The whole concept of being green and sustainable still carries a considerable amount of old baggage. But these days, most of that baggage can be left behind. For instance, there is the perception that being green and sustainable costs more. Many people believe that construction of greener, sustainable, and more environmentally responsible building costs significantly more than conventional construction. While that might have been true 20-plus years ago, added costs are negligible today.
Next, there is baggage surrounding the performance of environmentally preferable products. We have seen this in our own industry, and while this might have been true at one time, many jansan manufacturers have done an outstanding job developing new, green products that perform as well as, if not better than, similar conventional products.
Even more old baggage exists in the idea that federal regulations and chemical policy form, notably the Safe Chemicals Act of 2011, will cost American jobs. This idea was disputed recently as a result of a new study produced by the Political Economic Research Institute (PERI), which was commissioned by the BlueGreen Alliance of which I am a member.
Released in mid-May 2011, the study demonstrates that innovation in sustainable chemistry actually presents new opportunities fo the chemical industry—including the jansan industry—and can help reverse the job loss that has impacted the entire industry for nearly 20 years.
Some History
A new study, "The Economic Benefits of a Green Chemical Industry in the United States: Renewing Manufacturing Jobs While Protecting Health and the Environment," suggests what can evolve if the chemical industry embraces sustainable chemistry. But before reviewing the study, let's take a look at what has been happening in the industry overall.
Since 1992, the U.S. chemical industry has shed approximately 300,000 jobs while actual production has increased 4 percent per year. Should this current scenario continue for another 20 years, the industry will likely lose another 230,000 jobs, according to the report. That's nearly half a million jobs in 40 years!
This comes at a time when the United States is desperately looking for ways to create jobs. Further, the goal is not just to create jobs, but to create quality jobs that pay well and also protect the health of our citizens and the environment.
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