Contributor, The Textile Industry and the Environment, UNEP

I
4
CLEANER
PRODUCTION
TECHNIQUES
AND
PROCESSES
mplementation of cleaner production techniques at any manufacturing plant can help to reduce
effluent characteristics and volume considerably. It will also reduce the overuse of raw materials
and energy. The economic advantages gained by implementing cleaner production are twofold: it
will reduce both the costs of production and the need for costly end-of-pipe pollution control facilities.
At the same time, health and environmental impacts on plant workers and the surrounding community
arc reduced. Cleaner production techniques may be classified into three groups: water and
energy conservation, optimisation of chemical usage and process or equipment modifications.
• 4.1 WATER AND ENERGY CONSERVATION
Table 5 details some interesting statistics about water usage (per unit of production) in different sectors
of the textile industry. This data clearly shows a significant variation in water usage even within
each plant category, due to the differences in the washing cycles, washing equipment employed and
extent of water re-use. Where a large difference exists between the median and maximum values this
probably renects instances of indiscriminate water use including bad housekeeping. Sharp differences
between the median and minimum values may indicate instances of strict control over water
use and better housekeeping, water re-use or the selection of improved washing equipment.
Water conservation significantly reduces effluent volume. It is not unusual to find situations where
a reduction of more than 25010 in water usage can be achieved by following water conservation practices.
Common sources of water waste are excessive water use in washing operations and poor housekeeping
measures such as broken or missing valves, unattended leaks from pipes and hoses, instances
when cooling waters are left funning when machinery is shut down, etc. Implementation of strict
housekeeping measures such as plugging leakages, checks on running taps and the installation of water
meters or level controllers on major water carrying lines are examples of simple water con.servation
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