Several weeks back I was invited to take part in a focus group for the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency. The MPCA is exploring the development of a Green Chemistry & Design initiative to help manufacturers develop products and processes that reduce or eliminate the use or generation of hazardous substances. The luncheon was held this afternoon and our group was made up of retailers and business owners including myself, Best Buy, Target, The Wedge Coop and Pea Pods (natural toys and baby care). We were asked several questions such as- How have we applied Green Chemistry/Design in the past few years? Why did we do it? What benefits are we seeing? Are we seeing cost savings? What barriers or challenges have we faced and do we forsee any more challenges in the future?
We discussed designing safer chemicals and products, what the MPCA can do to support retailers and businesses, how to prevent waste, creating partnerships between government and business, empowering industries to articulate and meet environmental goals, “green” washing and “local” washing, more cost effective rebate programs and so much more. It was a great discussion and I was honored to be a part of it!
This is a 2 year project for the MPCA and our input, along with other focus groups and interviews will allow their staff to develop a survey. Their goal is to extend the project into a second year and make recommendations to the MPCA about how to develop a Green Chemistry and Green Design Policy.
It was a great experience for me as I learned that regardless if you are a large corporation, a small independant business or a cooperative, we all have a common goal- to make positive changes that support our environment, ourselves and our planet.
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