Page 43 - Design for Environment A Guide to Sustainable Product Development

22 Chapter Two

Principle 1 summarizes the basic tenet of sustainable develop-
ment, that we should not compromise the quality of life for our
descendants, which provides the foundation for most of the subse-
quent principles.
Principle 2 suggests a conservative posture toward uncertain
environmental impacts, which has already been manifested in regu-
latory responses to issues such as carcinogens in food products. This
principle is closely tied to traditional “command and control” notions
of environmental protection and has often been resisted by the busi-
ness community for justifiable reasons. There are numerous exam-
ples of over-regulation which erred on the side of caution.
Principle 3 articulates the seeds of a new approach, wherein envi-
ronmental concerns are integrated into the development process. This
book argues that the only way to meet the other principles in an eco-
nomically viable fashion is to accomplish such integration at the ear-
liest stages of product and process development.
Principle 4 represents the “stick” which has forced many reluc-
tant business people to confront environmental issues. The threat
of government decision makers assigning pollution taxes to selected
industrial sectors is certainly a forceful “wake-up call.” When the
Clinton Administration floated a proposal for a “carbon tax” in 1993,
it resulted in vociferous lobbying on the part of industries that felt
they would be unfairly penalized. Although that proposal was even-
tually quashed, similar approaches were adopted in other nations,
including extension of the notion of producer responsibility to waste
recovery and “product take-back” regulations.
Senator Max Baucus, Chairman of the Committee on Environ-
ment and Public Works, gave a glimpse of future legislative trends
when he stated in 1993:

The cornerstone of my strategy rests on the principle that …
anyone who sells a product should also be responsible for the
product when it becomes waste. Thus, the costs associated
with collecting, sorting, transporting, reprocessing, recycling
and returning materials back into commerce can be internal-
ized and reflected in the price of the product.

Indeed, another document from the Rio Summit, Agenda 21, laid
out a blueprint for how the “polluter pays” principle should be
implemented. To reduce the rate of solid and hazardous waste gener-
ated, it recommended setting targets for specific waste reductions in
industrial processes and promotion of “cleaner” production methods
as well as recycling of wastes. It also recommended government sup-
port for research and development into environmentally sound tech-
nologies in order to stimulate businesses to practice sustainable
development. The European Union (E.U.), Japan, and other nations
have taken these prescriptions to heart. As discussed in Chapter 3,
the E.U. has issued a series of directives aimed at waste reduction.