نقش سیستم مدیریت زیست محیطی در معرفی فن آوری های جدید در صنایع فلزی و شیمیایی / کاغذ / پلاستیک

Pollution prevention with the use of modern cleaner technologies in industrial sectors is the cornerstone of successful environmental policy certified according to the requirements of the international standard ISO 14001. The analyses were performed with the objective of assessing general aspects of technology modernisation as a result of the ISO 14001 certification in industrial enterprises in order to develop a better understanding whether the ISO 14001 certification can accelerate initiatives for the adoption of new and cleaner technologies within the certified firms on one hand, and, on the other hand, to find out to what extent it helped to upgrade their environmental performance. The research was performed within Slovene metal and chemical (including pharmaceuticals, paper and plastics) manufacturing companies with an additional emphasis on firms which are committed to implementing the IPPC directive. In general, certified enterprises consider ISO 14001 as a very useful tool in promoting and adopting new cleaner technologies. ISO 14001 seems to be particularly important to create better conditions for the technology changes in companies which are committed to the IPPC Directive. Companies in chemical and related industries, to a much higher extent, used predominantly modified technologies to diminish their environmental impacts, while companies in metal industries, to a higher extent, used a combination of existing and new technologies after ISO 14001 certification. It seems that better environmental performance is associated with higher productivity in ISO 14001 certified firms.

The industry as well as other economic branches are constantly faced with more and more stringent environmental legislation and market pressures. Under such conditions companies have to raise the question whether their present technologies and products will also be acceptable in the future and find new opportunities according to sustainable development requirements. On the other hand, the ability of some companies to exploit the environmental issue as a competitive advantage has changed efficient pollution prevention into an opportunity to improve production process performance by means of new cleaner technologies as well as by making product modifications. Moreover, firms have to define environmental problems as their own responsibilities which could not be ignored because otherwise they will threaten their long-term existence. Normally, a newer technology is cleaner since there is a continuous development among equipment suppliers also in the environmental field. The important role of technology in reducing environmental impacts of industrial activities is also emphasized on the international level, for instance, through the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP), which brought in the concept of Cleaner Production. This is an approach to environmental management which is designed to encourage new processes, products and services which are cleaner and more resource-efficient [1]. It emphasizes a preventive approach to environmental management taking into account impacts over the whole life cycle of products and services. Cleaner production, thus, requires responsible environmental management and evaluating technology options. Cleaner production is achieved by upgrading technology, process changes and process modifications, substitution of input materials, good operating practices (good housekeeping), on-site reuse and recycling and/or product redesign. The importance of technology in industrial pollution prevention was recognized earlier by Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) as well, which defined clean (or cleaner) technologies as: ‘Technologies that extract and use natural resources as efficiently as possible in all stages of their lives; that generate products with reduced or no potentially harmful components; that minimise releases to air, water and soil during fabrication and use of the product; and that produce durable products which can be recovered or recycled as far as possible; output is achieved with as little energy input as is possible’[2]. Another similar term in use is ‘Environmentally Sound Technologies’ (EST). These are usually meant as the technologies that have the potential for significantly improved environmental performance relative to other technologies. They protect the environment, are less polluting, use resources in a sustainable manner, recycle more of their wastes and products, and handle the residual wastes in a more environmentally acceptable way than the technologies for which they are substitutes. ESTs are not just individual technologies. In a wider term, they also cover end-of-pipe technologies [3]. Recently, the European Commission adopted the Environmental Technology Action Plan in order to improve the development of environmental technologies and to overcome existing barriers of their wider use [4]. No matter what concept or term is used, it is a clear trend that the role of new technologies is becoming more and more important in the global economy. The percentage of cleaner technology investments across industry has been shown to differ substantially in the European Union (EU) [2]. The investments in individual countries are influenced by a range of factors, including the sectoral composition of industry (affecting the scope of the investment), different regulatory measures in force, particularly with regard to the emphasis on end-of-the-pipe versus cleaner technologies, age of process plants, and the availability of the technologies, to mention only a few. Most of the new EU member states spend more on traditional end-of-the-pipe technologies than on cleaner (process integrated) technologies [2]. In 1996, the EU adopted the Directive 96/61/EC concerning integrated pollution prevention and control, the IPPC Directive. The purpose of the IPPC Directive is to achieve integrated prevention and control of pollution arising from certain activities and to reach a high level of protection of the environment as a whole. All impacts on the environment have to be taken into consideration, i.e. emissions to air, water and land, generation of waste, use of raw materials, energy efficiency, noise, prevention of accidents, risk management, etc. This means that in addition to the integrated control of emissions to air, water and soil, the IPPC Directive requires consideration of energy efficiencies, use of raw materials, off-site waste disposal and site restoration. The directive introduces a system for issuing integrated environmental permits and a concept of Best Available Techniques (BAT), and lists industrial activities that are obliged to obtain integrated permits. It is one of the key environmental directives in the industrial sector in the EU. It also stimulates the introduction of modern cleaner technologies as well as continuous improvements of industrial processes and products. Hence, the IPPC Directive is an important driver for the diffusion and implementation of newer cleaner technologies. Many modifications on technologies and different technology substitutions were performed to avoid environmental pollution in different industrial branches [5], [6] and [7]. In addition, Kemp [8] classified environmental technologies into three groups. The first one, pollution control technologies, prevent the direct release of hazardous emissions into the air, waters, or soil (end-of-the-pipe technologies). The second, off-site recycling and waste treatment technologies include treatment of effluent in collective waste waters treatment plants, the clean up of polluted soils, and the upgrading of solid wastes. The third category is comprised of the so called process-integrated changes in production technologies, input material changes, and good housekeeping which are all focused on reducing the amounts of pollutants and wastes generated during production. The purpose of the process-integrated technologies is to eliminate or reduce the creation of waste within the production process. However, technologies alone cannot be a guarantee for assuring a firm's environmental as well as economical effectiveness, in the long run. Additional tools and practices led by top management commitment must be introduced with a well defined environmental policy as a prerequisite for successful firm's environmental performance. One such tool is environmental management system (EMS) certified according to the requirements of international standard ISO 14001. Among different aspects, ISO 14001 requires the organization to establish an appropriate environmental policy, identify the environmental aspects as a result of the organization's past, present or future activities, products and services, identify priorities and set appropriate environmental objectives and targets, and facilitate planning, control, monitoring, preventive and correction actions to minimize the impacts on the environment. Reference to pollution prevention in ISO 14001 is given by the demand that the environmental policy of a company shall contain the commitment to continuous improvements in terms of reduced environmental impacts. In order to achieve such goals, EMS should encourage organizations to consider the implementation of the best available technology, where appropriate and where economically viable, and that the cost-effectiveness of such techniques is fully taken into account, as stated in ISO 14001 itself [9]. This means that ISO 14001 and technology changes (especially in manufacturing companies) became closely linked and interdependent [10]. Cagno et al. [11] showed, on the basis of the study which included over 130 industrial companies, that the management commitment, which is reflected in environmental policy, is a very important factor for the successful start of a cleaner production or pollution prevention programme. Although company's ISO 14001 certification does not imply compliance with BAT measures, it enables the identification of environmental problems as the basis for gradual implementation of the BAT concept.

The requirements of the ISO 14001 standard help organizations to establish management activities for controlling and improving their environmental performance and to reduce their overall impact on the environment. On the other hand, upgrading of technology is one of the most important areas for industry, not only because of environmental requirements, but also because of increasing productivity and quality as well as lowering the operational costs. The present study was designed to provide insight into the existence of relationships between enterprises' technological performance and ISO 14001 certification. In order to analyze whether ISO 14001 had effects on firm's technology status or not, some general aspects considering technological performance and modernisation were studied. It was found out that Slovene metal and chemical (and related) industrial companies certified according to the ISO 14001 differ in their efforts and approaches to reduce the environmental impacts. Companies in the chemical and related industries used predominantly modified technologies to diminish their environmental impacts to a much higher extent, while companies in the metal industries used a combination of existing and new technologies to a higher extent. A much higher percentage of the companies in the chemical and related firms used good housekeeping compared to companies in the metal industry. The highest share of the ISO 14001 certified firms in the metal industry improved safety of their working staff, reduced emissions and energy consumption, while in the chemical and related industries the most considered environmental factor was solid wastes reduction, followed by emissions reduction, energy consumption reduction, and higher working staff safety. In both sectors, within the study, the last priority was energy resource substitution. The majority of certified metal industry companies as well as those in the chemical and related industries improved environmental factors by up to 20%. A great share of respondents operate in the industries which are very capital intensive and where process units have long life (in several cases for decades). Besides improved environmental performance, the EMS influenced firms' economic performance through increased productivity showing some similarities between both industrial sectors under the study. In general, certified enterprises consider ISO 14001 as a very useful tool in promoting and adopting new cleaner technologies. However, a low percent of firms considers ISO 14001 as a necessary condition for the adoption of new technologies. In addition, it was confirmed that ISO 14001 seems to be particularly important to create better conditions for the technology changes in companies which are liable to the IPPC Directive. We are aware that significant differences among firms exist, not only with regard to their size, but also with regard to market orientation. In addition, some companies included in the study, were certified the same year this research was performed, which means that such firms were in early stages of the environmental policy activities and did not develop their efforts in minimizing environmental impacts to the extent comparable to firms with more experience. Also, we do not claim that the Slovenian experience is fully representative of what goes on in other parts of the industrialized world. Thus, the general conclusions of this study can only be indicative. In order to achieve a drastic reduction in emissions, more fundamental changes will be necessary in the production processes and/or the composition of final products. Due to the complexity, size and age of the equipment used in many metal and chemical plants, process-integrated technological changes that have the highest potential of pollution reduction would require significant capital investments in both, developed as well as developing countries. Industrial environmental activities, thus, often develop in stages and it usually takes some time before the implementation of creative environmental strategies can be fully integrated. In such a situation, ISO 14001 certification is considered as a useful tool in achieving environmental demands and stimulating technological changes as can be concluded from the answers of the majority of respondents. However, the implementation of EU Directives such as the IPPC will lead to increased investment in cleaner technologies in the future. Industrial enterprises are and will be forced to take serious measures in connection with pollution prevention regardless of ISO 14001 certification since the legislation is becoming more and more stringent. As seen from the present study, EMS according to the requirements of ISO 14001 standard can contribute significantly in achieving such goals in a developing country as well.