Measuring Sustainability-Standardization?

I have had the opportunity to attend several conferences on packaging sustainability and observed the happenings within the packaging community (the Wal-Mart scorecard to name one). This ‘green movement’ seems to be here to stay, although I will contend that the ‘movement’ has been here for a long time, is not new (remember Earth Day?) , and has been driven primarily by economic and market forces. I believe it will continue to be driven predominantly by economic and market forces, independent of the ‘sustainability movement’. Over the long term, there are no incentives for businesses to use more packaging materials than is required to get the product to the consumer. It has always made good business and economic sense to discover the most economical and practical way to package and deliver products. Environmental stewardship, in all business endeavors, is the right goal. For packaging professionals, designing the optimal package has always been the objective. Perhaps the rapid industrial growth of countries such as India and China has heightened the awareness of the environmental impact of industrialization. Environmental activism is a logical response to global industrialization and external pressure (the ‘green movement’) is being applied to businesses to make sustainability a significant parameter, in designing packaging. So we have the Wal-Mart scorecard and other programs by other retailers to force suppliers to use more ‘sustainable’ packaging. This is all well and good but how do you know when you are designing sustainable packaging; and how can this be evaluated equitably in the marketplace? Where are the standards against which packaging can be measured and examined to determine how well you are meeting a goal of “sustainable” packaging. Is sustainable packaging a continuum or a finite achievement? I think it is generally accepted that packaging sustainability is a process of continuous and incremental improvements, primarily driven by new technologies and new applications and of course, increasing global competition. The pursuit of continuous improvement for package sustainability does not preclude the development of standards, goals and “scorecards” however; it presents a challenge to the development of global standardization. Can metrics, criteria and goals be developed in order to provide some equitable measure of packaging sustainability? It will not exactly be ‘sustainable packaging’ if each supplier has to comply with a different ‘scorecard’ for each retailer they want to sell to causing manufacturers to develop special packaging for each customer; Further, we can not call a package sustainable if by removing materials (source reduction) the shipment of the that package causes increased damage (potential hazard to the environment). So global standardization and specifications are essential. How do we do it? The ASTM Committee D10 can play an integral role in providing a debate for discussion on the topic of sustainability. There is already some work going on to develop metrics. The Sustainable Packaging Coalition ( www.sustainablepackaging.org ) has an activity called the ‘Indicators and Metrics Project’ with the primary purpose to develop guidelines for measuring the sustainability of packaging and packaging systems. The guidelines will comprise a core set of performance indicators and metrics to help members of a packaging supply chain track and gauge their performance against key elements of the SPC “Definition of Sustainable Packaging”. In addition the ASTM Committee D10 on Packaigng already has established standardized test methods and procedures for evaluating packaging materials and package systems. These include standards for evaluating the protective function of the package through distribution and shipping hazards such as shock, compression and vibration. So far, I have heard little discussed about the impact of source reduction on the logistic chain and the need to evaluate, and validate new sustainable package designs for their protective function. This step is essential to ensure that with the implementation of a sustainable new design there are not other non-sustainable consequences somewhere else in the manufacturing and logistics chain. ASTM committee D10.19, ‘Recycling and Disposability’ is the perfect forum for the continuing effort to bring sustainable packaging to the marketplace by way of published standards, practices and guides. There is no better organization in the world for developing, disseminating and maintaining standardized documents for industries. Experts in all phases of packaging can have a direct hand in developing the future standards that will foster environmental stewardship as we continue to conduct the commerce essential to a prosperous global economy, and also provide the level playing field that is necessary for that prosperity.

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