Environmental Profiles, Industry, and the National Packaging Protocol

This guide explains how to carry out an environmental profile of packaging systems. An environmental profile is a tool that helps companies better understand the environmental impacts associated with their packaging systems.

With environmental profile information, companies can improve their environmental performance through reductions in the consumption of resources (water, energy, and materials) and the minimization of waste generated (solid, liquid, and gas).

Eligibility Criteria

Any firm that plays a role in any stage of the packaging life cycle would benefit from an environmental profile of their packaging activities. These guidelines include specific direction for three principal groups:

• processors of raw materials;
• packaging producers; and
• packaging users.

Eligible Activity

Packaging and activities related to the packaging life cycle.

Summary

The Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment (CCME) has publications to help in the preparation of environmental profiles for various types of packaging. The guidelines are intended to help industry meet the goals of the National Packaging Protocol (NaPP), specifically that of keeping the environmental impacts of all packaging to a minimum.

The guidelines provide a framework for collecting, measuring, and evaluating information that will enable companies to develop environmental profiles. It provides guidance on:

• initiating a profile - establishing a process and organizational structure to carry out a profile;
• conducting a system inventory - documenting resource use and environmental releases;
• identifying specific reduction measures - defining and prioritizing potential resource use efficiency and waste reduction measures;
• implementing the reduction measures - developing an action plan.

The profile is a measurement matrix which aids manufacturers in assessing their current practices and identifies opportunities for improvement. The Profile was developed as a user-friendly tool to help small and medium enterprises make environmentally sound packaging decisions.

More companies are becoming aware of the environmental impacts of their products and processes and are looking for guidance on methods to best meet their environmental responsibilities. These guidelines help to fulfill that need by enabling those involved in packaging to understand and address the environmental impacts associated with the activities under their influence. Conducting an environmental profile will enable companies to identify areas where their environmental performance may be increased by reducing resource consumption and minimizing waste or wasteful outputs.

The advantages of conducting a profile are:

• improved materials and energy management;
• increased efficiency and cost savings;
• reduced generation of wastes and their toxicity;
• improved ability to develop more comprehensive environmental management plans;
• better corporate image through improved environmental and financial performance;
• contribution to the goals of the National Packaging Protocol;
• increased competitiveness in international markets where environmental management systems and standards are becoming more widespread.

Environmental gains may also be reflected in an improved financial position through increased process efficiencies. Many measures aimed at reducing the use of resources and the production of waste materials reduce costs and increase productivity. Furthermore, as environmental management systems and standards grow in use around the world, improved environmental performance will become an asset for expanding sales in foreign marketplaces.

Communication of profile results to outside interests will promote a better understanding of the relationship between packaging and the environment, as well as publicizing company efforts that are leading to enhanced environmental performance.

Implementation of the National Packaging Protocol's recommendations concerning environmental profiling will require both short-term and long-term strategies:

• In the short term, these guidelines support environmentally sound packaging decisions by companies and individuals involved in one or more stages in the life-cycle of packaging. The method facilitates early action by companies, without demanding the completion of a full life-cycle assessment;
• In the longer term, more comprehensive evaluations, such as a full life-cycle assessment, may be desirable for some decision makers. These broader assessments will allow a more thorough examination of the environmental impacts of products and packaging.

Quebec Contact(s):
See National Contact.

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National Contact(s):
Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment (CCME)
Suite 360
123 Main Street
Winnipeg, Manitoba  R3C 1A3
Telephone: 204-948-2090
Fax: 204-948-2125
E-mail: info@ccme.ca
Web site: http://www.ccme.ca/

National Office of Pollution Prevention
Environment Canada
Place Vincent Massey
351 Saint-Joseph Boulevard
Gatineau, Quebec  K1A 0H3
Telephone: (819) 953-0459
Fax: (819) 953-7970
Web site: http://www.ec.gc.ca/envhome.html