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THE DUAL GOALS OF GREEN DESIGN
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WASTE PREVENTION
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BETTER MATERIALS MANAGEMENT
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Reduce:
weight, toxicity, and energy use
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Facilitate: remanufacturing, recycling, composting, and energy recovery
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Extend service life
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Green Design consists of two complementary goals. Design for waste prevention
avoids the generation of waste in the first place, design for better materials management facilitates the handling of products at the end of their service life.
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Source: U.S. Congress, Office of Technology Assessment, Green
Products by Design (Washington D.C., 1992), 8.
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Both state and local initiatives have been launched to encourage
source reduction; that is, decrease the amount of stuff that needs to be disposed of. Several states have enacted bans on flip-top cans and polystyrene-foam food packaging. Some
manufacturers and businesses have reduced the amount of product packaging, particularly plastic packaging and fast-food containers. Others, such as the computer industry and the
kitchen appliance industry, have policies under which the company will take back used equipment and disassemble, recycle old parts, and reconstruct the equipment. A bicycle company
manufactures bicycles that have been made from aluminum scrap and old soda cans.
In Texas, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality uses
outreach and educational programs to promote source reduction and recycling.
At each stage of a product's life cycle there will be environmental impacts. For example, timber harvesting for paper
and wood products may result in such environmental impacts as habitat destruction or alteration, erosion, and
subsidence. During the manufacturing phase of many products there are environmental impacts as well. One of the
by-products of the manufacture of bleached pulp and paper is the cancer-causing chemical dioxin, which is released
into the air, water, and land and finds its way into the animal food chain. Other products have environmental impacts
during their use, such as pesticides that can contaminate groundwater and surface water, chlorofluorocarbon solvents
(coolants) that destroy the ozone (these have been phased out in the United States), and fossil fuels whose by-products
cause smog. Then there is the environmental impact of handling and disposing of municipal waste in landfills.
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FYI
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Environmental Defense started a campaign to cut catalog waste, and to get catalog
companies to switch to recycled paper.
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At the design phase of a product, critical decisions are made about the materials used
(recycled or raw), the energy requirements (gas, electricity, solar), and the recyclability of the final product. These decisions determine the product's overall environmental impact.* "Green products" are those products whose manufacture, use, and disposal place a reduced burden on the environment."
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STAGES OF A PRODUCT LIFE CYCLE
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Source: U.S. Congress, Office of Technology Assessment, Green
Products by Design (Washington D.C., 1992), 4.
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