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Solvents haven't gone away, in fact, environmentally friendly versions have been on the market for some time and continue to grab market share The landscape of solvents has been changing, [...]

Corporate environmental reports have evolved from effusive statements about environmental commitments in the late 1980s to more technical information in the late 1990s. Environmental reports enable chemical companies to inform financial institutions of their environmental investments and their environmental performance. Uniform accounting of these performances and goals would make the reports more useful and credible to observers., Since their introduction in the late 1980s, corporate environmental reports have catered to public demand by providing more technical information and fewer florid assertions about commitment to environmental protection. As [...]

The US chemical industry advocates a worldwide movement sponsoring research into the health effects of pollution, with special attention going to endocrine-disrupting effects of pesticides and industrial chemicals. Industry leaders and groups including the Chemical Manufacturers Assn, the International Council of Chemical Assns and the European Chemical Industry Council plan to fund this research with more than $20 million annually. The US Environmental Protection Agency wants to ensure impartial investigations in spite of industry contributions.

This article examines the current status on VOC emission control For close to three decades, North American industry has paved the way and has led the world in controlling volatile [...]

CMA board approval of responsible Care Management Systems Verification (MSV) earlier this year is a critical step for the U.S. chemical industry, which is trying to catch up with other [...]

The European Council of Vinyl Manufacturers's initiative, the PVC charter, will force its members to invest millions of dollars to comply with its environmental protection mandates. The charter, which is now a condition for membership into the ECVM, details emissions and waste discharge limits for plants producing vinyl chloride monomer and polyvinyl chloride (PVC). However, it has been attacked by Greenpeace and Bellona for omitting emissions from the emulsion PVC process and the disposal of sludges from waste water treatment facilities.

Chemical companies' waste minimization practices and a slowdown in remediation efforts have environmental services players mired in tough times. Following 20%/year growth spurts in the 1980s, the business has matured [...]

In spite of all the economic pressures on businesses at the moment, European companies are still forging ahead with Responsible Care, says Louis Jourdan, senior director/technical affairs for the European [...]

Facing tough government regulation and intense international scrutiny, Mexico's chemical producers are attempting a radical environmental transformation. And with the industry already in an extensive restructuring because of the country's [...]

A national plan to resolve environmental problems has led to a covenant between the Dutch government and chemical producers. The pact, which calls for emissions reductions by 2010, allows industry players 14 months to formulate individual company plans in return for a freeze on environmental standards during the same period. To be implemented in three stages, it also covers process wastes reduction, energy consumption and soil decontamination.

As an energy source in Europe, as an environmental breakthrough in North America, Ensyn Technologies' bio-oil is a winner all around Canadians are a rather skeptical lot. Breakthroughs in engineering/science [...]

With the U.S. chemical industry still spewing about 850 million lbs/year of toxic pollutants into the air, land, and water, the effort to develop environmentally cleaner process technologies-and pay for [...]

The chemical industry advocates waste incineration as an environmentally sound alternative to land disposal. Many environmental groups also oppose land disposal. However, they also question the industry's need to build [...]

The Reponsible Care program initiated by the Canadian Chemical Producers Assn has been accepted by chemical industry associations in 19 countries. Each country modifies the program according to its needs and culture but the main purpose of enhancing environmental health and safety remains. However, as a consequence of the North American Free Trade Agreement, the US, Canada and Mexico have begun efforts to integrate their different health, safety and environmental laws. In accordance to their Responsible Care initiatives, the three countries have established regulations for the transportation and distribution of chemical products across their borders. These actions have also initiated plans of developing a system to monitor all Responsible Care participants. The possibility of using the ISO 9000 quality system as well as third party audits are now being considered., Canadians who feel overshadowed by American culture and economic power can take pride in the fact that the Canadian Chemical Producers Association (CCPA) pioneered what many consider one of the [...]

Progress varies by company and culture How do chief executive of Western companies, from their plush offices, keep tabs on what happens at chemical plants in developing countries? Many point [...]

Outside reviews: Key to credibility Even the motto 'Don't trust us, track us' recognizes that verification of Responsible Care achievements by outside parties is the key to credibility. While Toxics [...]

Automotive coatings market adjusting to restriction on hazardous air pollutants while maintaining performance of exterior topcoats The automotive coatings industry moves into the 1990s under pressure from impending Clean Air [...]

Public and legislative pressures are compelling UK-based Imperial Chemical Industries PLC (ICI) to face up to its environmental responsibility. The chemical company, which releases thousands of tons of wastes that pollute air and water, has developed an environmental program with four goals: building factories in accordance with the highest international standards, reducing wastes by 50% within a five-year period, conserving energy and natural resources, and waste recycling. In 1991, ICI's environmental spending was placed at 340 million pounds sterling, a figure that is expected to reach one billion pounds within the next five years. The firm is trying to develop a substitute for the ozone-damaging choroflourocarbons, and promises to stop the manufacture of all harmful chemicals included in the 1989 Montreal Protocol by 1995.

The deadline for complying with the Responsible Care program of the Canadian Chemical Producers Assn (CCPA) is the end of 1992. The CCPA's evaluation of the progress made by the chemical industry reveals that the greatest problems are in the areas of community apathy, performance measurement and product stewardship. The CCPA has several options in measuring compliance, and it plans to provide assistance to firms that are unable to comply by the deadline., As the year-end deadline for compliance with the Canadian Chemical Producers Association's Responsible Care program approaches, the Ottawa-based association and its members are taking stock of the progress that has [...]

The chemical industry is making progress in community awareness and emergency response (CAER) programs for industrial accidents. Many firms, including Hoechst Celanese and Monsanto, are participating in at least one of the more than 160 community awareness panels that have been established. Chemical firms are conducting houses and plant tours and are publishing community newsletters. The success of the Responsible Care program depends on the effectiveness of CAER., Even though the third-year self-evaluations will not be available until July, David Hastings, the Chemical Manufacturers Association's associate director in charge of community awareness and emergency response (CAER), says that [...]

The chemical industry's Responsible Care program has received increased public attention, but not all of this attention has been positive. Advertisements in national magazines have increased, and employee morale and employee relations have improved as a result of the program, which encourages environmental responsibility. However, environmental groups have begun to challenge Responsible Care. One criticism of the program is that the chemical industry's lobbying practices are not compatible with the initiative., The past year has been a watershed for the Responsible Care program. On the positive side of the dividing line, it has gone public in national magazine advertisements that have [...]

For General Chemical (Parsippany, NJ), implementing Responsibe Care is largely a story of a small-to-medium-size chemical firm coordinating separate efforts in the U.S. and Canada. The same is true for [...]

A common corporate view on environmental controls is that they need to be embraced. Contrary to President Bush's position going into the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, some industry [...]

The rising costs of complying with environmental legislation has inclined chemical manufacturers towards waste minimization. This approach entails decreased emission and waste generation within the manufacturing process and the formulation of new approaches which could reduce waste. BASF and Bayer AG have both incorporated measures in the production process, labeling this initiative as 'production-integrated environmental protection.'

QUANTUM Spurred by Responsible Care's call for continuous, long-term improvements, Quantum Chemical's USI Division (Cincinnati) has set a series of goals to cut air emissions and hazardous waste generation over [...]

ROHM AND HAAS Rohm and Haas (Philadelphia) formed its first community advisory panel five years ago, when the company grew dissatisfied with the old model of community relations - donations [...]

Key issues for companies already working to meet proposed Clean Air Act 1990 Amendment rules include controlling the act's list of 189 hazardous air pollutants and getting permits to operate [...]

'Mobay was not among the founding fathers of Responsible Care, but we signed onto the guiding principles without any questions. It was right down the track we were already on,' [...]

Responsible Care may prove to be one of the biggest and best things that ever happened to the chemical industry. It represents a total public commitment to continuous improvement of [...]

Chemicals And The Environment: Partners In Progress Rachel Carson first alerted the American public to the damage many chemicals, especially pesticides, were doing to the environment. Then the Love Canal […]

SHINING A GREEN LIGHT ON THE ROAD AHEAD No-one can afford to ignore the environment anymore. Only ten years ago, the establishment was able to dismiss the green movement as [...]