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Sustainable Industrial Design and Waste Management
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attitudes is the most challenging and the most important step in applying
the cleaner production concept.
The conceptual and procedural approach to production which demands
all phases of the life cycle of products, must be addressed with the objective
of the prevention or minimization of short- and long-term risks to humans
and to the environment.
One factor in defining cleaner production is therefore the reduction in
production costs that results from improved process efficiencies. In terms of
investment the key difference is that investment in end-of-pipe technologies
“treatment” is nearly always additional investment, whereas investment in
cleaner production always pays. This has obvious implications for employ-
ment and production cost.
A useful definition of cleaner production needs to take account of
the distinction between technologies and processes. For example, a process
may be made “cleaner” without necessarily replacing process equipment
with cleaner components – by changing the way a process is operated, by
implementing improved housekeeping or by replacing a feedstock with a
“cleaner” one. Cleaner production may or may not, therefore, entail the use
of cleaner technologies. Investment in cleaner production via the imple-
mentation of clean technologies is clearly easier to identify than investment
in cleaner production by any other means. Whatever the method employed
to make production cleaner, the result is to reduce the amount of pollutants
and waste generated and reduce the amounts of non-renewable or harmful
inputs used.
Most of the developed and developing countries are working toward
zero pollution not only in industrial sectors but also in vehicle emissions to
reduce gaseous emissions to allowable limits and in other sectors such as
construction and agricultural. To approach zero pollution, industry should
prevent all pollutants from its effluent. The cleaner production hierarchy to
eliminate all pollutants and approach zero waste/pollution should start from
raw material selection through to recycling and all the way to product mod-
ifications in order to avoid end-of-pipe treatment as will be explained through-
out this chapter.

2.2 Promoting Cleaner Production
The UNEP launched the Cleaner Production Program in 1989 in response to
the need to reduce worldwide industrial pollution and waste. Positive future
expectations exist for the spread of the cleaner production concept, as it
combines maximum effect for the environment with significant economic
savings for any business.
Although it is up to industry to adopt a cleaner production concept, the
role of government is required to encourage industries to begin their own CP