Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) Trends for 2006

Leaders from different segments of the environmental field were asked to\ngaze into their crystal balls and forecast significant developments they see\noccurring in 2006 and beyond. Environmental Protection’s executives provide\ninsights about a variety of subjects ranging from the future market drivers in\nthe water business to emerging compliance challenges related to the Clean Air\nAct. Here’s a short list of the\nthings you should know as an environmental industry expert:

1. Innovation: Driving\nFactor of the Water Business
   Innovation continues to be a driving factor\nin the water treatment business. Population growth, ineffective water\nmanagement, and regulatory demands all impact the industry's need to provide\nmore efficient technology and systems. Innovative technologies that address the\nneed for alternative water sources, along with better management of the existing\nwater resources, will continue to grow as the world's already dwindling water\nsupply becomes more limited.\n
2. The Clean Air Act:\nCompliance or Shutdown?
   On June 20, 2005, EPA proposed to amend the\nGeneral Provisions to the national emission standards for hazardous air\npollutants (NESHAP) and other specific National Emissions Standards. Among other\nthings, the General Provisions require an affected facility to develop a\nstartup, shutdown, and malfunction (SSM) plan, which would describe how a source\nwill operate to minimize emissions during these periods. The next few years will see mandatory\npolicy, both federal and state, compelling plants to implement industrial air\npollution reduction or elimination systems, or risk fines or even shutdown if\nimplementation is not in effect.
3. "Software as a Service" (SaaS) Creates the Customer\nEra
   The "Software as a Service" Revolution has, for the first\ntime, exploded the software vendor's vice grip -- putting customers in the\ndriver's seat. Prior to the creation of Internet-based "software as a service"\ntechnology, customers had no choice but to purchase software that didn't meet\ntheir needs.  Software as a service (also known as "on-demand") technology\nfinally puts the choice, the flexibility, and the power where it belongs -- in\nthe hands of customers -- ushering in the Customer Era. In this "on-demand"\nworld, buyers purchase precisely the amount of computing required, directly\nmatching business issues with technology solutions. And, because software as a\nservice requires no hardware purchase or software disks to load, the cash\ninvestment is lower and the customer gets direct access to the software in a\nmatter of hours, not weeks or months.

• More information on Water and Air compliance\nsolutions
• More information on Software as a Service\n(SaaS)