Ohio Pollution Prevention and Waste Minimization Planning Guidance Manual

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Chapter 7
Establish the Pollution Prevention Program

"Pollution prevention plans can get people to think about the alternatives, but action requires leadership and incentive."

Tom Zosel, 3M

Executive Level Decision

Top management support is critical to get a pollution prevention program started, to incorporate it into already existing activities, and to sustain it. Specific types of support needed from management include: assigning responsibility for progress evaluation, allocating time and budget, and recognizing achievements. Continuity of the pollution prevention program is important. It should be set up in such a way that one step can flow naturally into the following step in a continuous cycle.

Suggestions on how to garner the support of all levels of management include providing them with information on some of the benefits of implementing a pollution prevention program. Include the following topics:

cost savings through reduced raw material use and reduced waste, handling, transportation and storage costs
increased productivity
improved product quality
regulatory compliance
worker health and safety
reduction of potential long-term liability
examples of what other similar companies have achieved
improved public/corporate image

To get all management levels interested in developing a pollution prevention program and to increase their knowledge about the subject, bring to their attention case studies from other successful companies. Bring in outside speakers to talk about benefits of developing pollution prevention programs. If the company or facility already has some exceptional pollution prevention activities underway, consider applying for the State of Ohio Governor's Awards for Outstanding Achievement in Pollution Prevention. Just the act of applying for this or other awards can result in more commitment from all levels of management.

Policy Statement

To begin a successful pollution prevention program, draft a brief written policy statement in support of a pollution prevention program. Obtain endorsement of the policy by all management levels and then distribute to all employees. In some cases, developing a corporate-wide policy statement can be a lengthy process. Rather than allow this procedure to delay proceeding with the program, an interim policy or area-specific policy can be developed. This can get the program started; the corporate policy can follow later.

As with other policy statements your company develops, your pollution prevention policy statement should state why a program is being established, what is to be accomplished in qualitative terms, and who will do it. Two example policy statements are given in Figure 2. They differ in level of detail, but both answer these key questions:

Why are we implementing pollution prevention?: We want to protect the environment while saving money.
We want to save money while protecting the environment.
What will be done to implement pollution prevention?: We will reduce or eliminate the amounts of all types of waste, and we will improve energy efficiency.
Who will implement pollution prevention?: Everyone will be involved.

Figure 2. Policy Statement Examples
POLICY STATEMENT EXAMPLE 1 --- "(Your Company or Facility Name) is committed to excellence and leadership in protecting the environment. In keeping with this policy, our objective is to reduce waste and emissions. We strive to minimize adverse impact on the air, water, and land through pollution prevention and energy conservation. By successfully preventing pollution at its source, we can achieve cost savings, increase operational efficiencies, improve the quality of our products and services, maintain a safe and healthy workplace for our employees, and improve the environment. (Your Company or Facility Name)'s environmental guidelines include the following: --- Environmental protection is everyone's responsibility. It is valued and displays commitment to (Your Company or Facility Name). --- We will commit to including pollution prevention and energy conservation in the design of all new products and services. --- Preventing pollution by reducing and eliminating the generation of waste and emissions at the source is a prime consideration in research, process design, and plant operations. (Your Company or Facility Name) is committed to identifying and implementing pollution prevention opportunities through encouraging and involving all employees. --- Technologies and methods which substitute nonhazardous materials and utilize other source reduction approaches will be given top priority in addressing all environmental issues. --- (Your Company or Facility Name) seeks to demonstrate its responsible corporate citizenship by adhering to all environmental regulations. We promote cooperation and coordination between business, government, and the public toward the shared goal of preventing pollution at its source." POLICY STATEMENT EXAMPLE 2 --- "At (Your Company or Facility Name), protecting the environment is a high priority. We are pledged to eliminate or reduce our use of toxic substances and to minimize our use of energy and generation of all wastes, whenever possible. Prevention of pollution at the source is the preferred alternative. When waste cannot be avoided, we are committed to recycling, treatment, and disposal in ways that minimize undesirable effects on air, water, and land." (Adapted from: Waste Reduction Institute for Training and Applications Research, Inc. (WRITAR), 1991, Survey and Summaries, and Minnesota Office of Waste Management, Feb. 1991, Minnesota Guide to Pollution Prevention Planning)

Consensus Building

A pollution prevention program needs to be viewed by all personnel in the facility as a way of doing business. It can be incorporated within a total quality management (TQM) program because it focuses on increasing efficiencies and more effectively utilizing raw materials. It also builds nicely on a health or environmental safety program because it can do the following: reduce the amount/toxicity of chemicals in the workplace; reduce short and long-term exposure of employees, visitors, and contractors; reduce or eliminate monitoring requirements; reduce air handling equipment requirements; and, reduce or eliminate the need for personal protective equipment.

The commitment from all employees to implement a pollution prevention program starts before any assessment or evaluations have been performed. It is measured as the time and effort needed to raise employee awareness, establish a cohesive pollution prevention team, and begin to incorporate pollution prevention ideas into the day-to-day operations of the company. Pollution prevention is a team effort. The people who enter the facility every day are the most valuable assets to ensure a pollution prevention program works well.