WTO's Seattle round of talks dropped the
environment bomb on the third world. A hue and cry about the depleting environment and
increasing child labour rang piercing alarm bells and the better half of the developing
countries left the scene in a huff. Their much deliberated upon Small and Medium
Enterprises agenda was quashed. It was put to rest at the embryonic stage, by a bunch of
powerful nations in a burst of eco-friendly affectation.
The Uruguay round at Marrakesh in April 1994, took a decision to begin a comprehensive
work programme on trade and environment in the WTO. It means that the subject will always
be a top priority on the WTO agenda. An open, equitable and non-discriminatory
multilateral trading system has a key contribution to make to national and international
efforts to better protect and conserve environmental resources and promote sustainable
development.
The issue here is not about the debacle at Seattle, failed international conferences are
as frequent as the occurrence of days and nights, but of exploring better possibilities
for a cleaner and better world of poor nations. Globalisation brings with it the western
forces of 'environment advocacy'. Third world needs to stay in a perpetual state of
readiness to face any kind of clamping down.
The new buzzword in the international industrial circles is clean technology. With a
growing demand from every company's acquisition, efficient environmental management would
sooner or later end up in adopting clean technology. Clean technology or technology to
ensure clean production, the ultimate aim is to reduce the generation of wastes and toxic
emissions. Reducing input material cost, effluents and wastes become a money earner. A far
cry from what they used to be - an irritant. It is a creative way of thinking about
products and processes that help in reducing pollution at source and enhance
profitability.
Denmark is one of the leading nations in evolving eco-friendly systems. The whole country
is a good example for how environment friendly technology can be applied successfully.
Their district heating grid for instance is impeccable. It has become a benchmark for many
American and other European ventures. Their organic farming is already a forerunner for
many such brilliant ideas. Danes were the first to start the mechanism of running slurry
deep down into earth to support the next crop. In India, slurry is still dumped in the
nearby fields choking out space and fertile land.
The green top apartments of Peabody trust in UK is one of its kind and has all the promise
to change the way the world accommodates its citizens in the future. All the reusable
technology taken into account might still not be enough to encounter the colossal hazard
we are faced with. Organic farming is slowly entering Indian fields and farmers should be
provided tailor-made solutions for their queries on organic farming. It should be
undertaken before the farmers switch to different occupations in a fit of confused
frustration. The transition from intensive to organic farming frequently yields lower
results for the individual farmer. This makes rationalization and efficiency thickly
pronounced on the agricultural sector's agenda.
The ninth Scandinavian Trade Fair for environmental and process technology, 'Dan Miljo
2000' segmented itself into five sections. Water, Air, Working environment, Waste &
Recycling and Chemical & Process technology. It is more or less related to the five
elements of nature. So that means a clean beginning, very elemental in nature. Air, Water,
Earth, Sky, Fire, Plasma, all clearly seen in the language of modern science. Hygiene is
not scientific, it is actually very basic and natural. Industrial hygiene is nothing but
the very same concept magnified to a mechanized proportion.
The industries that contaminate the most are the ones to be addressed. The liquor industry
almost heads the table. Iron and Steel, Detergents and many more other segments flooding
earth and sky with effluents, pollutants and sludge. With Clean Production there seems to
be an answer to every form of pollution.
Clean Production also actually displays a lot of advantages over common forms of pollution
control.
As responsible individuals and organizations respecting community etiquette, every
management needs to weigh the pros and cons of their production techniques. It is after
all a planet we borrowed from our children and when we leave behind this property, let it
not feel like a burning cauldron of waste peppered with hi-tech gizmos floating towards
apocalypse, all in the name of convenience. |
