Manual on the Development of Cleaner Production Policies ... - Unido

DEVELOPMENT OF CP POLICY
MODULE 4: POLICY TOOLS AND INSTRUMENTS
EXAMPLE
Toxics Release Inventory in the United States
One of the first and most comprehensive PRTR systems is the Toxics Release Inventory of the United
States, which provides publicly accessible information on toxic chemical pollution from
manufacturing facilities throughout the country. It includes information on chemicals released into the
local environment; how much of each chemical went into the air, water and land, or was transported
for off-site treatment in a particular year; how chemical wastes were treated at the reporting facility;
the efficiency of waste treatment; and finally, pollution prevention and chemical recycling activities
implemented at the facility. Some states chose to go beyond the PRTR requirements, as was the case,
for instance, of the Massachusetts’Toxics Use Reduction Act (TURA).
Since 1984 Brazil has attempted to maintain a national environmental information system, although it
has faced difficulties in coordinating federal and state environmental agencies. Chile has had its
national system of environmental information since 1994.
Argentina has opted for another method of providing the public with environmental information and
exerting pressure. The National Secretary of Natural Resources and Human Environment has been
granted the legal right to publish a list of violators of environmental regulations, causing negative
publicity for the offending industries.
http://www.epa.gov/tri/index.htm
Public environmental reporting
Private enterprise and global markets have emerged as powerful economic forces in the twenty-first
century, and the impact of business on the environment has attracted much attention in governance and
policy debates. There has been significant progress in harmonizing financial reporting, and external
financial reporting is guided by a widely accepted, common framework of principles and practices as
to what should be reported or how, when and where.
Public environmental reporting is relatively new, dating back to the mid-eighties, and should not be
confused with a PRTR system. A public environmental report (PER) is the voluntary public
presentation of information about an organization’s environmental performance over a specified
period, usually a financial year. An organization’s report may be published as a stand-alone document,
a web site or as part of an annual report.
In putting together a PER, an organization has an opportunity to gain a comprehensive overview of the
environmental aspects of its operations, since the information presented to its stakeholders is generally
developed after examining current systems and processes and planning cost-effective improvements:
• First, an environmental audit allows a close look at current operating practices. Energy and
material use is recorded as well as any waste occurring during operations;
• Second, the organization identifies areas where resource savings and waste reduction could be
made and sets targets for these improvements;
• Third, systems are set up to meet the targets, monitor progress, identify ongoing improvements
and develop formats for reporting performance and progress.
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