Industrial Ecology

I have commented here before about industrial ecology .

Since the turn of last century technologists have looked at sustainable industry which often clashed with the management theories of the Fordist production model.

Recently a U of T professor spoke on this at a libertarian conference in Ontario; The Reading Room

His work was on how the market-place can be environmentally friendly through industrial ecology. It's an interesting paper well worth the read.

“Modern conditions make it almost impossible materially to cut production and
distribution of expense for the majority of commodities; hence one of the most
important opportunities for gaining competitive advantage, or even for enabling an industry or individual business to maintain its position in this new competition, is to reduce its manufacturing expense by creating new credits for products previously unmarketable...”

Can capitalism green itself. Of course. Simply look at WWII where rationing, recycling and reuse along with a command and control economic model was the method of production in North America.Which is why industrial ecology is only a solution within existing capitalism, for a real ecology of community and worker control we have to move beyond IE to Social Ecology.

But will it? Not likely. Because it takes a state capitalist political economy to enforce it. And with the current fiscal free fall in the market place, where more money being created is more important than long term production, it is not likely to happen soon enough.

A tip o' the blog to BBS for this.


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