Pollution and Pollution Control 77the first place must be preferential. The proverbial ounce of prevention is worth
a pound of cure.
The current emphasis on clean-up and treatment is largely the result of his-
torical circumstance. As legislation has become more stringent, the regulation of
waste and pollution has correspondingly forced the pace of environmental inter-
vention. In addition, the prevalence of ‘the polluter pays’ principle, coupled with
ever greater pressures to redevelop existing ‘brown-field’ sites, in preference to
de novodevelopment has inevitably necessitated a somewhat reactive response.
However, increasingly biotechnologies are being developed which, though per-
haps not ‘environmental’ in themselves, bring significant benefits to this sphere.
Their advantages to industry in terms of reduced demands for integrated pollution
control and minimised waste disposal costs also suggest a clear likelihood of their
success in the commercial sphere. Generally, the environment has tended to fare
best when its interests and economic ones go hand in hand and the pre-emptive
approach which the new technologies herald seems ideally suited to both.
‘Clean’ Technology
The mechanisms by which pollution or waste may be reduced at source are
varied. They may involve changes in technology or processes, alteration in
the raw materials used or a complete restructuring of procedures. Generally
speaking, biotechnological interventions are principally limited to the former
aspects, though they may also prove instrumental in permitting procedural change.
The main areas in which biological means may be relevant fall into three broad
categories:
- process changes;
- biological control;
- bio-substitutions.
In the following discussions of these three groups, it is not suggested that the
examples cited are either comprehensive or exhaustive; they are simply intended
to illustrate the wide potential scope of applications open to biotechnology in
clean manufacturing. For precisely the reasons mentioned in respect of the eco-
nomic aspects of this particular area of industrial activity, the field is a fast evolv-
ing one and many more types of biotechnological interventions are likely in the
future, especially where commercial pressures derive a competitive advantage.
Process Changes
Replacement of existing chemical methods of production with those based on
microbial or enzyme action is an important potential area of primary pollution
prevention and is one role in which the use of genetically modified organisms