458 Preventing and Reducing Harm from Toxics
Clean Production
Technologies and methods exist to produce and sell products without causing
pollution or toxic waste. Clean production protects people’s health and the
health of the environment.
How a paper factory uses clean production
Renewable
wind energy
Heat and fumes are
collected, processed,
and used, not
released into the air
Paper
factory
Finished paper
Sustainably
managed trees
and forests
Water is reused
and treated
before discharge
Recycled paper
A paper factory uses trees, water, electricity, and chemicals such as chlorine.
A clean production paper factory reduces pollution by using:
• mostly recycled paper, and trees from sustainably managed forests.
• a renewable source of energy (such as solar or wind energy) rather
than electricity from fossil fuels such as oil or coal.
• no chlorine or other toxic chemicals.
• as little water as possible. Water is reused several times and then
treated to make it safe to put back in the environment.
Most industries can use a clean production process. Heat from factories can
be used to generate electricity, and waste products from one process can often
be used as materials in another. Clean production can reduce waste to almost
nothing. And because clean production reuses materials and energy, it also
saves money.
But because companies usually do not pay to clean up or prevent the
pollution and harm they cause, they usually must be forced by popular
pressure or government regulation to change to clean production methods.
A Community Guide to Environmental Health 2012