PA EPA AND THE PRES. COUNCIL ON SUS. DEVELOPMENT SPONSOR SHOP

PA EPA AND THE PRES. COUNCIL ON SUS. DEVELOPMENT SPONSOR SHOP

FOR RELEASE: FRIDAY, OCTOBER 18, 1996

EPA AND THE PRESIDENT'S COUNCIL ON
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT SPONSOR WORKSHOP

EPA is co-sponsoring, with the President's Council on Sustainable Development, a workshop on Extended Product Responsibility (EPR) on Oct. 21 - 22, in Washington, D.C., at the White House Conference Center. EPR is an emerging environmental principle that uses the life-cycle approach to identify strategic opportunities for pollution prevention and resource conservation. Under the principle of EPR, manufacturers, suppliers, users and disposers of products share responsibility for reducing the environmental effects of products throughout their life cycle. Growing numbers of businesses, in conjunction with consumers, governments and other partners, are recognizing the value of EPR as a tool to simultaneously improve the environmental performance of products, promote eco-efficiency and sustainability and secure competitive advantage in an increasingly global marketplace. This workshop represents a unique opportunity for business, government, academics and others to share insights on implementation of EPR and how best to spread the word on this new environmental paradigm. Among the key objectives of the workshop are:

1. enhancing the understanding of EPR; 2) demonstrating the various models, actors and industry sectors involved in EPR (through presentation of case studies); and 3) determining how best to educate the business community and others about the benefits and challenges of EPR. R-147 ###