Waste Auditing in Pesticide Sector: Towards Cleaner Production

Abstract

The need for cleaner production emerges in pesticide industry due to various environmental problems associated with pesticide formulation, refilling and packaging processes. Variety of active pesticides ingredients, solvents, and other chemicals are generated as wastes during the pesticides production. Developing countries, due to their economic, social and cultural limitations are slow to adapt to new ideas. Three pesticide industrial units were audited. The study focuses on the environmental problems caused by pesticide industries and recommends measure to abate them. The major objectives of the study undertaken are summarized as; (i)to conduct an waste audit of the pesticide industries to find out the extent of pollution problems (ii)to investigate the possibilities for stream segregation to conserve water and to minimize pollution load generation (iii)to set up an demonstration case study on the “Cleaner Production” in a medium scale pesticide industry to visualize the possibilities of pollution reduction and waste minimization. While investing little on the process, it is possible to save a lot of money in the disposal of waste and operation of the process. As a result of waste auditing, methods were proposed to save water and to segregate the waste, and to modify the existing wastewater treatment system. It is hoped that the present audit would serve as a step ahead in the implementation of the concept of cleaner production in a small, medium and large sized industries to visualize the possibilities of pollution reduction and waste minimization.

Based on the three environmental surveys undertaken, following cleaner production / end-of-pipe recommendations have been developed. As mentioned earlier some of the pesticide industries have already implemented some of these recommendations. Therefore these recommendations are for those units only who have yet to implement them. The costs calculated in this report are very preliminary, based on limited survey and mainly on foreign technologies. Civil works’ cost would be far less than those quoted in different sections. The purpose of preliminary costing is to work out a broader range of possible environmental investment in future. The above problems do not exist in all pesticide industries simultaneously. However, this summary is valid for the entire pesticide sector of Pakistan.