Success factors and stories

Success Factors

Essential Elements

Projects must exceed current compliance objectives
Projects must result in measurable decreases in waste, emissions, etc.
Be entered into voluntarily by both partners (i.e., government and company)
Drivers needed inside and outside an industry or company
Inside – need support of senior management as champions and change advocates
Outside – industry associations, regulatory groups, trade councils, community and environmental groups, and government as change advocates
Requires a shift in corporate culture to perspective that “P2 opportunities exist and are good for business”
Measurable goals and deadlines for meeting goals
Agreed upon baseline data to set priorities, goals and targets
Transparent tracking and reporting mechanisms to track progress and report results
Full cost accounting system to incorporate the cost of storage, handling, treatment and disposal of waste, and costs associated with risk, liability, and risk avoidance
A formal environmental review carried out on the company's site/operations including inputs, outputs, processes, emissions and wastes
Retention of the permitting/regulatory regime
In large companies, involvement of business units and line departments
Education and training in P2 processes, techniques, models, etc.
For major initiatives, community/public input on identifying P2 issues and opportunities, priorities, goals and deadlines
Government involvement in P2 planning and monitoring of initiatives so as to protect the integrity of the overall process
Periodic performance review by company or qualified consultant
Public reporting of progress and environmental performance

Desirable Elements

Partnership approach – industry, public/NGO and governments
Integration with other environmental management tools, such as ISO models
Stakeholder consultation/participation in projects
Positive economic return/decrease in costs
Pro-active initiative (as opposed to enforced change)
System of incentives (government support, award programs, tax credits)
No regulatory barriers to implementation
No confidentiality barriers
Involvement of outside P2 expert
Measurement process should be subject to audits by qualified third parties
Group facilitator

Success Stories

Success stories can encourage companies and organizations to develop and implement their own P2/CI practices and there is no shortage of pollution prevention success stories. An Internet search using the phrase “pollution prevention success stories” yields 300 to 400 matches.?
Industry associations can do much to inform their members through newsletters, conferences and other means, and businesses themselves have been a key source of pollution prevention success stories. Several examples have been selected and are summarized below.

If you want to refer to these stories, the references are included in CASA's pollution prevention/continuous improvement project team final report. Environment Canada also has a list of Canadian P2/CI success stories.

Dow Chemical

Few organizations have achieved as much success in preventing pollution as Dow Chemical. Although some critics may claim there are a limited number of P2 and Energy Efficiency (E2) opportunities, Dow has proved otherwise. In 1981, Dow's Louisiana Division, in the face of rising energy costs, held a contest to reduce energy use with projects that provided a minimum 100 percent return on investment (ROI). In the first year, 27 out of 39 proposed projects survived the review process and were instituted. They cost $1.7-million to implement and delivered a 173 percent ROI.

This impressive result left employees feeling that all opportunities had been tapped. However, the following year the contest yielded 32 projects costing a total of $2.2-million and yielding an ROI of 340 percent. In the third year, the program was expanded to include waste reduction; 38 projects were selected with an implementation cost of $4-million and a 208 percent ROI. This contest was eventually formalized as “WRAP” – Waste Reduction Always Pays. Over a 12-year period, Dow implemented 936 projects with ROIs averaging between 97 and 470 percent. Of these, 575 projects were audited, verifying savings of more than $110-million per year and an average ROI of 204 percent. Dow attributed the success of the WRAP program to creating an environment of teamwork and cooperation among plants, which continually built momentum toward bigger and better projects with higher ROIs.

More recently, Dow's Midland, Michigan chemical manufacturing facility initiated a project to reduce toxic wastes and emissions using only P2
techniques. Partners included the Natural Resources Defense Council, Greenpeace, and other community activist groups and individuals. Through the implementation of 17 projects, this initiative reduced facility emissions by 43 percent, from one million pounds to 593,000 pounds per year. Similarly, facility wastes were reduced by 37 percent, from 17.5 million pounds to 11 million pounds per year. These reductions exceeded the goal of a 35-percent reduction, with a total capital investment of $3.1-million. Dow estimates the initiative will save the company $5.4-million annually through raw material cost savings and reduced waste treatment costs, for an overall annual rate of return of 180 percent.

The success of Dow at Midland showed that:

The common belief that cost-effective waste and emission reduction projects did not exist proved false.
A key barrier to implementing P2 projects is prioritization from engineering and R&D personnel.
Many P2 projects, while small in terms of capital, have a large impact on waste and emissions and are often overlooked in the capital authorization process.
Dow engineers were not well recognized for working on small projects.

Closer to home, Dow Chemical Canada has reduced emissions and energy consumption at its Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta facility by eliminating a chlorine liquefaction process. This P2 success story involved making process modifications to allow the chlor-alkali plant to feed its chlorine product directly into the vinyl chloride monomer plant without any intermediate processing. Historically, the chlorine was liquefied and purified prior to use. By eliminating this intermediate step, 1,300 tonnes of liquid chlorine inventory were removed, the source of 10 tonnes per year of fugitive chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) emissions was eliminated, and 29,700 tonnes of CO2 emissions were avoided due to reduced energy consumption.?

3M Company

The 3M company has also had success with pollution prevention. From 1975 to 1999, 3M's 3P-Pollution Prevention Pays-program has prevented 807,000 tons of pollutants and saved the company
$827-million. The 3P program depends directly on the voluntary participation of 3M employees. Innovative projects are recognized with 3P awards. A 3P coordinating committee representing the engineering, manufacturing, and laboratory functions, along with the Environment, Health and Safety group, administers the program.
General Industry.

In a 1998 paper, Miriam Pye presents 15 case studies across a wide range of industries that have successfully combined P2/E2 technologies and strategies to enhance the environment, productivity, and the bottom line. Improvements were seen through reduced energy and material costs, lower disposal costs, reduced liability, increased sales, improved product quality, and improved working conditions. Cumulatively, these benefits translate into increased shareholder value.?

Small Business

Pollution prevention also offers business development opportunities to small business.

Amici Enterprises Inc. of Calgary received a 1998 Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment Pollution Prevention Award for its innovative invention – the Envirowrapper, a reusable, lightweight pallet wrapper. Made of durable polypropylene or polyethylene and fitted with special straps and easy-release buckles, each Envirowrapper can be reused to wrap pallets for three to five years. In most applications, the wrappers pay for themselves in less than a year. Currently one of the most popular methods of transporting products is by putting them on pallets and then applying plastic stretch wrap to the load to reduce shifting or toppling. The plastic can be used only once; new plastic wrap must be applied each time a pallet is reloaded. When a shipment reaches its destination, the used plastic wrapper is disposed of as waste, or recycled where programs exist. The reusable Envirowrapper provides an effective, reliable and environmentally friendly alternative to stretch wrap for stabilizing and protecting pallet loads. Using the Envirowrapper reduces the amount of plastic stretch wrap being used and disposed of in landfills, or through recycling programs.?

Amici also received an Emerald Award for Small Business. The Emerald award is given for demonstrated commitment and/or introduction of products and services to the environment.

Alberta Environment

Governments also have success stories to share. For example, in July 2001, Alberta Environment published a report that summarized some of the key steps that have been taken to reduce pollution from pulp mills and oil sands operations in northern Alberta where industries and municipalities have already implemented a range of pollution prevention
initiatives.

Awards and recognition programs

Awards and recognition programs are one way of delivering success stories and the Pollution Prevention Awards given out each year by the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment is a good example.

Alberta Environment Focus on Pollution Prevention and Conservation
ARET: Accelerated Reduction/Elimination of Toxics
CCME pollution prevention awards
Canadian Pollution Prevention Information Clearinghouse (CPPIC)
Extended producer Responsibility & Stewardship
Information Technology (IT) and Telecommunication (Telecom) Waste in Canada
Marine debris in Canada
The National Office of Pollution Prevention
Pollution prevention fact sheets
Pollution prevention: a federal strategy for action
Pollution prevention: the formula for a cleaner environment
Pollution prevention: Fact sheets
Pollution prevention: Canadian success stories
Pollution prevention Web site and publication links – Ontario Region
Progress in Pollution Prevention 1998-1999