Abstract
Small enterprises negatively affect the environment due to the inadequate disposal of manufacturing and raw material wastes generated in production processes; in addition, small enterprises do not often adopt adequate environmental practices due to barriers that include the lack of investment capacity. However, the adoption of cleaner production results in economic and environmental gains. The purpose of this study is to demonstrate how Brazilian small metal mechanical enterprises can identify and overcome barriers with the aim of implementing cleaner production. The research method used multiple cases with data collected by means of interviews and observations. The results allowed us to conclude that cultural and technical barriers negatively affect the adoption of cleaner production in the small enterprises studied. However, cultural and technical barriers can be overcome by means of economic and environmental gains as well as through investment in employee training and in the acquisition of more efficient machines and equipment.
Highlights
Environmental problems caused by industries have increased and become a global concern; it is important to mitigate the consumption of non-renewable natural resources and environmental pollution caused by industrial processes
It was observed that the researched SEs are unaware of opportunities for obtaining economic gains by means of the implementation of cleaner production (CP), and these companies are not aware of the environmental impacts caused by the end of pipe treatment
SEs are important for the economy, and as such, they need to adopt CP environmental practices in the production system to minimize environmental impacts and achieve economic gains through reduced waste generation
Summary
Environmental problems caused by industries have increased and become a global concern; it is important to mitigate the consumption of non-renewable natural resources and environmental pollution caused by industrial processes. CP is a preventive strategy applied into the production process for increasing productivity through a more efficient use of raw materials, energy, and water, thereby improving economic performance and reducing environmental impact [1]. Neto and Jabbour [2] concluded that CP concentrates on reducing raw material consumption and mitigating environmental impacts with the purpose of generating economic gains. CP provides great contributions to the industrial sector, improving environmental performance and stimulating the pursuit of market advantages [3,4,5,6]
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