Green Chemistry is an aspect of modern science that looks into researching and designing of chemicals used in production that will have minimal environmental harm. This field of science differs from cleaning up pollution as it aims to prevent pollutants at the beginning of a product’s life rather than removing refuse at the product’s end life. It is intended to eliminate pollution from a molecular level while finding ways to reduce pollution and hazards from conventional chemicals through source reduction.

Green chemistry can trace its roots to 1990 when the United States government introduced the Pollution Prevention Act, a law that made stopping pollution from the beginning a part of American policy. Green Chemistry came out of this as a way to find how to reduce pollutants from their source and creating chemicals that will not harm humans, and the environment when released.

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Other Sources

Green Centre Canada. “Green Chemistry.” Green Centre Canada. https://www.greencentrecanada.com/green-chemistry/. Accessed August 8, 2016.

United States Environmental Protection Agency. “Basics of Green Chemistry.” EPA. https://www.epa.gov/greenchemistry/basics-green-chemistry#definition. Accessed August 5, 2016.