Reducing Waste Generation and Using Resources Efficiently - Essay Example

Reducing Waste Generation and using Resources Efficiently By Student’s Name Code+ course name Instructor’s Name University Name City, State Date Reducing Waste Generation from Source Introduction Wastes are a menace in many parts of the world including in the Victoria state government. When human beings production and consumption trends are not regulated, they tend to produce wastes at a level that exceeds the sustainability threshold. Also, population pressure continuously plays a greater role in increasing the amounts of wastes produced. Economic activities such as industrial growth and development, experience a positive trend that have a negative effect on waste management efforts when not involved. In the Victorian state, waste generation rates have established a marginal upward growth for the last decades and the trends still threaten to go up (Victorian State Government, 2015). Human activities can be regulated through policies that will involve a range of tools and equipment. Coincidentally, my approach would also be reducing waste generation in an attempt to ensure efficient use of resources. Wastes generation can be reduced before they are released to the environment. By doing this, every person will have used resources efficiently. Efficient resource use and wastes generation reduction are closely related and together can be an important tool for waste management. Waste management must ensure that solid wastes, liquid wastes and gaseous wastes are tackled effectively. This paper will discuss how the choice of reducing waste generation as an essential component to ensuring sustainable use of resources. Identification of Sources The first step towards a reduction in waste generation is to identify the sources that generate these wastes (Bortoleto, 2014). The main purpose of source identification is to establish a clear picture of a management strategy. Source identification must involve the various sources and an estimate of the wastes they produce, the type of waste as well as the possible effect of such wastes to the environment. After identifying these factors, the profile can be established that ranks the types of wastes and the risks associated with such waste. Sources identification technically helps establish chemical nature of wastes, and that can help in identifying possible substitutes (IPCC Guidelines for National Greenhouse Gas Inventories, 2006). The various sources of wastes include learning institutions, household sector, commercial sectors, industrial sectors, and the municipal. According to IPCC Guidelines for National Greenhouse Gas Inventories (2006), learning institutions mainly produce wastes made up of paper and electronic wastes. Paper wastes do not pose much threat to the environment since they can easily be recycled. However, E-waste can have the hazardous effect that human beings must approach. E-waste generation can be reduced at the institutional level through some ways that include purchasing electronic equipment with specifications that allow upgrading and ability to serve multiple purposes within the institution. Commercial wastes are mainly made up of vegetable wastes from the groceries and plastics wastes from packaging material. Generation of such wastes can reduce through using alternative eco-friendly packaging materials. The organic materials can find proper use such as generation of biogas or compost. The household sector is one of the major waste generators. The household sector produces almost all types of the wastes produced by the commercial sectors, institutional sector, and the industrial sectors. The household sector is one major threat when it comes to minimizing wastes at source. Technically, the household sector only transforms a range of product into wastes, and thus the sources remains the sectors that provide the household with products and services (UNEP, 2002). The industrial sector has to find an alternative to raw materials responsible for wastes that can be solid waste, liquid wastes and gaseous wastes. Training and Sensitization Training and sensitization should aim the main sources of wastes such as the industrial sectors (Baas, 2005). Training must ensure that target groups are not only discouraged from using certain materials but provide an alternative that such sectors can use. Failing to provide alternative technologies will derail any effort meant to reduce waste generation at source. Also, the initial cost of implementing such technologies should be feasible to encourage sectors to take part. Training and sensitization should help in capacity building among various sectors. One of the topics that training can center on is cleaner production technology. Cleaner Production Technology Cleaner production technology is a technology that aims to reduce the generation of wastes rather than managing wastes after they are produced (Nilsson, et al., 2007). A cleaner production that is well implemented can increase efficiency of raw material use in an organization and reduces the cost associated with managing wastes. The cost associated with managing wastes can include license fee, legal fees and penalties due to waste generation. Cleaner production can involve a cut in the materials or energy used in various sectors of the economy and a cut in the hazardous material used in a production process. It can also include a cut of material used in a production process, control on the use of water in a given sectors and cleaner energy options for the various sector in the economy (Sterner & Coria, 2013). The main areas that cleaner production focuses on are efficient resource use and energy use that eventually result to reduced generation of wastes. Cleaner production requires a holistic approach, and, therefore, various groups should be involved. For efficient cleaner production technologies, there must be an intensive research training and sensitization. Cleaner production has to follow certain steps that will ensure success. According to Misra (2012), the first step is to identify resources that currently serve as inputs in the production sectors. Establishment of cleaner production goals should then follow the initial step. In this case, the main goal for cleaner production is to reduce waste generation at source. A cleaner production assessment will be necessary to establish technical applicability as well as economic feasibility. The assessment helps in the development of an implementation plan for a cleaner production technology. Later further opportunities and technologies that emerge can be incorporated in the cleaner production technology to ensure efficiency of the technology in the production processes. Cleaner production helps the production sectors reduce over-exploitation of the natural resources as well as reducing the rates at which wastes are generated in the environment (Anon, 2010). Only the needed resources are obtained thus the rate of waste generated with regards to production is reduced. In energy use, cleaner production recommends that cleaner renewable energy uses substitute non-renewable energy like coal that not only pollute the environment but also are also derived finite. Wastes related to energy use such as nuclear wastes, and gaseous pollutants are eliminated. The concept of cleaner production can be enhanced through; informing and promoting the idea to the public, building capacity and improving institutions, adjust influences the influencing effects from the market, establish legal measures, and establish an economic support fund, subsidies, and enhancing cooperation with stakeholders. Policy Instruments More policy instruments can be established that will ensure that efforts to reduce waste generation are enhanced across an economy. The Victorian State Government (2015) used the same approach by establishing enforceable laws within its area of jurisdiction. The policy instruments for the environment are in most cases are classified as regulatory instruments, market-based instruments, and information-based instruments. Policy Instruments Institutionalization of a new concept such as greener production has first established a policy framework (UNEP, 2002). A cleaner production policy framework requires intertwined strategies that are multifaceted to enable streamlined enforcement. The approach seeks to change the traditional reactive approach to the current policies to a proactive approach that is more preventive. A policy framework should, therefore, be integrated into the sector related to production such as the environment, factory, resource prices, trade, and technology. There is a range of shifts that can be used that include a legal framework changes, alteration of the economic instruments, and change in the cultural behavior that relates to business and production. Regulatory Instruments According to Sterner & Coria (2013)Regulatory instruments for long have served as a major policy instrument towards environmental protection. The institution mandated with quality standards sets standards upon which conformity of the set standards are investigated and monitored. Regulation may have the explicit articulation of environmental goals such as reducing waste generation should be well addressed in regulatory instruments. The state authority can locally establish cleaner production strategies and programs that are workable and enforceable. The goal to reduce waste production and preserve the environment is realistic and attainable thus fit as a major goal for cleaner production. Market-Based Instruments Market-based instruments aim to incorporate externalities that cause market failure (Misra, 2012). The external cost of a firm waste generation effects is incorporated into a company’s private cost and an environmental cost or liability established. The main ways through which such a condition can be attained is by taxation, creating a proxy market and creating property rights. Cleaner production efforts can largely benefit from taxes and charges that can enhance production practices. Also, collected revenue can be channeled back to fund various incentives meant for cleaner production. Conclusion Reducing waste generation is one of the major goals of the Victorian state government. Increasing population increase the demand for goods and services that in turn exert pressure to increase production of goods and services. Such pressure may be unsustainable in such a way that they can lead to the waste generation and inefficient resource use. One of the major steps to undertake is to establish the sources of waste generation. Later, a cleaner production technology has to be adopted that will include all stakeholders in the Victorian state government. The aim of the cleaner production is to reduce the generation of wastes from source within the county. Bibliography Anon., 2010. Environmental and Natural Resources Economics: Theory, Policy, and the Sustainable Society. Revised ed. New York: M.E Sharpe. Baas, W. L., 2005. Cleaner Production and Industrial Ecology: Dynamic Aspects of the Introduction and Dissemination of New Concepts in Industrial Practice. Kansas: Eburon Uitgeverij B.V. Bortoleto, P. A., 2014. Waste Prevention Policy and Behaviour: New Approaches to Reducing Waste Generation and Its Environmental Impacts. Revised ed. New York: Routledge. IPCC Guidelines for National Greenhouse Gas Inventories, 2006. Waste Generation, Composition and Management Data. Rettrieved on December 5th , 2015 from http://www.ipcc-nggip.iges.or.jp/public/2006gl/pdf/5_Volume5/V5_2_Ch2_Waste_Data.pdf Misra, K. B., 2012. Clean Production: Environmental and Economic Perspectives. Illustrated ed. New York: Springer Science & Business Media. Nilsson, L. et al., 2007. Cleaner Production: Technologies and tools for Resource Efficient Production. Rettrieved on December 5th , 2015 from https://www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:604269/FULLTEXT01.pdf Pearson, M., 2007. Choosing Environmental Policy Instruments: Case Studies of Municipal Waste Policy in Sweeden and England.Rettrieved on December 5th , 2015 from http://etheses.lse.ac.uk/909/1/Persson_choosing_environmental_policy.pdf Sterner, T. & Coria, J., 2013. Policy Instruments for Environmental and Natural Resource Management. Revised ed. Florida: Routledge. UNEP, 2002. Changing Production Patterns: Learning from the Experience of National Cleaner Production Centres. Illlustrated ed. London: UNEP/Earthprint. Victorian State Government, 2015. Getting Full Value: The Victorian Waste and Resource Recovery Policy. Rettrieved on December 5th , 2015 from http://participate.sustainability.vic.gov.au/Sustainability-Victoria/documents/15646/download Read More