Cleaner production and industrial ecosystems, a Dutch experience

This article opens briefly with the recent discussions about the effectiveness of pollution prevention. As pollution prevention and cleaner production are important elements of industrial ecology, the different definitions and approaches of industrial ecology as a term also need clarity. The major part of this article reflects the first results of the cleaner production and industrial ecology concepts, applied in an industrial ecosystem project (INES) in the Rotterdam harbour area. In this industrial area with many refineries and (petro)chemical facilities, the possibilities for companies to reuse waste streams, by-products and energy from each other was researched. The project was initiated by an industrial association. Sixty-nine members of the industrial association joined the INES project and provided confidential information about their resources, products and waste streams to the research team. Based on this information, 15 projects were designed. The selected three projects for further feasibility studies showed the potency to reduce the use of energy, water and bio sludge significantly.     

Ecoprofit-Styria-prepare Thirteen pollution prevention case studies in the Styrian industry

The paper focuses upon the organization of a federal state-funded pollution prevention project in the Styrian industry. The project includes 13 companies from the textile, pulp and paper, machine building, wood working and printed circuit board manufacturing industries, covering most of the sectors and sizes in the Styrian industry. It started in January 1994 and will last for one year. It will demonstrate the possibilities of pollution prevention and the need for further research work. This project will make use of the methods and tools that were refined in the Austrian Prepare project. As a first step, a systematic balance of all the inputs and outputs of a company is made, after which the weak points and inefficiencies of material and energy use are identified and the options for improvements, both economical and ecological, are defined. Consequently, modifications in products and production lead to a situation with less waste and emissions. The preliminary lessons from these projects are presented: as a rule, the utilities (consumption of process materials and water, cleaning, energy, preparatory and finishing steps) are treated as black boxes and usually represent a considerable optimization potential. In these areas especially there is usually a lack of information and coordination as well as a need for a systematic and comprehensive approach. Leadership in the company and creative consultants are needed for starting lasting successful pollution prevention projects.     

Pollution prevention in China’s electroplating industry

Pollution prevention holds great promise for China as a strategy for curbing environmental degradation in the face of rapid industrial growth. This potential is demonstrated in the electroplating sector in China, where some firms are pursuing pollution prevention aggressively with results that include increased profits and significant cutbacks in pollution. We conducted research in four Chinese cities to investigate pollution prevention in the electroplating industry. Our study finds that firms with successful pollution prevention programs shared three main characteristics. First, they took a proactive approach towards cutting pollution. Proactive firms in our research employed pollution prevention as an overall environmental management strategy for their companies, and they possessed leaders and managers who demonstrated a strong commitment to pollution reduction goals and activities. Firms with successful pollution prevention programs also employed comprehensive environmental management systems. These systems assigned managers and workers responsibilities for pollution prevention through the use of rules, training, monitoring, and penalties and rewards. Finally, firms that undertook extensive pollution prevention measures employed staff with relatively high levels of technical knowledge and ability. Our results suggest that the aggressive adoption of pollution prevention by Chinese firms can help China address the widespread problems of inefficiency and poor management in Chinese firms, and the rapid spread of industrial pollution in rural areas.     

廊坊市2015年燃煤锅炉改造成效评估分析

为改善京津冀地区空气质量,2015年北京市安排专项资金支持廊坊市大气污染治理工作。到去年底,廊坊市超额完成相关治理项目,淘汰改造燃煤锅炉1 315台,实现SO2年减排量6 799 t,NO_x减排3 547 t,烟尘减排5 178 t,为廊坊本地及京津冀地区空气质量改善做出了贡献。针对2015年廊坊市燃煤锅炉淘汰改造工作进行了环境经济效益分析及空气质量改善效果评估。结果表明:该项大气污染治理工作具有较大的环境效益及显著的污染削减效果,从长远角度有利于京津冀地区的大气污染防治工作顺利开展及区域空气质量的改善。     

Eco-industrial park initiatives in the USA and the Netherlands: first lessons

Since the introduction of the industrial ecology concept by Frosch and Gallopoulos in 1989, and the apparent success of the Kalundborg Industrial Symbiosis project, attention to planned eco-industrial park (EIP) development projects has grown all over the world. This article includes data from six of these EIP development projects. Three of the projects discussed are located in the Netherlands and three in the US. This article compares the differences in project approach and results on a national level. The approach suggested is derived from the available EIP development literature.Initial research indicates that the Dutch EIP projects are more successful than their US counterparts. This difference in success can be, mostly, attributed to the fact that the US projects are initiated by local and regional governments that see the project as a way to improve the local/regional economy with access to substantial government funds. Because of this heavy government involvement, US companies are, in general, not interested in the project. The more successful Dutch projects, on the other hand, are mostly initiated by the companies themselves with financial and advisory support from the local and regional government.     

规模化养殖环境影响评价实证研究

随着畜禽养殖业的发展,养殖废弃物的产生量逐年增加,对环境的影响日益严重,为控制和治理养殖污染物的排放进行环境影响评价成为社会普遍关注的热点。通过对养殖项目环境影响评价工作的编制依据、评价标准的介绍,并以阜康市某规模化肉牛养殖项目为例,对其运营期环境影响进行评价,并提出相应的环境保护措施,为环保部门和企业的管理提供理论依据,并为规模化养殖项目污染的预防治理提供实践经验,最大限度降低项目建设对周围环境的不利影响,推动养殖业的可持续发展。     

The determinants mostly disclosed by companies that are members of the Carbon Disclosure Project

Concerns about climate change as a result of anthropic actions have led to an increase in the volume of information disclosed about it in the reports of companies that are members of the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP). In this context, the factors most disclosed remain obscure due to both the complexity of climate change impacts and the stakeholders’ different interests. This study aims to identify which factors are most disclosed in the reports of companies that are members of CDP. For this purpose, it is necessary to investigate if the factors indicated by managers and experts are the main ones disclosed in the reports of Brazilian companies that are members of CDP, as well as to identify which companies stand out in climate change disclosure based on these factors. To this end, 463 reports submitted by 48 companies between 2014 and 2016 were examined and 32 factors were investigated using the NVivo® software. Some companies submitted reports with unified titles, which reduced the sample. The results indicate that certain factors—prevention of pollution, prevention of loss, management of environmental assets, volume of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and climate change strategy—account for 50.03% of the total volume of information disclosed about climate change. The main lesson learned from this research is that climate change mitigation strategy is strongly supported by the evidence of corporate annual reports, and it has relation with the following determinant factors: pollution prevention, loss prevention, environmental asset management, GHG emissions, and the strategy chosen by the companies to deal with climate change. Due to the low volume of research related to loss prevention and pollution prevention, we have identified that little attention has been paid to these items. Based on our results, we recommend that climate change mitigation strategies begin to consider these determinant factors in their structure because both have a strong influence in demonstrating how companies are managing these factors for stakeholders. Therefore, companies can benefit from this data to manage their resources for the maintenance of the social contract (legitimacy) through the factors most disclosed, especially companies with lower scores on the scale of ranking presented. Hence, stakeholders can have access to more information on strategies that mitigate climate change and help companies improve the disclosure of the actions that contribute to reduction of GHG emissions.     

家具制造业VOCs全过程整治提升方案设计

家具制造业是我国VOCs污染防治的重点行业,企业污染防治水平普遍偏低,绿色升级改造需求迫切。由于缺乏行业全过程整治提升技术指导文件,如清洁生产评价指标体系、污染防治可行技术指南等,当前我国家具制造业环保整治提升呈现出很大程度的无序性,造成了人力、财力的浪费,且难以达到良好的整治提升效果。秉承清洁生产理念和依法科学精准治污原则,从源头削减(原辅材料替代)、过程控制、污染物收集、污染物治理、环境管理5个方面对家具制造业进行了VOCs过程整治提升方案设计,形成了清单式的技术指导文件,并提出促进家具制造业全过程整治提升的若干建议,以期为家具制造业的VOCs污染防控能力提升和环境管理部门监管执法提供技术指导。     

Advances in the treatment of multi-pollutant flue gas in China's building materials industry

In most of the world's building material industries, the control of flue gas pollutants mainly focuses on a single pollutant. However, given the large capacity and high contribution of China's building materials industry to global air pollution, the need to develop multi-pollutant emission reduction technology is urgent. Recently, China has focused on reducing the emissions of flue gas pollutants in the building materials industry, established many key research and development projects, and gradually implemented more stringent pollutant emission limits. This project focuses on the most recent advances in flue gas emission control technology in China's building materials industry, including denitration, dust removal, desulfurization, synergistic multi-pollutant emission reduction, and the construction of pilot research and demonstration projects for pollutant removal in several building material industries. On this basis, revised pollutant limits in flue gas emitted in China's building material industry are proposed.     

The evaluation of Cleaner Production performance in Lithuanian industries

The analysis of the Cleaner Production (CP)/pollution prevention concept application in Lithuanian companies demonstrates a number of opportunities in waste minimization and pollution prevention areas aimed at sustainable development.To compare the efficiency of various CP methods and to identify the preventive methods with the highest energy saving possibilities in different Lithuanian sectors of the economy the database “The implementation of Cleaner Production in Lithuania” was used. This database was developed in line with CP implementation methodology and contains technical, environmental, economic and financial information on implemented CP innovations in Lithuanian companies during the last decade. In addition, several applicable CP innovations are described in case studies.     

Pollution prevention and cleaner production in the mining industry: an analysis of current issues

This paper examines the major pollution prevention and Cleaner production (CP) issues in the mining industry. Past problems with pollution has made waste minimization an issue of enormous importance for many mining companies. Since the advent of the first major environmental legislation circa-1970, there has been substantial improvement in environmental performance at the mine sites of these firms, including a reduction in noxious air emissions, a decrease in levels of toxic contaminants in effluent discharges, and a major upgrading in land management. All of these improvements are directly attributed to a corporate abandonment of conventional, end-of-pipe apparatuses, and subsequent integration of cleaner technologies and strategies, including highly efficient environmental equipment, heavily retrofitted control systems, and comprehensive environmental management plans. Although hundreds of mining districts have already benefited from installing systems that foster pollution prevention and CP, in select instances, these have not proven to be realistic waste management remedies. Major barriers, particularly economic, technologic, and legislative ones, have both individually and collectively impeded the implementation of pollution prevention and CP strategies in such cases. Many of these barriers appear insurmountable but improved planning, employee education, and increased government intervention would spell continued success in an industry that has already made enormous strides in the arena of environmental management.     

清洁生产是防治化学工业污染的有效途径

叙述了少废无废的清洁生产的概念和内容，以及它在化学工业中的实施途径，指出工业污染控制必须从末端治理为主，转移到污染预防为重点的战略上来。无废少废的清洁生产是防治化学工业污染的有效途径，是谋求合理利用资源和保护环境的根本措施。     

清洁生产技术削污效果评估方法与案例研究

清洁生产技术从源头削减污染物的产生量,是清洁生产的核心。目前,国家将减排措施分为结构减排、工程减排和管理减排,但仅考核清洁生产中高费方案的减排效果,按清洁生产改造费用高低核算清洁生产减排效果的做法,削弱了清洁生产技术在减排中的重要作用。准确客观评价长周期条件下工业行业清洁生产技术的削污贡献,对认识清洁生产的长期减排规律和作用具有重要意义。通过建立清洁生产技术削污效果模型,计算火电行业1950—2013年清洁生产技术削污和末端减排技术减排效果。结果表明：64年间清洁生产技术削减SO₂累计达3.17亿t,是末端治理的2.3倍。从发展趋势看,中国火电行业末端减排技术的减排潜力已接近极限,而未来通过清洁生产技术的削污作用仍将持续增加。因此,强化清洁生产技术的研发、推广力度,是我国实现污染减排长期目标的必然选择。     

New approaches to pollution prevention in the healthcare industry

Since the 2000 inception of “Hospitals for a Healthy Environment” (H2E)—a US Environmental Protection Agency and American Hospital Association pollution prevention partnership—the healthcare industry has made a concerted effort to eliminate mercury and reduce other toxics.The Minnesota Technical Assistance Program (MnTAP), at the University of Minnesota, used H2E tools over the course of two years (2001–2003) to demonstrate the effectiveness of pollution prevention at healthcare facilities. As a result at least 22% of Minnesota hospitals are engaged in documented pollution prevention efforts. Twenty-nine facilities have eliminated 75% of their mercury or are working towards that goal. MnTAP was able to document healthcare facilities that have eliminated 394 lb of mercury, 751 gal of hazardous chemicals and 250,000 lb of solid waste, saving $152,600. MnTAP continues to provide pollution prevention assistance to the healthcare sector.     

中美制药工业水污染物排放标准比较分析

当今医药行业快速发展,是中国国民经济的重要组成部分,而制药工业废水污染控制也已成为影响规模化和可持续发展的关键问题。环境管理是政府管理职能和企事业单位经营管理的一个重要组成部分,对于制药工业,其水污染物排放标准体系更是环境监管和污染控制的基本依据。因此,通过分析比较中美两国环境管理体系和制药工业水污染物排放标准,得出两者各自的特点和异同,从而为进一步完善中国制药工业的污染防治和环境管理体系提供借鉴。     

The message and methods of ethical investment

This paper examines a high profile and often provocative segment of the financial industry: that of Ethical or Socially Responsible Investment. By offering an ethical or sustainable product which has the potential to influence so many stakeholders—the financial industry is in a unique position to guide change towards corporate sustainability. However, what message is ethical investment really giving to companies and the financial industry? Are ethical investors and their rating agencies capable of effectively influencing corporations towards more sustainable patterns of production and consumption; and are their approaches consistent with the principles of Cleaner Production? This paper first gives an overview some of the definitions ‘ethical investment’ and the scale of activities under this umbrella term. Then the actual screening methods and their application is examined. A typology of the different ethical mutual funds is given, and two cases of ethical funds are described (Robur’s Environmental Fund, and Sustainable Asset Management’s sustainability rating tool). Each are analysed in terms of their potential to either reveal or conceal cleaner production innovations by the firms they assess. In order to ascertain where Ethical Investment might lead companies, the effects of ethical investment on companies—and back on the asset management companies themselves is explored. A reflexive model of corporate and finance sector learning based on the ethical screens is proposed.     

Product service systems in the automobile industry: contribution to system innovation?

This article investigates the actual and potential contribution that product service systems (PSSs) can make in moving beyond incremental technological improvements towards a focus on behavioural changes and system innovation in the automobile industry. It begins by discussing the means by which existing and planned PSS initiatives can be evaluated in terms of their contribution towards innovation at the system level in the automotive industry. Building on and expanding earlier work, it is suggested that they should be assessed against an expanded set of five key evaluative criteria including: evidence of ‘higher-order’ learning amongst stakeholders; changes in infrastructure and institutional practice; changes in vehicle design, manufacture and end-of-life management; changes in vehicle ownership structure; and changes in modes of producer–user interactions. Following this discussion, the article provides a structured overview of some current and planned PSS initiatives at the empirical level in the automotive industry. The identified initiatives are then assessed against the key evaluative criteria in an effort to reveal their actual or potential contribution to meeting the sustainability challenges of the automotive industry. Based on this exercise, it is argued that since most current initiatives do not unify these key elements of a PSS in a single coherent system they do not constitute ‘complete’ versions of PSS, and therefore, fail to deliver the full range of envisaged benefits in contributing towards system innovation. The article concludes by outlining some key areas for future research into potential strategies to address such challenges.     

我国食品加工制造业水污染物排放标准存在问题及欧盟经验的启示

详细介绍了食品加工制造业的废水来源及特点,系统梳理了我国相关行业已经发布及正在制修订的水污染物排放标准情况,并就标准的适用范围、控制项目及限值进行了讨论。结果表明：我国相关行业水污染物排放标准适用范围覆盖不全面且存在交叉现象;不同标准的控制项目及限值类似,在一定程度影响了食品加工制造业水污染物排放的有效控制。为此,研究了欧盟食品加工制造业污染防治管理制度、产排污分析方法及全过程污染防治的理念;分析了欧盟该行业水污染物的排放控制。提出了我国开展该行业水污染物排放标准制修订工作的建议：强化全过程污染控制理念,增强产排污分析的科学性、系统性和改进水污染物排放标准体系设置。     

油基钻井液施工条件下井场HSE风险与防控

针对油基钻井液钻井施工特点,分析了作业过程中存在的火灾、燃爆、滑跌等安全风险,以及使用油基钻井液可能导致的环境污染和职业健康危害。结合现场实践,提出了油基钻井液钻井施工作业现场安全生产、环境保护和职业健康风险的防控对策,值得行业内油气勘探开发公司和工程服务公司借鉴。     

印制电路板清洁生产最佳可行技术以及污染减排研究

印制电路板行业属于高能耗及高污染行业,是我国实施清洁生产污染防治的重要领域。通过对印制电路板行业清洁生产污染防治技术现状进行分析,构建了清洁生产污染防治最佳可行技术(BAT)体系框架。对38家完成清洁生产污染防治技术改造的印制电路板企业进行调研,确定了印制电路板业清洁生产污染防治备选技术,利用层次分析法确定各评价指标权重,综合评价印制电路板行业清洁生产污染防治技术。通过评价提出印制电路板行业污染物减排建议。