Sustainable Societies

Environmentally Sound Technologies

"Environmentally Sound Technologies" are technologies that protect the environment, are less polluting, use all resources in a more sustainable manner, recycle more of their waste and products, and handle residual wastes in a more acceptable manner than the technologies for which they are substituted. While investments in cleaner production may be profitable for an enterprise and beneficial to society, investment capital for such cleaner production may be unavailable due to the lack of understanding of the benefits or a lack of communication between funding sources and enterprises. Thus, achieving broad public awareness of the long-term benefits of environmentally sound technologies must be made a priority. In general, countries with strong environmental policies have experienced more technology transfer and more rapid economic growth than countries with weak environmental policies.