Sustainable development and ecological modernisationinitiatives have achieved notable advances in recent years is the pulp and
paper industry, where major changes include reducing emission levels and
energy intensity, phasing out the use of chlorine and other toxic chemicals,
and increasing the volume of recycled waste (Press and Mazmanian 1999 :
275–6). The lesson is that governments might be wise to adopt a strategy of
ecological modernisation that targets particular (highly polluting) sectors
byworking with the relevant trade associations and encouraging voluntary
industry self-regulation.
Overall, the greening of industry remains an aspiration. Many companies
are increasingly aware of the environmental impact of their activities, but
business elites have not yet absorbed the ideology of ecological modernisa-
tion and there is only limited evidence of ecological criteria being built into
production processes. Even in ‘pioneer’ countries, industry has been selec-
tive about which ideas are adopted, with huge variations among sectors. The
business community has shown little interest in state-sponsored schemes to
encourage ecological modernisation and close state–industry collaboration
remains the exception rather than the rule. Indeed, as the following chap-
ters show, many industries are actively hostile to ecological modernisation
initiatives, opposing the use of innovative policy instruments such as eco-
taxes that are specifically designed to implement the ‘pollution prevention
pays’ principle.
Critical question 4
Why has ecological modernisation struggled to win the hearts and minds of
business leaders?
◗ Conclusion
The significant contribution of sustainable development has been to ques-
tion the long-standing assumption that there is an inevitable trade-off
between environmental and economic objectives. By setting environmen-
tal considerations in a broader social, economic and political context, it
has also produced a development agenda that can marry the often con-
flicting aims of rich and poor countries. Despite the many different mean-
ings attributed to sustainable development, it has become the dominant
paradigm driving the discourse about contemporary environmental policy.
While all governments claim to be committed to its principles, some North-
ern policy elites have been drawn to the narrower concept of ecological
modernisation. As a ‘half-sister’ to sustainable development, they share many
aims, principles and policies, but ecological modernisation is lauded as a
more practical and effective means of transforming the traditional paradigm
because it directly addresses the issue of producer power. By offering a utili-
tarian incentive to industry to build environmental considerations into the
profit calculus, ecological modernisation anticipates that business elites will