United States Prevention, Pesticides And August 2002 (rev.) 

Environmental Protection Toxic Substances 

Agency (7406) EPA 744-F-00-019 

Design for the Environment Projects

What is Design for the Environment (DfE)? 

DfE is an approach companies use to make business 

decisions that consider environmental impacts along with 

traditional business considerations of cost and 

performance. Manufacturers are increasingly thinking in 

terms of “design for” qualities or traits in their products 

and processes. 

For over a decade, EPA’s Design for the Environment 

Program has promoted voluntary partnerships on safer 

chemicals, comparative risk analysis, and alternative 

technology development. 

DfE is a voluntary, partnership program that works directly 

with industries and other partners, with a focus on small 

businesses, to integrate health and environmental 

considerations in business decisions. 

The DfE Program: DfE is a testing ground for new 

approaches to risk reduction through pollution prevention. 

By balancing business needs and environmental concerns, 

the DfE Program is serving as a catalyst for lasting change. 

DfE’s approach is grounded in comparing the risks, 

performance, and costs, of alternative technologies or 

processes. Rather than rely on end-of-pipe controls, DfE 

encourages pollution prevention or front-end innovations 

through the redesign of formulations and manufacturing 

and disposal processes. 

DfE can help an industry comply with regulations through 

cleaner technologies and safer chemicals. To move an 

industry beyond compliance, a DfE project looks at crossmedia impacts, energy and resource use, and the risks from 

unregulated, hazardous chemicals. A DfE project may use 

a cleaner technologies substitutes assessment (CTSA) to 

evaluate the environmental risks, performance, and costs 

of competing technologies. 

DfE Partnerships: DfE partners with an entire industry 

sector, usually through industry leaders and trade 

association representatives, to conduct an assessment. DfE 

assessments are disseminated throughout the industry, so 

businesses can make better informed decisions that reduce 

environmental impacts and even boost a company’s 

bottom line. DfE partnerships include the following: 

Printing: DfE partnered with all sectors of the printing 

industry to improve environmental performance in the 

printing shop. The Screen Printing Project evaluated 18 

screen reclamation technologies. The Lithography Project 

assessed 37 blanket wash formulations. The Flexographic 

CTSA, published in February 2002, compares 

environmental impacts, costs, and performance of the three 

primary ink systems (uv, water-based, and solvent). The 

study found that each of the ink systems had different 

advantages as well as health and environmental concerns. 

DfE concludes that selecting the best ink formulation is 

just as important as system selection. Contact: 

Chu.Karen@epa.gov 

Printed Wiring Board: The printed wiring board (PWB) is 

the critical building block of the electronics industry. The 

traditional manufacturing process includes the use of 

substantial amounts of water, energy, and some toxic 

chemicals. DfE first collaborated on an evaluation of the 

“making holes conductive” step of PWB manufacturing. 

The CTSA evaluated nonconveyorized electroless copper 

and six alternative technologies that use direct 

metalization, and found that the alternatives perform as 

well or better, are more efficient, and may pose less risk to 

workers and the environment. The partnership recently 

completed it’s second evaluation comparing several “leadfree” surface finish alternatives to the standard hot air 

solder leveling process. The PWB Surface Finishes 

CTSA, published in June 2001, indicates that the 

alternative finishes perform as well as, or better than, the 

baseline technology, and many of the alternatives cost less, 

use less water and energy, and appear to pose less potential 

risk to workers and the environment. Contact: 

Hart.Kathy@epa.gov 

Computer Display Screen: The Computer Display Screen 

project used life cycle assessment (LCA) to evaluate the 

environmental impacts of traditional cathode ray tube 

(CRT) and the new active matrix liquid crystal display 

(LCD) technologies. The analysis indicates that CRT has 

greater impacts than the LCD in all but two impact 

categories (eutrophication and aquatic toxicity). Further, 

the results indicate several areas where improvements can 

be made during the life-cycle of both technologies, such as 

reducing energy consumption during manufacture, cutting 

back on usage of chemicals that pose greater aquatic 

toxicity risks, and eliminating the use of mercury. The 

Computer Display Screen LCA published in December, 
2001 encourages companies to use the LCA results to 

conduct their own improvement assessments.Contact: 

Hart.Kathy@epa.gov 

Solder in Electronics: This project, initiated in late 2001, 

will be conducted as a life-cycle assessment (LCA) of tin 

lead solders and 3-4 alternatives. The primary focus will 

be on the potential impacts of the alternatives. Legislative 

and market pressures to remove lead from electronics are 

continuing to increase, both domestically and abroad, due 

to potential environmental concerns posed by leaded 

solders. The partnership has concern that if all 

environmental aspects of replacement solders are not 

carefully considered, the replacement of lead could have a 

net negative impact on the environment. Contact: 

Hart.Kathy@epa.gov 

Dry Cleaning: DfE worked in partnership with the 

drycleaning industry to reduce exposure to 

perchloroethylene or “perc.”, a chemical solvent used by 

most drycleaners that poses health and environmental 

concerns. Through this partnership, greener technologies 

have become well-established in the dry cleaning industry. 

Industrial/Institutional Formulations Project: DfE is 

partnering with detergent and other formulators to design 

and adopt safer, more efficient products. Billions of 

pounds of chemical ingredients are used in laundry and 

other detergents each year and ultimately wind up down 

the drain and, in some form, out in our environment. DfE 

is working with companies through memorandums of 

understanding (MOUs) to reformulate products and, 

thereby, prevent pollution and reduce impacts to human 

health and the environment. This approach is being 

expanded to include other industrial formulations. In 

addition, the two laundry trade associations (UTSA & 

TRSA) have adopted the DfE approach as their 

environmental stewardship program and have identified 

industry-wide goals to improve chemical formulation 

ingredients, water, and energy use by 10-25%. Contact: 

Difiore.David@epa.gov or Cushmac.Mary@epa.gov 

Automotive Refinishing: DfE is working with the 

automotive refinish industry to increase awareness of the 

risks and pollution issues associated with spray painting 

and related activities. DfE is promoting adoption of costeffective technologies and best practices that reduce 

exposure and emissions of toxic chemicals used in 

autobody shops such as diisocyanates and volatile organic 

solvents. Diisocyanates are the leading cause of 

occupational asthma. There are over 60,000 shops and 

over 150,000 painters. These numbers do not include other 

persons in the shops and neighboring areas impacted by 

odors and toxic emissions from the shops, many of which 

are located in residential areas. DfE identified 

technologies that reduce worker exposures, more efficient 

workplace practices, and practical ways to adapt new 

technologies to the real-world parameters of the small 

shop. DfE also supported a virtual autobody website at 

http://www.ccar-greenlink.org/cshops, containing easily 

accessible information for painters, shop owners, and 

technical assistance providers. Contact: 

Cushmac.Mary@epa.gov or Difiore.David@epa.gov 

Adhesives: Environmental and occupational regulations 

are causing rapid changes in the use of adhesive solvents 

in the foam furniture industry. The industry’s concern is 

that affordable, effective, and safe adhesives will not be 

available in the future. DfE is investigating solvents and 

processes with the goal of providing information on 

alternative adhesives that are less harmful than the 

chlorinated and flammable solvents currently in use. Case 

studies are being developed to share information on 

alternative adhesives. The CTSA is expected in fall 2002. 

Contact: Sparks.John@epa.gov. 

Supplier Initiative: Original Equipment Manufacturers 

(OEMS) of products, such as automobiles, depend on a 

network of suppliers for parts and assemblies. Many of the 

suppliers are small businesses. A pilot is underway with 

General Motors, Inc. and Saturn Corporation to investigate 

using the network to promote prevention and risk 

reduction. Contact: Sparks.John@epa.gov 

DfE Approaches to Developing an Environmental 

Management System (EMS): The DfE Program has 

integrated DfE, pollution prevention, and risk reduction 

approaches and methodologies into an EMS framework. 

The DfE Integrated Environmental Management Systems 

(IEMS) Manual and the IEMS Facilities Template have 

been widely distributed. Also, DfE partnered with the 

Screen printers and Graphic Imaging Association (SGIA) 

to pilot DfE/EMS with screen printers - SGIA is now 

implementing a national DfE/EMS program. 

Contact: Chu.Karen@epa.gov 

To learn more about the Design for the Environment Program, visit the DfE web site 

at www.epa.gov/dfe. If you are interested in joining a DfE Partnership Team for any 

of the projects described above, please contact the appropriate Project Manager. 

DfE looks forward to working with you as a new partner. We also welcome your ideas 

on new projects that use the DfE approach to cleaner, safer technologies. Please 

contact Carol Hetfield at Hetfield.Carol@epa.gov with your suggestions, or write to: 

Design for the Environment Program (7406-M), U.S. EPA 

1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW , Washington, DC 20460