9 environmental issues that could change in 2012
Posted on Fri, Jan 06, 2012 @ 01:45 PM
The other day, I was reading a magazine from 2007 dealing with an area of personal interest outside of the concrete, asphalt or mining industries. In it was an article about environmental issues of the day. As I read it, I couldn't help but think - how little environmental issues had changed and progress made in the past 5 years - a span of time during which we've seen some pretty significant changes in our lives.
But how about the concrete and construction materials industries? Do we share the same lack of progress relative to environmental issues?
Consider the following 9 areas that have changed one way or the other over the past 5 years:
- Environmental compliance issues. We haven't had large number of real significant new regulations arise during the past 5 years, but we still see the same basic compliance issue problems that we were seeing in the past, such as NPDES stormwater issues. Plus, the economy has set industry back in their overall compliance efforts to a degree.
- Perception of industry. I don't think that much has changed over the past 5 years, our reputation is still now what it could (and should!) be regarding environmental issues. Read the trade press - we still see a lot of negative press about environmental impacts, groups fighting against plant installations, etc.
- Sustainability. Finally, some good news. Five years ago, most of us weren't discussing sustainability - now it's the rage. You can't argue with the benefits to us all in sustainable practices - it truly is the way of the future. But is it more than just a buzzword? Has it truly been embraced by industry?
- Green building. Another positive area. Environmentally conscious development has been growing at an exponential rate compared to traditional construction, and we still have a lot of room to grow. This is one area where there has been a lot of positive change over the past 5 years. We've also seen drastic changes in the environmental quality of our products, along with the reduction of overall impacts associated with production.
- Innovative efforts. The past 5 years have brought us the NRMCA Green-Star certification and Sustainable Plant certifications, both outstanding efforts to reward innovative and progressive achievements in environmental and sustainable actions. Outstanding progress has been made during this time, but we still have a long way to go.
- Industry involvement. Seems like this is an area that's taken a big hit due to the economy. Fewer people seem to be participating in the environmental and sustainabilty efforts of industry, since they either are back at the plant running things or else have had their travel budgets trimmed to the bone. Could this lack of involvement be detrimental to the overall effort? I think so.
- Interest level. Another area that seems to have suffered significantly due to the economy, and perhaps justifiably so. It seemed like 5 years ago we all were keenly interested in environmental matters, whether it was process water and reclaimed aggregate recycling, reduced energy use, or one of many other pressing issues. Today, it seems like much of the excitement has dropped, as we strive to keep our companies afloat. Completely understandable.
- Government response. Can you honestly say that during the past 5 years we have seen much change relative to environmental matters, or many significant progressive changes having taken place? For example, many (most?) states continue to disallow the use of process water back into concrete production, an environmentally forward practice. Have you seen environmental enforcement increase in your state, possibly driven by declining state budgets?
- Lastly, marketing and outreach. Industry has done some really great things over the past 5 years - improving operations, reducing impacts associated with the production and manufacturing process, and generally becoming "greener". But what are we doing about it? Are we letting people know and telling others? Are we using it to a market advantage to help with a poor economy? How many companies still don't have a website, or if they do, have little to nothing to say about environmental or sustainable practices?
I'll get off the soapbox now.
But sometimes taking a look backward can be a great tool in guiding us to where we want to go. Sure, we've made some progress - during one of the worst economic downturns this country has ever seen - but we still have to keep moving forward. Hopefully, we can all continue to do this while preserving our economic integrity - in other words, let's continue to strive to balance economy and the environment.
I would really like to hear your thoughts on this one!
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