Sustainable Development as a Basis for the Reduction of Waste

Title data

Rosemann, Bernd ; Meerkamm, Harald ; Schweiger, Willi:
Sustainable Development as a Basis for the Reduction of Waste.
In: 2nd International BayFORREST Conference on Development and Application of Waste Technology : an international challenge ; July 1 - 3, 1998. - Garching : Bayerischer Forschungsverbund Abfallforschung und Reststoffverwertung , 1998

Project information

Abstract in another language

For a long time in product development, instead of looking at processes as a whole, it was normal practice just to consider what was left at the end of the processes or at the end of a products life-cycle, i.e. waste, exhaust air or wastewater. The original purpose of environmental technologies was to filter this residue or to render it harm-less in some other way. These “end-of-pipe” solutions have significant disad-vantages. Waste is neither prevented nor limited and pollutants are neither avoided nor reduced.
In contrast to these “end-of-pipe”-solutions, integrated technologies avoid or reduce waste and pollutants. They develop their potential by focusing on the sources of waste and pollutants. Therefore, it is a first chance to reduce all environmental disease, because substances that aren’t used don’t have to be disposed of or repro-cessed.