Environmentally friendly

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A sewage treatment plant that uses solar energy, located at Santuari de Lluc monastery in Spain.
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Environmentally friendly speed warning powered by solar and wind power.

Environment friendly processes, or environmental-friendly processes (also referred to as eco-friendly, nature-friendly, and green), are sustainability and marketing terms referring to goods and services, laws, guidelines and policies that claim reduced, minimal, or no harm upon ecosystems or the environment. [1]

Contents

Companies use these ambiguous terms to promote goods and services, sometimes with additional, more specific certifications, such as ecolabels. Their overuse can be referred to as greenwashing. [2] [3] [4] To ensure the successful meeting of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) companies are advised to employ environmental friendly processes in their production. [5] Specifically, Sustainable Development Goal 12 measures 11 targets and 13 indicators "to ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns". [6]

The International Organization for Standardization has developed ISO 14020 and ISO 14024 to establish principles and procedures for environmental labels and declarations that certifiers and eco-labellers should follow. In particular, these standards relate to the avoidance of financial conflicts of interest, the use of sound scientific methods and accepted test procedures, and openness and transparency in the setting of standards. [7]

Regional variants

Europe

Products located in members of the European Union can use the EU Ecolabel pending the EU's approval. [8] EMAS is another EU label [9] [10] that signifies whether an organization management is green as opposed to the product. [11] Germany also uses the Blue Angel, based on Germany's standard. [12] [13]

In Europe, there are many different ways that companies are using environmentally friendly processes, eco-friendly labels, and overall changing guidelines to ensure that there is less harm being done to the environment and ecosystems while their products are being made. In Europe, for example, many companies are already using EMAS[ citation needed ] labels to show that their products are friendly. [14]

Companies

Many companies in Europe make putting eco-labels on their products a top-priority since it can result to an increase in sales when there are eco-labels on these products. In Europe specifically, a study was conducted that shows a connection between eco-labels and the purchasing of fish: "Our results show a significant connection between the desire for eco-labeling and seafood features, especially the freshness of the fish, the geographical origin of the fish and the wild vs farmed origin of the fish". [15] This article shows that eco-labels are not only reflecting a positive impact on the environment when it comes to creating and preserving products, but also increase sales. However, not all European countries agree on whether certain products, especially fish, should have eco-labels. In the same article, it is remarked: "Surprisingly, the country effect on the probability of accepting a fish eco-label is tricky to interpret. The countries with the highest level of eco-labeling acceptability are Belgium and France". [16] According to the same analysis and statistics, France and Belgium are most likely of accepting these eco-labels.

North America

In the United States, environmental marketing claims require caution. Ambiguous titles such as environmentally friendly can be confusing without a specific definition; some regulators are providing guidance. [17] The United States Environmental Protection Agency has deemed some ecolabels misleading in determining whether a product is truly "green". [18]

In Canada, one label is that of the Environmental Choice Program. [12] Created in 1988, [19] only products approved by the program are allowed to display the label. [20]

Overall, Mexico was one of the first countries in the world to pass a specific law on climate change. The law set an obligatory target of reducing national greenhouse-gas emissions by 30% by 2020. The country also has a National Climate Change Strategy, which is intended to guide policymaking over the next 40 years. [21]

Oceania

The Energy Rating Label is a Type III label [22] [23] that provides information on "energy service per unit of energy consumption". [24] It was first created in 1986, but negotiations led to a redesign in 2000. [25]

Oceania generates the second most e-waste, 16.1 kg, while having the third lowest recycling rate of 8.8%. [26] Out of Oceania, only Australia has a policy in policy to manage e-waste, that being the Policy Stewardship Act published in 2011 that aimed to manage the impact of products, mainly those in reference to the disposal of products and their waste. [27] Under the Act the National Television and Computer Recycling Scheme (NTCRS) was created, which forced manufactures and importers of electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) importing 5000 or more products or 15000 or more peripherals be liable and required to pay the NTCRS for retrieving and recycling materials from electronic products.

New Zealand does not have any law that directly manages their e-waste, instead they have voluntary product stewardship schemes such as supplier trade back and trade-in schemes and voluntary recycling drop-off points. Though this has helped it costs the provider money with labor taking up 90% of the cost of recycling. In addition, e-waste is currently not considered a priority product, which would encourage the enforcement of product stewardship. In Pacific Island Regions (PIR), e-waste management is a hard task since they lack the adequate amount of land to properly dispose of it even though they produce one of the lowest amounts of e-waste in the world due to their income and population. Due to this there are large stockpiles of waste unable to be recycled safely.

Currently, The Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP), an organization in charge of managing the natural resources and environment of the Pacific region, is in charge of region coordination and managing the e-waste of the Oceania region. [28] SPREP uses Cleaner Pacific 2025 as a framework to guide the various governments in the region. [29] They also work with PacWaste (Pacific Hazardous Waste) to identify and resolve the different issues with waste management of the islands, which largely stem from the lack of government enforcement and knowledge on the matter. [30] They have currently proposed a mandatory product stewardship policy be put in place along with an advance recycling fee which would incentivize local and industrial recycling. They are also in the mindset that the islands should collaborate and share resources and experience to assist in the endeavor.

With the help from the NTCRS, though the situation has improved they have been vocal about the responsibilities of stakeholders in the situation and how they need to be more clearly defined. In addition to there being a differences in state and federal regulations, with only Southern Australia, Australian Capital Territory, and Victoria having banned e-waste landfill, it would be possible to make this apply the rest of the region if a federal decision was made. They have also advocated for reasonable access to collection points for waste, with there being only one collection point within a 100 km radius in some cases. It has been shown that the reason some residents do not recycle is because of their distance from a collection point. In addition, there have been few campaigns to recycle, with the company, MobileMuster, a voluntary collection program managed by the Australian Mobile Telecommunication Association, aimed to collect phones before they went to a landfill and has been doing so since 1999. Upon further study, it was found that only 46% of the public was award of the program, which later increased to 74% in 2018, but this was after an investment of $45 million from the Australian Mobile Telecommunication Association.

Asia

"Economic growth in Asia has increased in the past three decades and has heightened energy demand, resulting in rising greenhouse gas emissions and severe air pollution. To tackle these issues, fuel switching and the deployment of renewables are essential." [31] However, as countries continue to advance, it leads to more pollution as a result of increased energy consumption. In recent years, the biggest concern for Asia is its air pollution issues. Major Chinese cities such as Beijing have received the worst air quality rankings (Li et al., 2017). Seoul, the capital of South Korea, also suffers from air pollution (Kim et al., 2017). Currently, Indian cities such as Mumbai and Delhi are overtaking Chinese cities in the ranking of worst air quality. In 2019, 21 of the world's 30 cities with the worst air quality were in India."

The environmentally friendly trends are marketed with a different color association, using the color blue for clean air and clean water, as opposed to green in western cultures. Japanese- and Korean-built hybrid vehicles use the color blue instead of green all throughout the vehicle, and use the word "blue" indiscriminately. [32]

China

According to Shen, Li, Wang, and Liao, the emission trading system that China had used for its environmentally friendly journey was implemented in certain districts and was successful in comparison to those which were used in test districts that were approved by the government. [33] This shows how China tried to effectively introduce new innovative systems to impact the environment. China implemented multiple ways to combat environmental problems even if they didn't succeed at first. It led to them implementing a more successful process which benefited the environment. Although China needs to implement policies like, "The “fee-to-tax” process should be accelerated, however, and the design and implementation of the environmental tax system should be improved. This would form a positive incentive mechanism in which a low level of pollution correlates with a low level of tax." By implementing policies like these companies have a higher incentive to not over pollute the environment and instead focus on creating an eco-friendlier environment for their workplaces. In doing so, it will lead to less pollution being emitted while there also being a cleaner environment. Companies would prefer to have lower taxes to lessen the costs they have to deal with, so it encourages them to avoid polluting the environment as much as possible.

International

Energy Star is a program with a primary goal of increasing energy efficiency and indirectly decreasing greenhouse gas emissions. [34] Energy Star has different sections for different nations or areas, including the United States, [35] the European Union [36] and Australia. [37] The program, which was founded in the United States, also exists in Canada, Japan, New Zealand, and Taiwan. [38] Additionally, the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 17 has a target to promote the development, transfer, dissemination, and diffusion of environmentally friendly technologies to developing countries as part of the 2030 Agenda. [39]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Greenwashing</span> Use of the aesthetic of conservationism to promote organisations

Greenwashing, also called green sheen, is a form of advertising or marketing spin in which green PR and green marketing are deceptively used to persuade the public that an organization's products, aims, and policies are environmentally friendly. Companies that intentionally take up greenwashing communication strategies often do so to distance themselves from their environmental lapses or those of their suppliers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Extended producer responsibility</span> Strategy designed to promote the integration of environmental costs associated with goods

Extended producer responsibility (EPR) is a strategy to add all of the estimated environmental costs associated with a product throughout the product life cycle to the market price of that product, contemporarily mainly applied in the field of waste management. Such societal costs are typically externalities to market mechanisms, with a common example being the impact of cars.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ecolabel</span> Labeling systems for food and consumer products

Ecolabels and Green Stickers are labeling systems for food and consumer products. The use of ecolabels is voluntary, whereas green stickers are mandated by law; for example, in North America major appliances and automobiles use Energy Star. They are a form of sustainability measurement directed at consumers, intended to make it easy to take environmental concerns into account when shopping. Some labels quantify pollution or energy consumption by way of index scores or units of measurement, while others assert compliance with a set of practices or minimum requirements for sustainability or reduction of harm to the environment. Many ecolabels are focused on minimising the negative ecological impacts of primary production or resource extraction in a given sector or commodity through a set of good practices that are captured in a sustainability standard. Through a verification process, usually referred to as "certification", a farm, forest, fishery, or mine can show that it complies with a standard and earn the right to sell its products as certified through the supply chain, often resulting in a consumer-facing ecolabel.

Green brands are those brands that consumers associate with environmental conservation and sustainable business practices.

Green marketing is the marketing of products that are presumed to be environmentally safe. It incorporates a broad range of activities, including product modification, changes to the production process, sustainable packaging, as well as modifying advertising. Yet defining green marketing is not a simple task. Other similar terms used are environmental marketing and ecological marketing.

Design for the environment (DfE) is a design approach to reduce the overall human health and environmental impact of a product, process or service, where impacts are considered across its life cycle. Different software tools have been developed to assist designers in finding optimized products or processes/services. DfE is also the original name of a United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) program, created in 1992, that works to prevent pollution, and the risk pollution presents to humans and the environment. The program provides information regarding safer chemical formulations for cleaning and other products. EPA renamed its program "Safer Choice" in 2015.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sustainable fashion</span>

Sustainable fashion is a term describing efforts within the fashion industry to reduce its environmental impacts, protect workers producing garments, and uphold animal welfare. Sustainability in fashion encompasses a wide range of factors, including cutting CO2 emissions, addressing overproduction, reducing pollution and waste, supporting biodiversity, and ensuring that garment workers are paid a fair wage and have safe working conditions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Green company</span> Acts, or claims to act, in a way which minimizes damage to the environment

A green company, also known as an environmentally friendly or sustainable business, is an organization that conducts itself in a way that minimizes harm to the environment. Examples of these actions may include the conservation of natural resources, efforts to reduce carbon emissions, a reduction of waste creation, and support of ecological conservation. Green companies often implement environmentally responsible practices across their entire value chain, from sourcing raw materials to manufacturing processes and distribution.

Sustainable seafood is seafood that is caught or farmed in ways that consider the long-term vitality of harvested species and the well-being of the oceans, as well as the livelihoods of fisheries-dependent communities. It was first promoted through the sustainable seafood movement which began in the 1990s. This operation highlights overfishing and environmentally destructive fishing methods. Through a number of initiatives, the movement has increased awareness and raised concerns over the way our seafood is obtained.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sustainable packaging</span> Packaging which results in improved sustainability

Sustainable packaging is the development and use of packaging which results in improved sustainability. This involves increased use of life cycle inventory (LCI) and life cycle assessment (LCA) to help guide the use of packaging which reduces the environmental impact and ecological footprint. It includes a look at the whole of the supply chain: from basic function, to marketing, and then through to end of life (LCA) and rebirth. Additionally, an eco-cost to value ratio can be useful The goals are to improve the long term viability and quality of life for humans and the longevity of natural ecosystems. Sustainable packaging must meet the functional and economic needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. Sustainability is not necessarily an end state but is a continuing process of improvement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eco hotel</span> An environmentally sustainable hotel

An eco hotel, or a green hotel, is an environmentally sustainable hotel or accommodation that has made important environmental improvements to its structure in order to minimize its impact on the natural environment. The basic definition of an eco-friendly hotel is an environmentally responsible lodging that follows the practices of green living. These hotels have to be certified green by an independent third-party or by the state they are located in. Traditionally, these hotels were mostly presented as ecolodges because of their location, often in jungles, and their design inspired by the use of traditional building methods applied by skilled local craftsmen in areas, such as Costa Rica and Indonesia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Electronic waste by country</span>

Electronic waste is a significant part of today's global, post-consumer waste stream. Efforts are being made to recycle and reduce this waste.

An eco-action is any action or activity within a program that is intended to have a positive impact on the environment. For this reason it is often used as a synonym for environmental action. People adopting eco-actions tend to target activities around the ‘Three Rs’ of the waste hierarchy, Reducing, Reusing and Recycling. They may decide to carry out small-scale eco-friendly actions such as reducing the volume of paper used in offices, or purchasing products only from companies that have environmentally friendly or sustainability policies. Others may adopt eco-actions that affect where they live by cleaning up beaches, removing graffiti, supporting community gardening, and re-planting coastal wetlands because the immediate community has come to be considered part of their ecosystem.

Environmentally sustainable design is the philosophy of designing physical objects, the built environment, and services to comply with the principles of ecological sustainability and also aimed at improving the health and comfort of occupants in a building. Sustainable design seeks to reduce negative impacts on the environment, the health and well-being of building occupants, thereby improving building performance. The basic objectives of sustainability are to reduce the consumption of non-renewable resources, minimize waste, and create healthy, productive environments.

Sustainable products are products who are either sustainability sourced, manufactured or processed that provide environmental, social and economic benefits while protecting public health and environment over their whole life cycle, from the extraction of raw materials until the final disposal.

Environmental certification is a form of environmental regulation and development where a company can voluntarily choose to comply with predefined processes or objectives set forth by the certification service. Most certification services have a logo which can be applied to products certified under their standards. This is seen as a form of corporate social responsibility allowing companies to address their obligation to minimise the harmful impacts to the environment by voluntarily following a set of externally set and measured objectives.

Eco-friendly dentistry aims at reducing the detrimental impact of dental services on the environment while still being able to adhere to the regulations and standards of the dental industries in their respective countries.

Green consumption is related to sustainable development or sustainable consumer behaviour. It is a form of consumption that safeguards the environment for the present and for future generations. It ascribes to consumers responsibility or co-responsibility for addressing environmental problems through the adoption of environmentally friendly behaviors, such as the use of organic products, clean and renewable energy, and the choice of goods produced by companies with zero, or almost zero, impact.

The Eco-score, like the Nutri-Score, is a food label with five categories: from A to E. The aim is to help consumers make more ecological choices when making their purchases.

France's anti-waste law for a circular economy was passed in an effort to eliminate improper disposal of waste as well as limit excessive waste. This law is part of Europe's larger environmental activism efforts and builds on previous laws the country has passed.

References

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  2. ↑ Motavalli, Jim (12 February 2011). "A History of Greenwashing: How Dirty Towels Impacted the Green Movement". AOL.
  3. ↑ "Grønvaskere invaderer børsen" [Greenwashers invade the market]. EPN.dk (in Danish). Jyllands-Posten. 21 June 2008. Archived from the original on 5 July 2008. Retrieved 22 December 2012.
  4. ↑ Greenwashing Fact Sheet. 22 March 2001. Retrieved 14 November 2009. from corpwatch.org Archived 7 February 2017 at the Wayback Machine
  5. ↑ "Eco friendly production key to achieving sdgs".
  6. ↑ United Nations (2017) Resolution adopted by the General Assembly on 6 July 2017, Work of the Statistical Commission pertaining to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (A/RES/71/313)
  7. ↑ "international standards for eco-labeling". Green Seal. Archived from the original on 28 November 2012. Retrieved 9 December 2012.
  8. ↑ "Welcome to the European Union Eco-label Homepage". EUROPA. Retrieved 10 July 2007.
  9. ↑ "EMAS". EUROPA. Retrieved 10 July 2007.
  10. ↑ "Eco-Management and Audit Scheme (EMAS)". Green Business. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
  11. ↑ "Minutes" (PDF). EUEB Coordination and Cooperation Management Group. Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 February 2007. Retrieved 10 July 2007.
  12. 1 2 "Environmental Labels Type I". Ricoh. Retrieved 10 July 2007.
  13. ↑ Freimann, Jurgen; Schwedes, Roswitha (2000). <99::aid-ema135>3.0.co;2-x "EMAS experiences in German companies: a survey on empirical studies". Eco-Management and Auditing. 7 (3): 99–105. doi:10.1002/1099-0925(200009)7:3<99::aid-ema135>3.0.co;2-x. ISSN   0968-9427.
  14. ↑ "EUROPA - Environment - Ecolabel - FAQ". ec.europa.eu. Retrieved 22 February 2023.
  15. ↑ Brécard, Dorothée; Hlaimi, Boubaker; Lucas, Sterenn; Perraudeau, Yves; Salladarré, Frédéric (15 November 2009). "Determinants of demand for green products: An application to eco-label demand for fish in Europe". Ecological Economics. The DPSIR framework for Biodiversity Assessment. 69 (1): 115–125. Bibcode:2009EcoEc..69..115B. doi:10.1016/j.ecolecon.2009.07.017. ISSN   0921-8009.
  16. ↑ Miras Rodríguez, María del Mar; Escobar Pérez, Bernabé; Carrasco Gallego, Amalia (2015). "Are companies less environmentally-friendly due to the crisis? Evidence from Europe". hdl:11441/85190. ISSN   2182-8466.{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  17. ↑ "Environmental Claims". Federal Trade Commission. 17 November 2008. Retrieved 17 November 2008.
  18. ↑ "Labels -environmentally friendly". ecolabels. Archived from the original on 11 October 2007. Retrieved 9 July 2007.
  19. ↑ "About the Program". EcoLogo. Archived from the original on 27 May 2006. Retrieved 10 July 2007.
  20. ↑ "Environmental Choice (Canada)". Environment Canada. Archived from the original on 25 November 2007. Retrieved 10 July 2007.
  21. ↑ Stiftung, Bertelsmann. "SGI 2017 | Mexico | Environmental Policies". www.sgi-network.org. Retrieved 19 February 2021.
  22. ↑ "Overview of Regulatory Requirements - Labelling and MEPS". Energy Rating Label. Archived from the original on 1 July 2007. Retrieved 10 July 2007.
  23. ↑ Arnaud Bizard; Brett Lee; Karen Puterrman. "AWARE and Environmental Labeling Programs: One Step Closer to a Sustainable Economy" (PDF). ME 589. Retrieved 10 July 2007.{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  24. ↑ "Overview of how are star ratings calculated?". Energy Rating Label. Archived from the original on 13 July 2007. Retrieved 10 July 2007.
  25. ↑ "The Energy Label". Energy Rating Label. Archived from the original on 13 July 2007. Retrieved 10 July 2007.
  26. ↑ Van Yken, Jonovan; Boxall, Naomi J.; Cheng, Ka Yu; Nikoloski, Aleksandar N.; Moheimani, Navid R.; Kaksonen, Anna H. (August 2021). "E-Waste Recycling and Resource Recovery: A Review on Technologies, Barriers and Enablers with a Focus on Oceania". Metals. 11 (8): 1313. doi: 10.3390/met11081313 .
  27. ↑ "Review of the Product Stewardship Act 2011" (PDF).
  28. ↑ "About Us | Pacific Environment".
  29. ↑ "Cleaner Pacific 2025. Pacific Regional Waste and Pollution Management Strategy" (PDF). un.org. Retrieved 26 September 2023.
  30. ↑ "What is Pacwaste? | Pacific Environment".
  31. ↑ Arimura, Toshi H.; Sugino, Makoto (7 August 2020). "Energy-Related Environmental Policy and Its Impacts on Energy Use in Asia". Asian Economic Policy Review. 16 (1). Wiley: 44–61. doi: 10.1111/aepr.12319 . ISSN   1832-8105. S2CID   225416259.
  32. ↑ "S.Korea unveils 'recharging road' for eco-friendly buses". phys.org. Retrieved 28 May 2021.
  33. ↑ Ge, Wenjun; Yang, Derong; Chen, Weineng; Li, Sheng (7 February 2023). "Can Setting Up a Carbon Trading Mechanism Improve Urban Eco-Efficiency? Evidence from China". Sustainability. 15 (4). MDPI AG: 3014. doi: 10.3390/su15043014 . ISSN   2071-1050.
  34. ↑ "About Energy Star". Energy Star. Retrieved 10 July 2007.
  35. ↑ "United States Energy Star Home Page". Energy Star. Retrieved 10 July 2007.
  36. ↑ "EU Energy Star Home Page". Energy Star. Retrieved 10 July 2007.
  37. ↑ "Australia Energy Star Home Page". Energy Star. Archived from the original on 3 July 2007. Retrieved 10 July 2007.
  38. ↑ "Who's Working With ENERGY STAR? International Partners". Energy Star. Retrieved 3 February 2009.
  39. ↑ "Goal 17 | Department of Economic and Social Affairs". sdgs.un.org. Retrieved 26 September 2020.
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