Pollution has always been harmful to the environment and public health, but businesses are just starting to take pollution prevention seriously.
Is it because of a newfound concern for the birds, bees, trees and Homo sapiens?Not necessarily. It's money. The bottom line. Profit.
Thanks largely to governmental regulation - and the threat of more of it - cleaning up your business' act is finally becoming the right thing to do.
"An ounce of prevention is worth a ton of regulation," Gov. Mike Leavitt told a group of business people assembled recently at a pollution-prevention workshop sponsored by the state Department of Environmental Quality.
Last year, the department organized the Utah Industrial Pollution Prevention Workgroup to identify and promote ways that companies can reduce waste and harmful emissions into the environment. The recent workshop was one in a series in that effort.
Leavitt and DEQ Director Dianne Nielson told the 100 or more in attendance that if the state's industries do not do more to prevent pollution, the government will step in and impose prescriptive regulations.
That would be a costly alternative that would harm Utah's "comparative advantage" in the nation's marketplace, Leavitt said.
Nielson said voluntary pollution control may also help to tone down existing governmental regulations and will reduce a company's civil liability in the event of an environmental mishap.
"We're committed to a pollution-prevention program that works in Utah, that can remain voluntary and can show some benefits and gains," Nielson said.
One of the workshop's speakers, chemical engineer Debra Coury, told participants that choosing the correct pollution-prevention program for a business is like an individual's choosing the correct exercise program.
Though high-technology is an option, she suggested that companies first start with a low-tech approach to pollution-prevention, which is known by the abbreviation "P2." Here are some ideas:
- Talk about P2 in safety and management meetings.
- Recycling aluminum cans and paper.
- Use two-side photocopies.
- Contact the DEQ's P2 coordinator at 536-4480 for more ideas.
- Involve all employees in every department.
The workshop also featured seminars on handling used tires, paint, oil and batteries; increasing energy efficiency; and success stories of companies that have reduced pollution.
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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
A wrong is righted
Inside the conference room recently, state and business officials talked about how companies can reduce waste and pollution. But in the adjacent hallway, where canned juices and soft drinks were being served, conference hosts had neglected one small detail: a bin for recycling the aluminum cans. After a guest pointed out the irony, the hosts promptly fashioned a recycling bin from a cardboard box.