollution prevention, biological waste treatment, and hazardous waste management. He is the author or co-author
of two books and more than 200 technical papers. He is a diplomate in the American
Academy of Environmental Engineers, for which he served a term as a member of the
Board of Trustees, was a member of the Board of Directors of ABET, recently completed a term as president of the Association of Environmental Engineering Professors
(AEEP), is a member of the International Association on Water Quality U.S.A.
National Committee (USANC), and chaired the IAWQ Environmental Engineering
Education Specialty Group. Dr. Bishop has had a long history of involvement in pollution prevention activities. This includes assistance with development of the U.S. EPA
American Institute for Pollution Prevention, significant research on pollution prevention opportunities, presentations on pollution prevention at national and international
conferences, consulting with industry on pollution prevention topics, and serving for
the past nine years on the Science Advisory Board of the U.S. EPA National Center for
Clean Industrial and Treatment Technologies.


PREFACE
It is estimated that our materials-dominated society consumes about 10 metric tons of
raw materials per person per year in the production of consumer goods. Within six
months of extraction or production of these materials, 94 percent of them become
residual material that is disposed of as waste. More efficient practices for using materials in manufacturing are needed to lessen the demands for raw materials and to reduce
the amounts and toxicity of waste materials. It is estimated that 70 percent of this waste

material could be eliminated through better design decisions and re~se of materials.
As currently structured, engineering education has evolved into fairly segregated
disciplines; each focuses on a narrowly defined design and manufacturing function
without consideration of its environmental consequences. This is no longer the case in
industry, however, where pollution prevention and waste minimization have become
very important. This rapidly changing industrial emphasis was initially in response to
regulatory pressure, but now it is driven primarily by economics. Industries are striving to minimize waste generation at the source, to reuse more of the waste materials
that are generated, and to design products for easier disassembly and reuse after their
useful life is completed. The overall objective is to minimize "end-of-pipe" treatment,
although some waste treatment will always be needed. This new environmental ethic in
manufacturing is labeled "pollution prevention," "green engineering," or "environmentally conscious engineering." It is a collection of attitudes, values, and principles that
result in an attempt by the engineering profession to reduce the rate at which we
adversely impact the environment.
Industry has accepted the concept of pollution prevention, because management
has seen the economic benefits resulting from it. However, most of our engineering
graduates are not prepared to step into a role where green engineering principles are
espoused. It is essential that we quickly incorporate the green engineering principles
into the engineering curriculum in all disciplines to ensure that all engineering graduates are aware of environmental issues and understand the environmental and economic
consequences of engineering decisions. The goal of this educational change should be
to reduce the necessity for end-of-pipe treatment by incorporating, at all stages of
engineering, measures that minimize wastes and permit recycling and reuse. A knowledge of pollution prevention principles should allow the engineer to include environmental consequences in decision processes in the same way that economic and safety
factors are considered. Eventually, we must extend this way of thinking to others in the
decision-making process, including management, but this probably will not be successful until engineers embrace it.
The objective of this book is to introduce the principles of pollution prevention,
environmentally benign products, processes and manufacturing systems. Students will
learn the impacts of wastes from manufacturing and post-use product disposal, environmental cycles of materials, sustainability, and principles of environmental economics. Materials selection, process and product design, and packaging are addressed.


PREFACE


vii

ORGANIZATION
This book is intended for use by novices to the field of pollution prevention as well as
by students majoring in environmental engineering or chemical engineering. Sufficient
background information is provided to those new to the field to understand the concepts discussed in later chapters.
The book is divided into 14 chapters. The first chapter introduces the concept of
pollution prevention, gives a historical perspective, provides definitions that will be
used throughout the book, and discusses the important, but often overlooked subject of
environmental ethics and its role in pollution prevention. Chapters 2 and 3 are background chapters, providing information on properties and fates of environmental contaminants and the impacts of industry on the environment. Knowledge of environmental regulations is essential to proper implementation of pollution prevention programs;
regulations are covered in Chapter 4. Chapter 5, "Improved Manufacturing Operations,"
is intended to describe general design and manufacturing processes that are used in
industry and to show how changes in the manufacturing process can minimize pollution generation. The next three chapters deal with how we can assess the effectiveness
of a proposed process change and how effective pollution prevention programs are constructed. Chapter 6 describes the life-cycle assessment process, while Chapter 7 is an
overview of pollution prevention economics. Chapter 8 focuses on pollution prevention
planning. Chapters 9 and 10 then investigate in more detail technologies that can be
used to minimize pollution. Chapter 9 focuses on such topics as green chemistry,
design for disassembly/demanufacturing,
and improved packaging. Chapter 10
describes new procedures for minimizing the use of water, energy, and reagents in a'
manufacturing process through the application of a procedure called "pinch analysis."
No matter how effective an industrial pollution prevention program is, there will
always be some waste that can't be eliminated and must be disposed of. Chapter 11 discusses options for disposal of these residuals. Chapter 12 addresses another form of
industrial pollution-fugitive
emissions-that
result from unintentional equipment
leaks or releases. Chapter 13 discusses what can be done at the municipal level to regulate industrial pollution emissions. The book culminates in Chapter 14, which is a
philosophical discussion of the subject of sustainability and the role of pollution prevention in maintaining a more sustainable society.

USE OF THIS BOOK

Pollution Prevention: Fundamentals and Practice contains enough material to allow
flexibility in its use. This book is intended for engineering students from any engineering discipline, but it should also be useful to practicing engineers needing a comprehensive book on pollution prevention. This includes both environmental engineers
who are entering the pollution prevention consulting arena and engineers in industry


viii

POLLUTION

PREVENTION:

FUNDAMENTALS

AND PRAcrJCE

who need to bring their knowledge of available pollution prevention options up to date.
With selective reading, it will also be of use to nonengineers in industrial management
who must make intelligent choices on implementation of pollution prevention alternatives or learn how to sell these alternatives to upper management.
The book is specifically designed for senior- or graduate-level engineering students from all engineering disciplines, but it may be used by junior-level students as
well. It assumes no prior knowledge of pollution prevention or related concepts, instead
providing all necessary background for the reader. By careful selection of the topics
covered, the book can be used in a general course on pollution prevention intended for
all engineering students, or in a pollution prevention course designed specifically for
environmental engineering students.
The material in this textbook can be used in a variety of ways, depending on the
discipline and educational background of the students and the intent of the course.
Suggested outlines are presented below for courses intended (1) as a general introduction to pollution prevention for students with little environmental engineering background, (2) as a more "rigorous course for environmental engineering students, and
(3) as a course for nonengineering students, such as business or management majors.
In addition, portions of this book may be used in a basic freshman-level engineering
course to introduce the need for the environmentally conscious engineering ethic to

newly developing engineers. This might include Chapter 1, parts of Chapter 3, and
Chapter 6.
A suggested outline for a cross-disciplinary course on pollution prevention for
nonenvironmental engineering students is presented in outline A. This introduces the
concepts of pollution prevention, describes the consequences of pollution emissions,
and presents methods for setting up a pollution prevention program and assessing its
effectiveness. Students from any engineering discipline should have the necessary
background knowledge for this course.
Outline A
Topic

Chapter

Introduction
Properties and fates of environmental

1

All

2

All

Industrial activity and the environment

3

All


Environmental

4

All

5

5.1, 5.2.2, 5.4.2 through 5.4.4

regulations

Improved manufacturing

operations

contaminants

Sections

Life-cycle assessment

6

All

Pollution prevention economics

7


Depends on students' backgrounds

Waste audits

8

All

Design for disassemble/demanufacturing

9

9.1,9.3,

and 9.4

Fugitive emissions

12

12.1 and 12.2

Sustainability

14

All


PREFACE


ix

A course on pollution prevention specifically designed for environmental engineering students would differ from outline A. Depending on their educational level,
these students may already be familiar with the materials in Chapters 2, 3,4, and II.
These chapters could be assigned as background reading. The course could focus on
the organizational and technical aspects of pollution prevention. Outline B suggests a
plan for such a course.
Outline B
Topic

Chapter

Introduction

Sections

1

All

5

All

Life-cycle assessment

6

All


Pollution prevention economics

7

Depends on students' backgrounds

Waste audits

8

All

Design for disassemb1e/demanufacturing

9

9.1,9.3,

Improved manufacturing

operations

Water, energy, and reagent conservation

10

All

Fugitive emissions


12

All

Toward a sustainable society

14

All

and 9.4

Ultimately, the decision on whether to implement a pollution prevention program
is made by the industry management. It is essential that managers become familiar with
the problems created by pollution and what the opportunities associated with pollution
prevention are. It is unlikely that business schools can fit in a full course on pollution
prevention, but the essential material could be covered in a short minicourse, as suggested in outline C.
Outline C
Topic

Chapter

Introduction

Sections

1

All


Industrial activity and the environment

3

All

Environmental

4

All

Life-cycle assessment

6

All

Pollution prevention planning

8

All

Municipal pollution prevention programs

13

All


Toward a sustainable society

14

All

regulations

A teacher's manual that accompanies this textbook is available for qualified
instructors. The manual contains solutions to all problems in the text, as well as a full
set of overhead teaching slides that can be used in presenting the course material.
Please inquire with your McGraw-Hill representative. I would appreciate any comments, suggestions, corrections, and contributions of problems for future revisions.


X

POLLUTION PREVENTION: FUNDAMENTALS AND PRACTICE

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
This book could not have been written without the valuable assistance of a number of
people. This textbook grew out of a grant I received from the Ohio Environmental
Protection Agency to develop a cross-disciplinary pollution prevention program for
engineering students. The agency's support is gratefully acknowledged. Amit Gupta, a
former graduate student, provided invaluable assistance in developing the course, creating many of the overhead teaching slides presented in the accompanying teacher's
manual, and reviewing the entire manuscript. I would especially like to thank him for
contributing much of the writing for Chapter 14, "Toward a Sustainable Society." His
insights and perspectives on this subject were very perceptive. I also extend my gratitude to Anthony Dunams, another former graduate student, for writing much of
Chapter 13, "Municipal Pollution Prevention Programs," and for serving as a sounding
board for much of the other material. Tatsuji Ebihara and Hassan Arafat, two current

doctoral students, contributed several of the design examples. I have taught several
courses using drafts of this textbook to students from a multitude of academic backgrounds. Their helpful comments and corrections of the text have vastly improved it,
and their asssistance is gratefully acknowledged. I would especially like to thank
the outside reviewers of this text for their very valuable contributions. These include
Dr. C. P. L. Grady (Clemson University), Dr. Steven Safferman (University of Dayton),
and Dr. Angela Lindner (University of Florida).
I would also like to thank the entire team at McGraw-Hill for their great support
and assistance with this project. Special thanks go to the sponsoring editor, Eric Munson;
the copy editor, Carole Schwager; and the senior project manager, Jean Lou Hess.
Paul L. Bishop


BRIEF

CONTENTS

1 Introduction to

12

Pollution Prevention

2

3

4

5


Industrial Activity and
the Environment
Environmental
Regulations

22

78

Life-Cycle Assessment

251

7

Pollution Prevention
Economics

10

Design for the
Environment
Water, Energy, and
Reagent Conservation

11 Residuals Management

533

Toward a

Sustainable Society

572

Appendixes
A
The Elements

621

B

6

Pollution Prevention
Planning

14

Prevention Programs

624

C

Hazardous Waste
Lists

635


D

Toxic Release
Inventory Chemicals
and Chemical
Categories

662

E

Present Worth of a
$1.00 Investment

668

F

Physical Constants

670

G

Physical Properties
of Water at 1
Atmosphere

672


H

Properties of Air

674

I

Useful Conversion
Factors

296

329

353

421
454

621

Properties of Selected
Compounds

147

180

9


509

13 Municipal Pollution
Properties and Fates
of Environmental
Contaminants

Improved Manufacturing
Operations

8

Fugitive Emissions

1

Index

675
680


CONTENTS
Transport Processes / 2.3.3
Partitioning Processes / 2.3.4
Transformation Processes

1 Introduction to Pollution


Prevention

1

1.1 The 3M Experience

1

1.2 Pollution Prevention

3

1.3 The Historical
6

Perspective
1.3.1 The 1ndustrial Revolution /
1.3.2 1mpacts of Industrialization

3

9

Prevention?
1.4.1 Waste Definition / 1.4.2
Pollution Prevention Definition
1.4.3 Other Terms / 1.4.4

3.2


/

3.3

Prevention Hierarchy

13

Recycling vs.
Pollution Prevention

14
15

1.7 Environmental Ethics

19

Problems

20

3.4

22
23

Metals and
Inorganic Nonmetals


2.3.1 Contaminant
Concentrations / 2.3.2

114

Hazardous Wastes
and

Water Pollution

118

3.5.1 Minimata Disease / 3.5.2
The Kepone 1ncident / 3.5.3
1ndustrial Wastewater Treatment

3.6

of Organic

Contaminant Transport
and Transformation in
the Environment

102

Solid Wastes

Recovery Act


Energy Usage

121

3.6.1 Historical Perspective /
3.6.2 Energy Consumption /
3.6.3 Energy Reserves / 3.6.4
Fossil Fuels / 3.6.5 Nuclear

39

Energy / 3.6.6 Renewable
Energy Sources / 3.6.7
Electricity / 3.6.8 Energy

2.2.3 Chromium / 2.2.4 Lead /
2.2.5 Mercury / 2.2.6 Cyanides

xii

79

Resource Conservation

2.2.1 Arsenic / 2.2.2 Cadmium /

2.3

Air Pollution


3.3.3 Conservation

Chemicals

2.2

Introduction

3.3.1 Sources and Composition /
3.3.2 Solid Waste Management /

3.5

Organic Chemicals
2.1.1 Nomenclature

78
78

3.4.1 Superfund Sites / 3.4.2

References

Properties and Fates of
Environmental
Contaminants
2.1

73


3.2.5 Ozone Depletion

1.5 The Pollution

2

Problems

3.2.1 The Atmosphere / 3.2.2
Smog Formation / 3.2.3 Acid
Rain / 3.2.4 Global Warming /

Sustainability

1.6

72

Industrial Activity and
the Environment
3.1

1.4 What Is Pollution

References

Conservation

3.7
44


Resource Depletion
3.7.1 Earth's Structure / 3.7.2
Recoverable Resources / 3.7.3
Mineral Resources

138


CONTENTS

4

References

142

References

247

Problems

144

Problems

248

6


Environmental
Regulations
4.1 Introduction

147

4.2

149

The Regulatory Process

147

Life-Cycle Assessment
6.1 Overview of Life-Cycle
6.2

4.3 Environmental
Regulations

150

6.3

4.3.1 Laws Pertaining to Clean
Air / 4.3.2 Laws Pertaining to
Clean Water / 4.3.3 Laws


6.4

Pertaining to Hazardous
Materials and Wastes / 4.3.4
Laws Pertaining to Products /
4.3.5 Laws Pertaining to
Pollution Prevention

5

References

178

Problems

178

Improved Manufacturing
Operations
5.1 Introduction
5.2

The Manufacturing
Process

Process Development
and Design
Process Changes


5.5.1 Acrylonitrile
Manufacturing / 5.5.2 Maleic
Anhydride Production

253

Life-Cycle Assessment
and the Regulatory
Process

254

Life-Cycle Assessment
Methodology

255

Streamlining Life-Cycle
Assessments

269

6.6

Pollution Prevention
Factors

271

180


Application of
Life-Cycle Assessment

277

183

6.7.1 Corporate Strategic
Planning / 6.7.2 Product

180

6.7

Development / 6.7.3 Process
Selection and Modification /
6.7.4 Marketing Claims and
Advertising / 6.7.5 Ecolabeling

6.8

215
220

6.9

Changes / 5.4.3 Storage / 5.4.4
Management


Pollution Prevention
Examples

251

History of Life-Cycle
Assessment
Development

6.5

5.4.1 Advanced Process
Technologies / 5.4.2 Product

5.5

Assessment

/ 6.4.4 Improvement Analysis

5.3.1 Computer Tools

5.4

251

6.4.1 Goal Definition and
Scoping Stage / 6.4.2 Inventory
Analysis / 6.4.3 Impact Analysis


5.2.1 Sequential Engineering /
5.2.2 Concurrent Engineering /
5.2.3 Manufacturing Processes

5.3

xiii

239

7

Use of Computer
Models in Life-Cycle
Assessment

287

Life-Cycle Assessment
in Waste Management
Operations

288

References

292

Problems


294

Pollution Prevention
Economics
7.1 Overview of Economics

296
296


xiv

POLLUTION

7.2

PREVENTION:

FUNDAMENTALS

Microeconomics

AND PRACTICE

8.5

298

7.2.1 Market Mechanisms /
7.2.2 Supply and Demand /

7.2.3 Marginal Cost and
Marginal Benefit / 7.2.4 Market
Externalities / 7.2.5 Control
Measures

7.3 Engineering Economics

311

7.3.1 Discount Rate / 7.3.2
Present Worth / 7.3.3 Comparing
Investment Alternatives

7.4
7.5

References

350

Problems

351

317

Design for the
Environment

353


Total Cost Assessment

320

9.1

Introduction

353

9

References

325

Problems

326

Pollution Prevention
Planning
8.1
8.2

346

Estimating Long-Term
Cleanup Liability


7.5.1 Life-Cycle Costing / 7.5.2
Life-Cycle Cost Assessment
Process / 7.5.3 Life-Cycle Cost
Assessment Case Study / 7.5.4
Summary

8

Toxic Release Inventory
8.5.1 Toxic Release Inventory
Reporting Requirements /
8.5.2 Toxic Release Inventory
Chemicals / 8.5.3 Problems
with Toxic Release Inventory
Data

Introduction
Structure of the Pollution
Prevention Process

329

9.1.1 Design for X / 9.1.2
Chapter Focus

9.2

357


9.2.1 Sources of Wastes / 9.2.2
Alternative Synthetic Pathways /
9.2.3 Alternative Reaction
Conditions / 9.2.4 Design of
Safer Chemicals / 9.2.5 Green
Chemistry Research Needs

9.3

329

Design for Disassembly/
Demanufacturing

386

9.3.1 Recycle versus Reuse /
9.3.2 Recycle/Reuse Hierarchy /
9.3.3 Recycle Legislation / 9.3.4
Requirements for Effective
Reuse/Recycling / 9.3.5
Disassembly Strategy / 9.3.6
Computer-Aided Design / 9.3.7

330

8.2.1 Organizing the Program /
8.2.2 Preliminary Assessment /
8.2.3 Pollution Prevention
Program Plan Development /

8.2.4 Developing and
Implementing Pollution
Prevention Projects / 8.2.5
Implementing the Pollution
Prevention Plan / 8.2.6
Measuring Pollution Prevention
Progress

8.3

Environmental
Management Systems

340

8.4

Environmental Audits

343

8.4.1 Emissions Inventory

Green Chemistry

Waste Exchanges / 9.3.8
Recovery through Composting or
Energy Reuse / 9.3.9 Barriers
to Reuse


9.4

Packaging

410

9.4.1 Minimizing Packaging /
9.4.2 Degradable Packaging

References

417

Problems

419


XV

CONTENTS

10

Water, Energy, and
Reagent Conservation

421

10.1


Introduction

421

10.2

Reduction in Water Use
for Cleaning
422

Unit-Specific Correlation
Approach

12.4

Pinch Analysis

430

12.5

10.3.1 Thermal Pinch Analysis I
10.3.2 Pinch Analysis for
Water Use I 10.3.3 Pinch
Analysis for Process Emissions I
10.3.4 Summary

11


References

450

Problems

450

Residuals Management

454

11.1

Introduction

454

11.2

Wastewater Treatment

455

IJ.2.I Treatment Options I
11.2.2 Physicochemical
Processes I 11.2.3 Biological
Waste Treatment I 11.2.4
Sludge Management


11.3

Air Pollution Control

12.6

13

12

504

References

504

Problems

505

Fugitive Emissions

509

12.1

Introduction

509


12.2

Sources and Amounts

511

12.3

Measuring Fugitive
Emissions

512

12.3.1 Average Emission Factor
Approach I 12.3.2 Screening
Ra,nges Approach I 12.3.3 EPA
Correlation Approach

I 12.3.4

I

524
I

Fugitive Emissions
from Waste Treatment
and Disposal

530


References

531

Problems

532

Municipal Pollution
Prevention Programs

533

13.1

Introduction

533

13.2

Regulatory Basis for
Pollution Prevention
Programs

534

499


Solid Waste Disposal

Fugitive Emissions
from Storage Tanks
12.5.1 Emissions Estimation
12.5.2 Emissions Control

13.2.1 Resource Conservation
and Recovery Act and
Hazardous and Solid Waste

IJ.3.I Particulate Control I
11.3.2 Gas Removal

11.4

519

12.4.1 Equipment Modification
12.4.2 Leak Detection and
Repair Programs

10.2.1 Case Study

10.3

Controlling Fugitive
Emissions

Amendments I 13.2.2

Emergency Planning and
Community Right-to-Know Act I
13.2.3 Clean Water Act I 13.2.4
Pollution Prevention Act I
13.2.5 Regional Pollution
Prevention Initiatives: Great
Lakes Water Quality Initiative

13.3

Source Control and
Pretreatment Permit
Programs
13.3.1 Mandatory Programs
13.3.2 Local Discharge
Standards, Limits, and
Authority

539
I


xvi

POLLUTION

13.4

PREVENTION:


FUNDAMENTALS

Types of
POTW-Administered
Pollution Prevention
Programs

AND PRACTICE

United Nations Conference on
Environment and Development

14.4
542

13.4.1 Voluntary Programs /
13.4.2 Regulatory and
Enforcement Programs /
13.4.3 Market-Based Programs
and Pollution Prevention
Incentives / 13.4.4 Measuring
Pollution Prevention Progress

13.5

14.4.3 Conceptualization of
Sustainability / 14.4.4 Hurdles
to Sustainability

14.5


Desirable Qualities of a
Municipal P2 Program
558

Development of
Publicly Administered
Pollution Prevention
Programs

13.8

14

Being Done to Achieve
Sustainability ?

14.6

Sustainability in the
United States

597

14.6.1 President's Council on
Sustainable Development /

Internal Pollution
Prevention in Publicly
Owned Treatment

Works

567

Summary

568

Sustainability in the
Third World

References

568

14.7.1 Barriers to

Problems

570

14.6.2 Role of Local
Governments

572

14.1

Introduction


572

14.2

Defming the Problem

574

14.7

601

Sustainability in the Third
World / 14.7.2 Models of
Macroeconomic Management
for Third-World Countries

14.8

A Framework for
Sustainability

603

14.8.1 The Role of Individuals

14.2.1 Biodiversity / 14.2.2
Impediments to Achieving
Sustainability


The History of
Sustainability

588

14.5.1 Sustainable
Development Framework /
14.5.2 Application of
Sustainability Strategies /

561

Toward a Sustainable
Society

14.3

Achieving Sustainable
Development

14.5.3 Indicators of
Sustainability / 14.5.4 What Is

13.6.1 Program
Recommendation / 13.6.2
Program Implementation

13.7

581


14.4.1 Definitions of
Sustainability / 14.4.2 What Is
Sustainable Development? /

13.5.11ndustry Requests /
13 .5.2 Publicly Owned
Treatment Works Requests

13.6

Sustainability and
What It Means

/

14.8.2 The Role of Industry /
14.8.3 The Four Elements of
Clean Manufacturing

14.9
576

14.3.1 Origin of the
Sustainability Concept / 14.3.2

Industrial Ecology

608


14.9.1 Ecoindustrial Parks /
14.9.2 Industrial Ecology
Principles


CONTENTS

14.10

Measures of
Economic Growth

C
613

14.10.1 Gross Domestic
Product and Gross National
Product / 14.10.2 Green

D

Accounting

14.11

14.12

xvii

Hazardous Waste

Lists

635

Toxic Release
Inventory Chemicals
and Chemical
Categories

662

Present Worth of a
$1.00 Investment

668

Steps for Adopting
a Sustainability
Approach

616

F

Physical Constants

670

Summary


617

G

References

618

Problems

620

Physical Properties
of Water at 1
Atmosphere

672

H

Properties of Air

674

I

Useful Conversion
Factors

675


E

Appendixes

621

A

The Elements

621

B

Properties of Selected
Compounds

624

Index

680


"Waste is a terrible thing to waste."
The X-Files


We have learned the inherent limitations of treating and burying wastes. A problem solved

in one part of the environment may become a new problem in another part. We must curtail pollution closer to its point of origin so that it is not transferred from place to place.

With these words, William Reilly, then administrator of the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA), announced in 1990 the new EPA policy to decrease reliance
on end-of-pipe treatment of industrial wastes and to promote elimination of waste production at the source. Although new from a regulatory standpoint, this philosophy was
not necessarily new from a practice standpoint. Several industries had begun to put this
paradigm into practice years before, but it was revolutionary as an agency policy.
Before examining in detail what pollution prevention is and how it can be more effectively accomplished, let us take a look at what one company, 3M, has accomplished.

1.1 THE 3M EXPERIENCE
The 3M Company, a major multinational corporation with more than 130 manufacturing sites in the United States as well as others in 41 countries, produces everything from
Magic Tape and Post-it Notes to heart-lung machines. In addition to being one of the
largest producers of consumer products, 3M was also one of the largest producers of
wastes, both toxic and nontoxic. Not only were wastes produced during manufacturing

1


2

POLLlITION

PREVENTION:

FUNDAMENTALS

AND PRACfICE

processes at 3M, but they were also produced during the processing and manufacture
of the goods and chemicals that went into 3M's products, during the transportation of

these raw materials to the manufacturing plant and of the finished products from
manufacturing to the consumer, and after the consumer had finished with the product
and discarded it.
3M, as well as many other companies, began examining their waste management
practices as a result of public pressure. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, there was a
major outcry by the public to clean up our environment and prevent further degradation. Congress quickly passed several pieces of important legislation designed to do
just that. These included the Clean Air Act Amendments (CAAA) in 1967, the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) in 1969, the Federal Water Pollution Control Act
(FWPCA) in 1972, the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) in 1974, and the Toxic
Substances Control Act (TSCA) and Resource Conservation and Recovery Act
(RCRA) in 1976. These and other environmental statutes are described in more detail
in Chapter 4. As a result of this regulatory pressure, industries across the nation began
to examine ways to treat their wastes or, better yet, to minimize the amounts of waste
they were generating.
When 3M started looking at the company's waste, management realized that they
could never reach their goal of a clean environment through treatment of these wastes.
Most treatment technologies do not destroy wastes, but rather move them from one
medium to another, only delaying the eventual pollution problem. Consequently, 3M
decided that preventing the wastes from being created in the first place was its only
viable solution. In 1975 the company became the first to initiate a companywide pollution prevention program and adopted a new corporate policy preventing pollution at
the source wherever and whenever possible. The policy asserts that 3M will:
• Solve its own environmental pollution and conservation problems.
• Prevent pollution at the source wherever and whenever possible.
• Develop products that will have a minimum effect on the environment.
• Conserve natural resources through the use of reclamation
methods.

and other appropriate

• Assure that its facilities and products meet and sustain the regulations of all federal,

state, and local governments.
• Assist, wherever possible, governmental
engaged in environmental activities.

agencies and other official organizations

Pollution prevention thus became the foundation of 3M's approach to all environmental policies (Zosel, 1993). Rather than using waste treatment as the basis for
waste management, 3M first looks at the feasibility of process modifications, recycling,
reuse, reclamation, and augmenting efficiency. The goal of 3M's Pollution Prevention
Pays (3P) program is to make pollution prevention a way of life throughout 3M, from
the boardroom to the laboratory to the manufacturing plant. It is based on the premise
that prevention does pay-in terms of environmental benefit, lower disposal and treatment costs, operating savings, improved product quality, and a more positive corporate
image (Bringer and Benforado, 1989).
The 3P program has been a success. It has evolved into a fully integrated, highquality environmental management system, creating an environmentally sensitive cor-


INTRODUCTION

TO POLLUTION

PREVENTION

3

porate culture at 3M. Environmental engineers are assigned to business unit facilities
to assist in 3P implementation, employees are given awards for identifying ways to prevent waste generation or ways to recover and recycle materials, and meetings and conferences are held throughout the company by employee groups to exchange ideas on
pollution prevention. Each year, 3M budgets approximately $150 million for research
and development related to environmental issues, such as reducing the environmental
impacts of products and processes. These activities have resulted in a 20 percent cut in
energy consumption and a 35 percent cut in waste generation; by the year 2000, 3M

plans to cut waste generation by 50 percent and release of pollutants to the environment
by 90 percent. Not only has this resulted in a major reduction in environmental stress,
but the company has realized savings of more than $150 million in lower costs for
energy, process chemicals, and waste treatment (Bringer and Benforado, 1992).

1.2 POLLUTION PREVENTION
3M is only one example of how a reexamination of the way a company deals with its
pollution problems can lead to significant environmental improvement, as well as cost
savings to the company. Many other companies have also come to the realization that
pollution prevention does indeed pay (see Table 1.1 for some other examples of early

TABLE 1.1

Selected industrial
Company

and program

pollution prevention

programs

and goals

Scope

Goal

Amoco: Waste
Minimization Program


Primary focus on minimizing
hazardous waste disposal as
well as minimizing and tracking
nonhazardous wastes

Eliminate the generation and
disposal of hazardous wastes

BP America: Waste
Minimization Program

Adopts EPA's environmental
management hierarchy, with source
reduction preferred

Annual waste minimization
for all facilities

General Dynamics:
Zero Discharge

Industrial source reduction, toxic
chemical use substitution, recycling,
treatment, and incineration

Eliminate all RCRA-manifested
wastes leaving company facility

3M: Pollution

Prevention Pays

Eliminate pollution sources through
product reformulation, process
modification, equipment redesign,
recycling, and recovery of waste
materials for resale

By 2000, cut all hazardous and
nonhazardous releases to air, land,
and water by 90% and reduce the
generation of hazardous wastes by
50%, with 1987 as the base year

Monsanto: Priority One
(TRI waste)

Source reduction, reengineering,
process changes, reuse, and recycling
to reduce hazardous air emissions
and TRI solid, liquid, and hazardous
wastes

A 90% reduction in hazardous air
emissions from 1987 to 1992; a
70% reduction in TRI solid, liquid,
and gaseous wastes from 1987 to
1995

Xerox


Toxic chemical use substitution,
materials recovery and recycling

Reduce hazardous waste generation
by 50% from 1990 to 1995

Source: U.S. EPA, 1991.

goals


4

POLLUTION

PREVENTION:

FUNDAMENTALS

AND PRACfICE

proponents of pollution prevention). This book examines the sources and impacts of
industrial pollution and how industry can minimize the negative environmental effects
of manufacturing processes in a cost-effective way. These effects are not limited to a
company's internal activities, but also include those of their suppliers and those of the
consumer through use and disposal of the product.
The production of waste throughout the United States and the rest of the world
is accelerating at a rapid pace. As countries become more industrialized and the wealth
of their citizens increases, there is an increased demand for goods and services.

Corporations looking to increase sales and therefore profits often feed this craving with
advertising for their products. The result is an ever-spiraling demand for goods, resulting in more and more wastes (see Figure 1.1). The environmental impacts of this have
been all too evident: despoiled air and water, hazardous waste dumps leaking their toxins into our groundwater supplies, increased rates of cancer and other diseases from
exposure to these chemicals, rapidly depleted resources, global warming, and damage
to the protective ozone layer over Earth. Many people have come to the realization that
this desecration of Earth cannot continue without causing insurmountable problems.
Attempts to eliminate the problem through end-of-pipe treatment of wastes after they
are produced have helped, but the problems are too large for this to be the solution.
What is needed is a major overhaul of the way we manage wastes and the environment.
Pollution prevention requires a holistic approach to waste management. Rather
than waiting until after a waste is produced and then attempting to make it innocuous,
the pollution prevention approach considers the entire life of a product, from extraction
of the raw materials from the earth through manufacturing to product use and finally to
product disposal and possible recycling or reclamation, in order to find ways to minimize all environmental impacts. This may mean using materials that are less toxic or
that are less scarce in the earth, finding more efficient manufacturing processes or
processes that demand less energy, designing new products that make recycling after
use easier, or creating new packaging materials that reduce the amount of packaging
going to landfills or incinerators.
In the past, industry showed little concern for the types or amounts of wastes generated, and the public had little knowledge of the impacts of these wastes on the environment. These wastes were usually just discharged into the air or a nearby river, or they
were dumped or buried on land (see Figure 1.2a). Disposed materials that were thought



to be gone forever through dilution in air or water or by burial in the ground came back
to haunt us (see Figure 1.3). As these impacts became known, industries began to treat
their wastes to remQve the most egregious ones (Figure 1.2b). Eventually, some industries began recycling and reusing some of their waste materials (Figure 1.2c). Other
industries, recognizing that product marketing and pollution prevention are intimately
related, began marketing the environmental "greenness" of their products as a way to
attract new customers. This was the beginning of the pollution prevention era. We can
do more, though. What is needed is a goal of "zero pollution," in which most process

waste production is eliminated through process changes, and as much remaining waste
as possible is recycled, reused, or reclaimed, at either the facility of origin or another
facility (Figure 1.2d). The little residue remaining after recycling and reuse can be
treated and disposed of in an environmentally acceptable fashion.
The goal of pollution prevention is zero pollution, but this is a goal only; not all
waste can be prevented or recycled and there will always be some waste to finally be
disposed of. The objective should be to make the volume of this waste small enough
that it can be managed effectively in an environmentally safe manner.
Before investigating the workings of a pollution prevention program, it is useful
to look at how industry has grown over the last few hundred years, bringing us to the
point where we are now.

1.3 THE HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE
The process of industrialization describes the transition from a society based on agriculture to one based on industry. Modem industrialization is often dated as having its


INTRODUCTION

TO POLLUTION

PREVENTION

7

origins in the Industrial Revolution, but environmental pollution can be traced to manufacturing in ancient times. Goods have been produced to some extent since the dawn
of civilization. Pottery works and factories for the manufacture of glassware and
bronze ware have been discovered in Greece and Rome. In the Middle Ages, large silk
factories were operating in the Syrian cities of Antakya and Tyre. During the late
medieval period, textile factories were established in several European countries. These
were all fairly small operations, though, and had little impact on the environment

beyond their immediate area.
During the Renaissance (fourteenth to seventeenth centuries), industrialization
increased in many areas, primarily following advances in science and the development
of new trading partners in Asia and the New World. Factories were created to produce
such goods as paper, firearms, gunpowder, cast iron, glass, clothing, beer, and soap
(Kaufman and Farr, 1995). These factories differed from those found today, though;
generally they were large workshops where each laborer functioned independently.
Industrial processes were largely carried out by means of hand labor and simple tools;
mechanization or machinery was rare. Organized factories could be found, but home
production was still the norm. The guilds were very strong at that time and resisted any
attempts to increase the expansion of factories. Consequently, environmental impacts
due to goods production were still minor and spread out over a large area.

1.3.1 The Industrial Revolution
This all changes with the onset of the Industrial Revolution, which began with the
application of power-driven machinery to manufacturing. The Industrial Revolution
brought many changes to the way people lived and worked. It led to the movement of
people from rural to urban areas and a shift from home to factory production. It also
was the impetus for the creation of a new working class. The Industrial Revolution is
considered to have begun in Britain in the early 1700s and then to have spread rapidly
throughout much of Europe and North America in the early nineteenth century. A form
of Industrial Revolution is still under way or is just beginning in many less developed
countries.
By the early eighteenth century, Britain had burned up much of its forests to provide heat for its inhabitants and for its limited industry. However, large deposits of coal
were available as a fuel, and there was an abundant labor supply to mine the coal and
iron. What was needed was a way to transform the energy in coal into a form that could
be used in manufacturing. Machines were being used in manufacturing in England at
that time, but on a limited basis only. Matthew Boulton built a factory in 1762 which
employed more than 600 workers to run a variety of lathes and polishing and grinding
machines. Josiah Wedgwood and others used waterwheels and windmills in Staffordshire to turn machines which mixed and ground materials for making chinaware

(Rempel, 1995).
The first major use of mechanization in industry, though, came in the British textile industry. The industry was fraught with severe inefficiencies: it took 4 spinners to
keep up with the demand of 1 cotton loom and 10 persons to prepare yarn for 1 woolen
weaver. Weavers were often idle because of the lack of needed yarn. A way to spin yarn
more quickly was required. In 1764, James Hargreaves invented the spinning jenny.