Taking Stock Volume 16

2 Feature Analysis: Off-site Transfers to Disposal in North America, 2014–2018

2.5 Sustainable Production and Alternatives to the Generation and Disposal of Industrial Waste

As mentioned, the key objectives of the North American PRTR Initiative and the Taking Stock report series are to:

• Promote greater awareness of and access to PRTR data and information
• Improve understanding of the sources and management of pollutants of common interest; and
• Support decisions on pollution prevention and sustainable development.

This edition of Taking Stock presents data and information relative to the chemicals used in industrial processes in North America. Facilities in a wide range of extractive and manufacturing sectors that supply our consumer goods—from petroleum, chemicals and agrochemicals, food, clothing, electronics, and automobiles—generate waste in liquid, solid or sludge form that can be dangerous to human health or the environment. The risk may be present during the processing or use of a substance, or when it is released into the environment—either directly or following its disposal.

This section examines the environmental and human health challenges related to our increasingly unsustainable consumption patterns. While end-of-life issues for products are of increasing concern around the world, the focus of this section is on the “produce” side of the “produce-use-dispose” paradigm and how industry can contribute to the societal shift away from these unsustainable patterns by upending traditional approaches to the use, generation, and management of pollutants (Figure 24). Examples of alternatives are presented in the context of the productive sectors, activities and pollutants discussed in the preceding data analyses.