EPA, U.S. Business Council Commit to International Sustainable Projects
On July 31, EPA and the U.S. Business Council for Sustainable Development (US BCSD) signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to collaborate on international sustainable development projects in China and other parts of the globe.
The initial focus will be on China, where EPA and the BCSD will build on existing relationships with the China Business Council for Sustainable Development and the Chinese State Environmental Protection Agency. Specifically, the groups will collaborate in three areas:
- Creating a sustainable strategy for cement production in China, the world's leading producer.
- Expanding use of clean technologies to convert waste to renewable energy.
- Implementing by-product synergy, a system that allows companies from one industrial sector to use their waste (byproducts) as raw input materials for production in another sector. This idea has enormous potential for reducing waste and toxic emissions to air and water, as well as cutting costs.
"Promoting clean power solutions and clean energy innovations both domestically and internationally is an EPA commitment," said EPA Administrator Stephen L. Johnson. "Through the MOU signing, we're joining forces with the US BCSD to deliver an economically and environmentally brighter tomorrow."
More information on sustainability programs at EPA can be found at http://www.epa.gov/sustainability.
For more information on the US BCSD, visit http://www.usbcsd.org.
This article originally appeared in the 07/01/2007 issue of Environmental Protection.