I finally got tired of using biodegradable, sustainable and renewable in the different contexts so I decided to blend them all together to simplify things. I mean, what exactly does biodegradable mean and when are we supposed to use sustainable versus renewable? It’s very confusing, so just mash them together and you cover all the bases. In fact, we’re thinking of marketing a whole new line of biosustainewable products. We think the “BSN” series sounds nice and just
for good measure we’ll ship everything in green colored packages.
It would be nice if it was that simple, but of course it’s not. All of these words get thrown around when marketing anything and there is no real definition for sustainable and renewable. For biodegradable, there is a scientific standard, but what is the practical usefulness of something being biodegradable? With all that, let’s take a step back and talk a bit about the words.
- Biodegradable – Of all the terms, this one is the most easily defined as there are test methods to determine the rate that a substance degrades into environmentally benign components. The Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD) has developed standards and you should make sure your products meet the standards of biodegradability if it is important to you. However, this does not give you the right to dump fluid down the drain or assume once the product has been used it it has the same degree of biodegradability it had in the virgin form.
- Sustainable – There is no accepted industry standard for sustainability, but probably the best definition is:
“Sustainability focuses on meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs. The concept of sustainability is composed of three pillars: economic, environmental, and social—also known informally as profits, planet, and people.” When we think of sustainability, we think of an offering that is made from sources that are easily replaced, reducing fluid waste and employing products that save energy. One of the main
business drivers for sustainability is how it improves the bottom line. This has been elusive in the past but is very attainable these days.
- Renewable – This term is a subset of sustainability and applies mainly to energy. Certain energy sources are considered infinite, like solar and wind, while others like oil have a limited supply. Using renewable energy sources could be part of a sustainable strategy as they may have lower environmental impacts than their non-renewable brethren.
In the end, we probably don’t need biosustainewable as a part of our vocabulary, but it certainly would be fun. The components of the biosustainewable concept can help your business, it just takes a little work to realize it.