Chapter 2

Cleaner Production Main Concept

and History

Abstract One way of defining a Cleaner Production is saying that it is a set of rules
with the objective of protecting the environment and minimizing waste, ranging
not only from manufacturing processes but to the entire life cycle of a product.
This concept can even be applied on a personal level, addressing one’s lifestyle and
daily choices. The first concerns regarding pollution arouse in the 1960s in the USA
and started spreading across the world. However, the rate at which this concept is
diffused as well as the seriousness that it receives varies immensely from country to
country. Here, the main concept of CP is debated as well as its initial stages across
all continents.

Keywords Cleaner Production concept · UNIDO · UNEP · Cleaner Production

evolution · Regional Cleaner Production Program Development · Country-specific
Cleaner Production Evolution

2.1 Main Concept of Cleaner Production

Beginning focused on producing with less waste, Cleaner Production (CP) evolved
into a concept of improving resource effectiveness in production. The Cleaner Pro-
duction concept can be defined as a set of precautionary management rules that intend
to protect the environment from the harmful effects of products and manufacturing
processes. Moreover, the concept of CP can be viewed as something that can be
applied covering the whole lifecycle of a product or service, enlarging the concept
of well-being to future human generations. Indeed, the concept is broad enough to
encompass several tools, which can be distributed from eco-design to lean production
systems. Thus, it is possible to state that this concept is linked to resources and envi-
ronmental preservation, adopting methodologies, techniques and technologies able
to minimize or eliminate the aggression of some business processes and products
relatively to the environment. The concept is mainly oriented toward manufacturing
systems, but it can be considered wide enough to extend to the personal attitude
of people regarding consumption, because everyone can prevent waste generation,
increase material recycling and, above all, select products attending to their ecologi-

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020 15

F. J. Gomes da Silva and R. M. Gouveia, Cleaner Production,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-23165-1_2
16 2 Cleaner Production Main Concept and History

cal footprint and knowledge about companies’ practices. Obviously, these concerns
have evolved significantly through time, mainly from the mid of the twentieth cen-
tury, after the World War II, following the economic growth registered after that
tragic episode in history.
In fact, the concept of CP can lead down different paths depending on the sector
of activity. If we are talking about production processes, it is crucial to preserve
energy and raw materials, avoiding as well the use of toxic materials and reducing
the amount and level of toxicity of waste materials and effluents. On the other hand, if
we are talking about semi-products or products, the main concern should be focused
on their life cycle and corresponding nefarious effects for the environment, since
the initial raw material to the end of life of the final product. In opposition, if we
are thinking about services, it is mainly a question of organizational and operational
practices and mindset, as in most cases, changing common practices is enough to
reduce the consumption of energy, water, materials, or products.

2.2 Industrial Growth and the United Nations’ Initial

Concerns

The GDP growth felt since 1950 was mostly based on industrial and technological
developments. Under the alerts disseminated by environmental organizations and
starting to feel the extreme climate events, governmental organizations were pressed
to act, preventing the increasing damage perpetrated by humanity against Nature. The
main sources of pollution and emissions have been identified, allowing for studies
on how to minimize or reverse these environmental attacks.
The first concerns regarding pollution were highlighted for the first time in the
USA in late 1960s, by the National Environmental Policy Act, which only passed
to national law in 1990 (Pollution Prevention Act), culminating in the creation of
Cleaner Production Centers (CPC), denominated at that time as pollution preven-
tion centers (UN 2017). Likewise, pollution concerns were put on top in the United
Nations Conference on Human Environment, which took place in Stockholm in
1972. In this conference, some problems such as population growth, water reserves
and consumption and desertification were dealt, giving rise to the Stockholm Dec-
laration, which highlighted the need for acting on pollution prevention. Prior to
1990, the Industry and Development Seminar also debated the creation of Cleaner
Production Centers, anticipating the 1992 Earth Summit. Thus, in 1991 Norwegian
and Polish Non-governmental Organizations (Norske Sivilenginores Forening and
Naczelna Organizacja Techniczna) created the first CPC supported by the Norwe-
gian and Polish governments, which the main goal was to raise awareness, conduct
training, develop trainers, and build a framework between Cleaner Production and
environmental management system (EMS). Also, in 1992, environmental technology
transfer mechanisms were faced in an effective way, through the “Rio Declaration.”
Indeed, in 1992 the concept of National Cleaner Production Center (NCPC) was
2.2 Industrial Growth and the United Nations’ Initial Concerns 17

promulgated, conducted by the principles formally drawn up in Agenda 21, as result

of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (Earth Summit)
in Rio de Janeiro (Brazil). In the same year, the Swiss government established CP
as a priority field, developing assertive ways to disseminate and operationalize tech-
nology transfer for developing countries by the creation of NCPCs able to redesign
manufacturing processes toward environmental sustainability. This program, carried
out by Swiss Secretary for Economic Affairs (SECO), consisted in providing tech-
nological assistance to other centers installed in different countries. In 1993, under
the suggestion of the forthcoming NCPC Program, Australia gave its first step in
the Cleaner Production direction through the creation of the Australia Center for
Cleaner Production, translating the strong commitment of Australia’s main agents
with Cleaner Production. The main activities of this center, as well as others, were
to provide the necessary consultant services to companies, promote technological
transfer and general Cleaner Production education, having as funding associated
members, institutions and sponsors but, unfortunately, the center failed in 1996 and
closed in 1997.

2.3 Early Stages and Evolution of the Cleaner Production

2.3.1 Cleaner Production in the Oceania

Unlike the stated by Brown and Stone (2007), Boyle (1999) had the perception that
even though the increasing number of programs encouraging the practice of CP
policies, the adhesion of small- and medium-sized companies were not in accor-
dance with what was desirable, mainly due to the lack of governmental legislation
and community awareness to produce less waste, suggesting at that time a closer
actuation of government and market-based agents in order to promote the required
mindset change through legislation and education. In that work, 11 recommendations
were drawn regarding the improvement of CP policies application in New Zealand.
However, the analysis carried out by Brown and Stone (2007) 8 years later shows
that New Zealand faced the CP concerns in a different point of view. Indeed, the
New Zealand society faced the environmental concerns in a really positive way, not
needing a set of specific regulations as in Europe to act favorably regarding envi-
ronment preservation and society well-being. New Zealand legislative process was
based on a consultative practice, resulting in agreements with the industrial sector,
namely the packaging and dairying activities, as well as new strategies for resources
management (energy and waste). The activity around CP became more evident at
the turn of the century with a significant growth of NGO (non-governmental organi-
zations) working in this field, developing founded projects in a competitive business
base with the industrial community and society in general. Later, the availability
to share information, cooperate and act in a concerted way seems to be improved
and there are initiatives showing a planned approach to funded project businesses
18 2 Cleaner Production Main Concept and History

in this field in New Zealand. Thus, New Zealand shows the power of initiative and
willingness enough to pursuit its way in CP policies without a strong regulation such
as in Europe. A study performed by Collins et al. (2007) through a survey taking into
account more than 800 enterprises refers that big companies are more available to be
engaged in CP programs and practices than the others, pointing out the need of small
and medium companies to obtain more information regarding this issue. Moreover,
for these kinds of companies, costs are referred to as a handicap to a more intensive
application of CP practices, affecting the companies’ competitiveness. However, it
remains clear that excess of regulation is not needed neither is the best way to pursue
the best CP practices, remaining the mindset education of senior management as the
steering factor to increase the best environmental practices.
Regarding the Malaysian situation (Yusup et al. 2015), and contrary to the New
Zealand willingness to adopt CP practices, the environmental protection rules and
regulations are the main driver that impel companies to follow CP principles, being
the ownership consciousness the key factor on the company decision to have environ-
mental care or not. Moreover, different activity sectors show dissimilar willingness to
adopt CP practices, being the electric and electronics sector one of the most significant
manufacturing sectors in the Malaysian economic context (59.1% of the Malaysia’
exports), also being one of the sectors that show a greater openness to the implemen-
tation of sustainable practices of CP. Furthermore, companies which present ISO
certifications like ISO 14001 or ISO 9001 show a greater engagement with CP best
practices. Hence, there are yet opportunities to improve logistic systems, as well as
recycling activities and the use of chemicals in some industrial processes, becoming
closer these activities with the real recommendations of CP practices. Despite the
regulation implemented by the National Green Technology Policy of Malaysia, there
is still much to do regarding the mindset of the companies’ ownerships, being one
of the main factors that need to be focused on in the near future.

2.3.2 Cleaner Production in Europe

A study regarding the Cleaner Production concept in Lithuania carried out by

Kliopova and Staniskis (2006) depicts the Lithuanian situation, showing that the tex-
tile industry was the leading sector at that time, with 81% of the investment having
been made in the optimization of that sector of activity, resulting in a more efficient
use of electrical energy, heat energy and water, as well as a reduction of wastew-
ater volume and contamination. On the other hand, the focus of the food industry
was centered on decreasing energy consumption, reduction of the use of chemicals,
and minimization of the waste generated. It was possible to observe that a strong
effort was also made in the food and beverage industry in order to modernize the
equipment used in the manufacturing process, helping to implement CP principles.
The study also reveals that there are different needs depending on the activity sec-
tor. Thus, sectors such as the food industry, wood transformation, or stockbreeding
mainly need programs able to manage the waste generated by their processes; hence,
2.3 Early Stages and Evolution of the Cleaner Production 19

the investments around CP need to be addressed to waste processing and recycling

or reuse. Furthermore, the furniture industry adopted new energy sources, burning
their own waste and generating by this way the necessary heat/energy for their pro-
cesses. Moreover, because many technological advances have been registered in the
last decades, equipment needs to be upgraded, being an excellent opportunity to
select processes and equipment complying with the main requirements of the CP
concepts. Regarding the textile, furniture and electronics industries, a new chemical-
related risk management system was designed regarding workplace exposure and
the environment, according to the CP policies.
After some of the first initiatives previously referred, developed countries
expanded their Cleaner Production centers to other developing countries, dissem-
inating their knowledge and promoting the necessary training activities and tech-
nology transfer. By this way, they are able to provide the essential technical assis-
tance and catalyzing investments for CP sustainable actions. These centers were
usually co-funded by the countries involved through bilateral agencies for develop-
ment and some international projects. However, these Cleaner Production Centers
were focused mainly in technology transfer, minimizing the progress of local skills,
and knowledge. This program was successfully carried out between 1994 and 1995 in
Central and Eastern Europe. Also, in 1994, some Norwegian and Norwegian–Russian
centers co-funded by both countries were established by initiative of the Norwegian
Government, through the World Cleaner Production Society (WCPS), in cooperation
with the Russian Authorities. In the meanwhile, the network of centers in Central
and Eastern Europe was extended until September 1997, supported by the USAID
(United States Agency for International Development) and the WEC (World Envi-
ronmental Center) (UNIDO 2017).
In fact, the first eight NCPCs started their work in 1995, sparking wide-ranging
interest. Since then, many other NCPCs have been established, mainly supported by
UNIDO (United Nations Industrial Development Organization) and UNEP (United
Nations Environmental Program), having in 2015 NCPCs around 58 countries
(UNIDO-UNEP 2015), as well as other similar initiatives carried out by other devel-
oped countries. In this way, NCPCs have created local expertise and framework,
sharing information, and enabling the development of international programs and
activities. However, even after more than 20 years of activity, these centers remain
necessary, as can be understood by the relatively small progress felt in terms of
emission reduction and the difficult negotiations usually carried out among the more
industrialized countries.
UNIDO also settled a procedure to associate Cleaner Production assessments with
local environmental management systems, environmental management accounting
and environmentally sound technology assessment, in order to boost the Transfer of
Environmentally Sound Technology (TEST), increasing in this sense the environ-
mental engagement of companies in order to reach the international standard levels.
This work was mainly carried out in Croatia, Hungary, and Slovakia through the local
NCPCs. The established cooperation and procedure were firstly implemented in 17
of the most polluting companies in the Danube region, encompassing five countries:
Bulgaria, Croatia, Hungary, Romania, and Slovakia. The project has resulted almost
20 2 Cleaner Production Main Concept and History

in full because all industries had completed Cleaner Production and environmentally
sound technology assessments, 11 of them successfully implemented an environ-
mental management system and other six became able to proceed to environmental
management accounting. The actions implemented had no cost for 212 companies,
and other 109 companies implemented low-cost actions. The total investment spent
in the implementation of those actions was USD1.7 million, inducing annual sav-
ings of about USD1.3 million. Moreover, an annual reduction of 4.6 million m3 in
wastewater yearly released in Danube was also attained. Other 141 high-cost actions
were also identified, but just 38 had been managed to gather consensus regarding
their implementation before the project completion, having been estimated costs in
the order of USD47.3 million for these 33 actions (UNIDO 2017).
The situation in Turkey was also analyzed by Yüksel (2008), showing that even
after running CP programs for more than 10 years and despite all the environmen-
tal concerns, the companies’ managers have the perception that CP policies are a
cost driver, seeing as well the cost of “hard technologies” as the main difficulty to
implement end-of-pipe engineering solutions. However, regarding the survey carried
out and the results obtained from 105 big companies, the managers stated that com-
panies are complying with the legal requirements of environmental protection and
the benefits obtained are according to the expectations generated by the investments
performed under the pollution prevention programs. Thus, the managers seem able
to adopt a more proactive position in the future. Nevertheless, the preference of these
managers lies essentially on end-of-pipe technology. The concept of CP is some-
what applied to the product and processes, through design care. However, services
are not usually considered regarding environmental concerns, resulting in deficient
reverse logistics needs for product recycling. This problem is accentuated by the
lack of programs able to support the recycling process. Furthermore, the integration
of production planning with the environmental issues is referred as unruly, making
more difficult the establishment of CP practices regarding materials management.
Moreover, the government seems that it is not doing its best in order to improve the
awareness of people and enterprises regarding the environmental concerns. Despite
the excellent conditions for the utilization of renewable energy, Turkey has felt dif-
ficulties in support programs capable of inducing its use by its companies.
The post-Soviet Eastern Europe deserved the attention of The Norwegian Society
for Chartered Engineers, which designed a CP training and coaching program tai-
lored to industry technical managers. The program was firstly issued in Poland, with
the collaboration of the Polish engineering society. Successful results were reported
at the end of 1994, with a waste reduction in the range of 20–40% regarding the group
of 150 businesses covered by the program, corresponding to 20 beneficiary sectors.
Furthermore, the investment needed was almost inexistent and was identified reduc-
tions of around 30% only possible with small investments (USD67,000) in CP tech-
nologies/hardware, which predicts annual savings around USD351,000. Between
1992 and 1996, 46 companies from the Czech Republic were covered by an identi-
cal program, reaching total annual welfares of USD7 million. The ratio between the
money spent and the benefits achieved was about 1:12. The successful results attained
induced the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) to
2.3 Early Stages and Evolution of the Cleaner Production 21

develop special programs for transitional countries until 2001, offering professional
training, focused information, in-plant demonstrations and other practical actions, in
order to improve the Cleaner Production capacity of those countries (UNIDO 2017).

2.3.3 Cleaner Production in Asia

In Japan, the Global Environment Centre Foundation (GEC) worked together with
the UNEP-IETC (International Environmental Technology Center) since 1995 and
during three years, promoted the transfer of Environmentally Sound Technologies
(ESTs) as well as information, stimulating the compilation of data and disperse
information which was categorized under five electronic databases called NETT21
(New Environmental Technology Transfer in the Twenty-First Century), divided
into the following issues: air pollution control technology, waste management tech-
nology, water pollution control technology, and on-site green techniques (OGT).
The GEC has made this information available on the Internet, allowing access not
only to Japanese institutions, but all over the world. This information has also been
used as the subject of several international seminars, where GEC intends to disclose
information already collected and validated. However, the technical information dis-
seminated by GEC is essentially based on “end-of-pipe” technology, since the main
purpose of this institution is pollution control, thus leaving forgotten some concepts
formulated in Agenda 21. Nevertheless, the perception of the importance of ideas
like zero emissions and waste reduction has been deeply ingrained in the Japanese
society for a long time. Hence, the only thing missing is the effort of combining all
these concepts, creating the necessary means to join the “hard technologies” used in
the “end-of-pipe” techniques, with the “soft technologies” related with products and
processes management. Thus, in 1998, the Cleaner Production Technology Promo-
tion Committee and working group were created. The Promotion Committee had as
main focus the formulation and evaluation of Cleaner Production technologies cri-
teria aiming developing nations, while the working group was engaged on assessing
and investigating the technologies collected, checking if they were in agreement with
the criteria previously referred. In 2005, GEC carried out a study in order to realize if
the first version of the database created was serving the interests of the communities
assessed, realizing that the interest from the industrial community remained very
high, but new focus of interest was emerging from other areas such as restaurants
and other activities in the services sector. Following these conclusions, the GEC
databases were updated in 2007, including the new sectors which had remarkable
interest in pursuing CP policies out of the manufacturing sector. Since then, the GEC
has been refining the database, not only in newly included sectors, as well as those
included in the initial version (NETT21 2017).
Between 1995 and 1996, some actions were also carried out in other Asian coun-
tries such as Taiwan and Singapore through the USAEP (United States Asia Envi-
ronment Partnership) and local industrial confederations, which had as main activity
22 2 Cleaner Production Main Concept and History

the promotion of seminars and workshops for industry CEO’s in order to improve
the sensitivity of who decides in terms of investment policies within the companies.
Other programs with less impact have been also carried out by UNIDO, such as
DESIRE (DEmonstrations in Small Industries for Reducing wastE) program between
1993 and 1994 in India, with the main emphasis was in waste minimization and having
as focus 12 companies distributed by sectors such as pesticides formulation, pulp and
paper and textile production, giving rise to a novel methodology which attracted the
attentions and followers of other Asian countries interested in waste minimization
practices.
Similarly, China participated in an UNEP CP program carried out based on an
Environmental Technical Assistance project assisted by the World Bank, which
intended to perform Cleaner Production audits to companies, identifying and imple-
menting new industrial practices which allow remarkable profits (2.9 Million USD)
comparing with the investment (less than 100.000 USD) done in the first stage of the
program. The same program was extended and in 2001, the China Cleaner Produc-
tion Promotion Law was launched, imposing mandatory audit provisions, after the
UNEP UNIDO Waste and Emission Audit and Reduction Manual Implementation
and industrial audit training program (UNIDO-UNEP 2015). An analysis made by
Peng and Liu (2016) draws a very pessimistic picture about the current situation in
China, with regard to CP policies and application. In fact, these authors refer that
despite all the efforts carried out to promote CP, the achieved results are clearly
modest because most of the policies established by the Chinese Government are on
a voluntary base, merely encouraging the adoption of those policies. Thus, Chinese
companies do not feel pressured to follow the governmental recommendations by
law, preventing their application because CP policies are perceived as capital con-
suming, not showing short-term profitability. Resuming, the motivation to adopt and
follow CP policies in China is relatively weak (Chang et al. 2015). Furthermore,
regarding some authors, CP does not seem to be a flag for the Chinese Government
(Peng and Liu 2016). Though, due to financial limitations of many Chinese compa-
nies, it seems clear that a government financial support is being needed in order to
incentive enterprises to promote CP and sustainable practices, centralizing the avail-
able information and creating a CP online service able to improve the cooperation
with foreigner institutions (Zhang et al. 2016).
Also in Asia, in September 1998, the international declaration on Cleaner Produc-
tion was adopted at the 5th International High-Level Seminar held in South Korea, as
follows: We understand Cleaner Production to be the continuous application of an
integrated, preventive strategy applied to processes, products and services in pursuit
of economic, social, health, safety, and environmental benefits. This statement has
contributed decisively so that CP should be understood as something broader than
just the pollution control, enlarging the concept to the product design and life cycle.
In May 2014, the APRSCP (Asia–Pacific Roundtable on Sustainable Consump-
tion and Production) provided a new platform able to be used by multi-stakeholders
from Asia and the Pacific in order to share experiences and lessons learned in new
sustainable consumption and production (SCP) technologies and strategies, through
exploration of available information on how to get financing, monitoring and/or eval-
2.3 Early Stages and Evolution of the Cleaner Production 23

uating the SCP implementation (Charmondusit et al. 2016). The APRSCP assumes
itself as an international institution focused on Asia concerns about SCP, remaining
as a non-governmental and non-profitable institution which intends to promote the
cooperation in the region, improving the skills and developing the implementation of
sustainable consumption and production strategies. The APRSCP remains in action
through a conference that takes place yearly in different places in that region, serv-
ing as driver force for new achievements in the CP field, impelling the industrial
community to do more and more for a better environment in the region (APRSCP
2016).
The CP ideas in India were widespread through Waste Minimization Circles
(WMC). Normally, each WMC comprises four to six enterprises considering the
same geographical area, starting the program with a two-day intensive training about
CP models related to industrial activity, covering some relevant areas such as prior
environmental and economic policy experiences; Cleaner Production ideas, welfares
and organization; WMC action and preparation guidelines; activity planning, and
orientation. Afterward, applicants meet about twice monthly for roughly one year
under the supervision of the organizer, while applicants apply CP concepts and prac-
tices in their businesses, reporting and exchanging with partners their experiences.
Furthermore, one year after the formal end of WMC actions, applicants continued
to meet regularly and were stimulated to establish spin-off WMCs on their own. The
success of this initiative gave rise to more than 120 WMC actions between 1995
and 2003 funded by Ministry of Environment and Forestry and by World Bank, con-
cerning more than 500 small companies from 37 industry sectors across 17 States of
India in a total investment higher than USD2.5 million and estimated overall payback
within 14 months.
The approach carried out by NCPC in Vietnam followed other principles, focus-
ing essentially on technical and management training of local experts, involving
Cleaner Production skilled personnel from local universities and technical institutes,
as well as staff from the companies. The training program consisted of four training
modules totaling 15 training days, including theoretical and practical lessons into
companies. The number of plant assessments totalized 42 by the end of 2002, with
12 projects concluded in that year and generating around USD1 million of annual
savings. The success of the prior actions gave rise to organization of the first national
Cleaner Production roundtable, which appealed 150 participants on behalf of gov-
ernment, industry and academics, establishing new goals for 2005 through an action
plan. Moreover, Vietnam NCPC established environmental and quality management
systems, which were certified regarding ISO 14001 and ISO 9001 standards in 2002.
Also in Vietnam, some institutions such as International Trade Centre (ITC),
International Labor Organization (ILO), Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO),
and United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) under-
took a program focused on poverty reduction in villages where the main subsis-
tence mode was handicraft activities, through the improvement of sustainable value
chain for products based on natural materials such as silk, bamboo, rattan and sea-
grass, as well as others with associated labor such as handmade paper and lacquer-
ware. CP assessments were performed in about 50 crafts companies, along with the
24 2 Cleaner Production Main Concept and History

introduction of sustainable design concept, preparing 65 trainers in order to later

widespread their knowledge by 1430 crafts households.

2.3.4 Cleaner Production in the Middle East

Regarding the particular situation of Egypt, in the Middle East, and even after more
than 20 years since the creation of CP concepts, industrial companies are yet at an
early stage on their evolutionary process. The culture subjacent to the managing pro-
cess has led to a reactive positioning when subject to external incitements, such as
international sponsoring programs. Incentives have been given under the assumption
that companies beneficiaries of these funds have carried out actions capable of being
identified through environmental audits, conveying their experience to other com-
panies. However, the conclusions of a survey performed by Sakr and Sena (2017)
showed that this approach is not enough to produce the desired results, being neces-
sary to induce a proactive mindset in managers in order to assume their responsibil-
ities in terms of environment protection and CP action.

2.3.5 Cleaner Production in North America

The United States of America (USA) is one of the most industrialized countries,
contributing heavily to the pollution generated in the world. USA adopted the name
of pollution prevention instead of CP, which program is usually called 2P. The study
of Miller et al. (2008) describes the main legislative steps done between 1969 and
1990, since the National Environment Policy Act (NEPA) to the Pollution Prevention
Act (PPA). The initial approach was made imposing regulations which had to be met
by the polluters, having programs to fund the necessary actions in order to clean
waterways, reduce air pollution and decontaminate lands. But, in 1980, the USA
launched the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability
Act (CERCLA), establishing that polluters must pay, allowing for a cleaning pro-
cess of contaminated areas, situation that started to affect the competitiveness of
companies’ and, moreover, the Act lead the industrial community to realize that pol-
lution treatment was not the best way for the future, being necessary to drastically
cut pollution generation and energy consumption, changing products and processes,
as well as looking at waste engendered and excess of spent resources in a differ-
ent manner. This new sensitivity of the community was felt in mid-1980s, giving
rise to the Era of Strategic Environmental Management (1985–1994), emphasizing
the care in pollution prevention instead of pollution treatment. At the beginning
of this Era, a greater attention was given to chemicals used in manufacturing pro-
cesses which bring potential risks to human life and the environment, through the
Toxic Release Inventory (TRI), impelling the industry to reduce their use and calling
the community’s attention to the danger that they represent. Moreover, through an
2.3 Early Stages and Evolution of the Cleaner Production 25

Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) challenge which registered the partici-

pation of 1294 companies, they were invited to reduce the release or transfer of 17
chemicals (Bai et al. 2015) with recognized harmful effect on the environment by
33% from 1988 to 1992 and 50% from 1988 to 1995. The compromise established
by those companies generated reductions estimated in 230 million kilograms. The
program allowed to achieve a combined reduction of emissions of 64%, showing
that these initiatives and programs lead to better results than pure governmental leg-
islation. The commitment of some big companies with the environment has been
commendable throughout the history of pollution prevention in the USA. Compa-
nies such as DuPont, Dow Chemicals, Xerox, or 3M launched their own programs
and a competitive game among them, regarding the reduction of harmful chemicals.
The positioning of 3M’s manager Joe Ling deserves a vibrant applause, starting the
3P program (Pollution Prevention Pays) in 1975 and defining a new way for product
development, starting by the change of materials, processes and equipment leading
to reducing of waste generation since the product design phase, clearly in line with
the current concept of CP. These companies reported economic benefits when estab-
lishing these programs directly linked to the reduction of pollution-related actions.
From 1985 to 1990, some EPA reports were edited, trying to prepare for the envi-
ronmental challenges of the 1990s. Around 1990, several initiatives boosting CP
policies were carried out in the USA. EPA launched the Design for the Environment
(DfE) and product stewardship initiatives, the American Chemistry Council (prior
Chemical Manufacturers’ Association) started with its Responsible Care program
and pollution prevention was included in the ISO 14000 and ISO 9000 standards.
Also, an environmental mission statement was adopted by companies as a commit-
ment with the 10 elementary principles established by Coalition for Environmental
Responsible Economies (CERES). An increasingly number of companies have been
adhering to these principles, enlarging the base of companies working under the same
principles, taking also advantage of economic benefits and of an improved percep-
tion seen by the community and consumers. Since 1993, the Federal Government
Performance and Results Act implies that everyone receiving federal funds needs
to apply metrics in order to measure their impact according to the strategic plans of
the funding agencies. The report “An Ounce of Pollution Prevention is Worth Over
167 Billion lb of Cure” was edited by EPA and NPPR (National Pollution Prevention
Roundtable) and intended to illustrate ten years of pollution prevention in the USA
between 1990 and 2000. Besides, a succeeding report launched in 2003 revealed truly
amazing achievements: 78,500,000 t of pollutants reduced, less 180,000 L of water
consumed, savings for companies around 900 million Euros, and a rate of return of
investment of 5:1. Nevertheless, time has showed that focus is sometime disturbed
by other factors such as business competition needs, public support decrease, and
high complexity of the P2 documentation. Additionally, other factors have shifted
the attention of the society of the USA such as war, terrorism education, political
changes and health care, relegating to the background pollution prevention and CP
policies and actions. In the meantime, P2Rx were created as a national network of
regional pollution prevention information centers devoted to increase the adoption of
pollution prevention by improving the dissemination of relevant information, serving
26 2 Cleaner Production Main Concept and History

as the first source of information regarding P2 programs, increasing the availability

of information about P2 programs and policies and enabling regional networking
around these concerns. The survey carried out as a result of the evaluation process
of the EPA PPIN (Environmental Protection Agency Pollution Prevention Informa-
tion Network) Grant Program showed a considerable reduction of hazardous and
non-hazardous wastes (29% and 27%, respectively), as well as an elimination of 7%
in both wastes. However, in the same survey, 51% of the respondents did not know
the amount of reduction achieved in their companies or if any reduction had been
attained (EPA 2008). Regarding the same report, almost 50% of the respondents
did not know if the P2Rx had promoted a positive effect on the economic perfor-
mance of their business, saving time, and costs. The situation was not significantly
different for companies under the TAP (Technical Assistance Program/Provider)
support. Assessing to the EPA Web site, it is possible to realize that this agency is
permanently working through new programs and 4 years strategic plans regarding
the environmental preservation, both through information dissemination and other
focalized actions. Regarding the EPA-190-K-17-002 report (EPA 2017), the main
goals achieved in 2016 were the following ones:
• Providing resilience training and tools to nearly 4200 operators of small water
utilities to address aging infrastructure, significant weather events, and other issues;
• Cleaning up more than 9600 additional sites and making them ready for anticipated
use;
• Completing more than 1000 chemical assessments related to pesticides and com-
mercially available chemicals;
• Working with state and tribal partners through E-Enterprise for the environment
to create Web-based mechanisms and mobile phone applications which increase
access to information and reduce regulatory compliance and reporting burden;
• Completing 136 confirmatory tests on emissions and fuel consumption for light-
duty vehicles.
Thus, it is possible to realize that a difficult path is being traveled by EPA in order
to improve environmental preservation mechanisms, trying to involve businesses,
communities and the general public, making available relevant information, coordi-
nating funding programs, investigating and identifying chemical risks, and carrying
out actions leading to the best environmental practices.

2.3.6 Cleaner Production in Latin America

There was always a big difference between the CPCs in developed countries and
countries under development. The CPCs in developed countries present the advan-
tage of having a well-established funding process, allowing for better Cleaner Pro-
duction policy integration and development, taking advantage of the rules already
established in terms of preventing pollution and the framework implemented between
institutions and companies. On the other hand, the CPCs installed in countries under
2.3 Early Stages and Evolution of the Cleaner Production 27

development have been more oriented to provide services, information, and educa-
tion about Cleaner Production, i.e., tending to act more in a passive way than in an
active manner. Therefore, it is not strange for these centers to be characterized by a
miscellaneous management between national and foreigner people, making harder
to keep coherent and active policies that are perfectly oriented with the interests of
these countries. Thus, these centers have had as main activity sharing information
and promoting technology transfer than acting proactively in the development of
national capabilities and influencing the establishment of appropriate legislation to
comply with more restrictive rules about pollution.
In fact, the UNIDO/UNEP NCPC Program has had an important role in terms of
providing stakeholders the opportunity to share information, improve their ability to
increase Cleaner Production policies and implement sustainable Cleaner Production
practices through international cooperation. This program was converted into another
one called “UNIDO-UNEP Joint Global Resource Efficient and Cleaner Production
(RECP) Program for developing and transition countries”, widening the idea related
to the name according to the evolution felt from the original concept to the current
one. Moreover, taking advantage of the experience already acquired by UNIDO and
UNEP, CECPnet was created in Latin America, aiming to foster and contribute to the
effective and efficient development, application, adaptation, and replication of RECP
concepts, methods, policies, practices, and technologies in developing countries and
countries with economies in transition, and to facilitate effective North–South and
South–South collaboration (UNIDO 2017). At the end of 2014, the success of the
UNIDO-UNEP RECP Program was clear, with 58 centers spread by 56 different
countries in Europe, Asia, Africa, and Latin America. In September of 2015, the city
of Davos, in Switzerland, held a celebration.
Despite sometimes seen as a group of developing countries, many efforts have
been done in order to improve manufacturing processes, trying to diminish the envi-
ronmental impact of its industry. Mainly due to the proximity to the USA and eco-
nomic reasons, Mexico has grown at very interesting rates in terms of GDP directly
related to the industrial sector in the last three decades. In 1997, a program based on
demonstration of the CP advantages was created in Mexico. For this purpose, seven
foundries were selected in the city of San Louis Potosi, having been identified 103
improvement opportunities, mostly related with energy consumption reductions and
materials exchange and/or usage decrease, which will lead to savings about 80,000
USD. From the opportunities identified, 42% of the recommendations were actually
employed and other 36% realized as viable for implementation in the near future.
Moreover, another important outcome was extracted from the program: a Cleaner
Production best practice manual was created regarding the sector of castings.
Between 1998 and 2002, UNIDO supported the first regional program of NCPCs
installation including three countries (Costa Rica, El Salvador, and Guatemala) under
the supervision of the NCPC already existing in Nicaragua since 1997. Simultane-
ously, an initiative carried out by the Canadian Development Agency in Honduras
about CP was also reported. Regarding the program implemented in Guatemala,
El Salvador, and Costa Rica, the results at the end of the program relatively to the
number of companies included were satisfactory: 70 companies in Guatemala, 48
28 2 Cleaner Production Main Concept and History

companies in El Salvador, and 41 companies in Costa Rica. These companies act

mainly in the food industry sector, as well as in agro-industry. Moreover, twelve
environmental management system assessments were performed in El Salvador and
Costa Rica. Furthermore, synergies among these countries were attained, allowing
for the exploration of opportunities in areas such as standardization, coordination
and training, claiming as one voice for new regulations in an effort to catch up with
developed countries in these matters.
In order to overcome some problems related to the need of investments and lack
of guarantees able to be given by companies in Colombia, the Swiss Government
supported an established program leading to better assessment of companies to loans
for Cleaner Production preapproved projects. This project, called Green Credit Line,
was later extended to Peru and Vietnam. Furthermore, the program presented some
other benefits to the adherent companies because, upon an independent evaluation of
the environmental gains accomplished after the investment concluded, the company
could receive a compensation of up to 15% or 25% of the loan contracted, through
the NCPC local organization, depending on the level of compliance of the project
and gains effectively achieved. The success of the program can be analyzed by
the following numbers: between 2003 and 2015, loans contracted under the Green
Credit Line program reached the amount of USD12.4 million in Colombia, and a
total of USD3.4 million was reimbursed by the companies through the support of the
NCPCs. The steel company Aceros Industriales was one of the beneficiaries from this
program, having made a total investment of 640,000 USD replacing the chemical
surface treatment by a mechanical one. The benefits were clear: less 400 ton of
greenhouse gases produced and lessened downtime lead to profits of about 500,000
USD per year to the company directly related to the process exchange and investment
done. Regarding the previously refereed, the company also received a reimbursement
of 200,000 USD from Green Credit Line due to the successful results.

2.3.7 Cleaner Production in Africa

As is well-known, Africa is a less industrialized continent, where pollution is a

concern not due to massive industrialization, but, in most cases, essentially because
of more permissive regulations. Indeed, there is a lot of contradictions in this region
as it is optimal for polluting companies to settle in, due to low labor costs and lack
of significant restrictions in terms of environmental care requirements. A downside,
however, is the fact that industries are faced with some lack of training of potential
workers and other important obstacles, such as political concerns. Still, industrial
activity is growing in Africa, namely in the countries in Northern Africa and in
South Africa.
In 2002, Austria and Switzerland established a supporting program for South
Africa in order to establish NCPCs in that country, which was kept until the end of
2008. Over these six years, the NCPC implemented Cleaner Production assessments
in 52 industrial companies focused essentially on three of the most polluting sectors:
2.3 Early Stages and Evolution of the Cleaner Production 29

chemical industry (26 companies), agro-food (21 companies), and textile industry
(five plants). The Department of Environment and Tourism was the local institution
responsible for establishing the best strategy, coordinate and implement the CP action
plan together with the NCPC. The program actions consisted on making available
information and awareness, financial support, local installation of technology, coop-
eration in training people on operating the new technology, and support on how to
create the necessary regulation. After the completion of the six-year program, the
NCPC responsibilities were transferred to the Council for Scientific and Industrial
Research (CSIR), an independent unit managed by an executive committee with
mixed participation in the business sector and the government. In the meantime, the
basis for a sustainable funding of the above-mentioned council was ensured under a
competitiveness program developed by the South Africa Department of Trade and
Industry.
Kenya was also one of the first African countries to welcome NCPCs. However,
later, a specific program around Lake Victoria was developed in terms of environmen-
tal management, integrating that country, as well as Burundi, Uganda, Tanzania and
Rwanda, which was carried out between 2009 and 2015 under the funding support
of the Swedish Government through a World Bank loan. This program, essentially
coordinated by the NCPC in Kenya, is started by the identification of the main sources
of pollution providing from Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania, targeting 88 companies
as responsible for the discharge of about 7000 ton of pollutants in the lake. Several
improvements were proposed and implemented, improving as well personnel train-
ing about environmental management. It can be refereed as an example the case of the
Kenyan Kitumbe Tea Factory where several improvements were undertaken, namely
rainwater harvesting, LED lighting and solar drying, among others, leading to a 60%
reduction in specific water use, as well as a 20% reduction in energy consumption.
The total investment done in the first 30 companies’ adherent to the program was
USD81 million, leading to annual savings estimated in USD15.5 million. From the
USD81 million previously refereed, about USD65 million were spent in end-of-pipe
technology regarding wastewater treatment in just three companies, conducting to
savings of USD2.3 million. Thus, the investments cannot be considered in a propor-
tional ratio with the gains achieved, as can be seen in this case, because the other 27
companies spent smaller amounts of money, which payback was surely lesser than
18 months. Later, the program was extended to Burundi and Rwanda following the
same methodology.
Between 2009 and 2012, UNIDO implemented TEST in Egypt, Morocco, and
Tunisia, in partnership with the NCPCs already existent in those countries, as well as
with some related technical centers. Under this program, a total of 43 companies were
studied and received support regarding the implementation of Cleaner Production
assessment, employment of environmental management system and environmental
management accounting. At the end, 76% of the actions were undertaken, among the
765 ones previously identified as necessary, in a total investment of approximately
USD20 million (average of USD465,000 per company) in order to attain annual
savings of approximately USD17 million (average USD400,000 per company). It
30 2 Cleaner Production Main Concept and History

can be also highlighted that this project led to annual savings of 9.7 million m3
of freshwater and 263 GWhr, which represent important natural resources savings
(UNIDO 2017).

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