The United States Environmental Protection Agencyʹs 33/50 Program: the anatomy of a successful voluntary pollution reduction program

When the Administrator of the United States Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) first introduced the 33/50 Program in 1991, the concept of voluntary programs was relatively new to industry. By the time the program ended in 1996, over 1300 companies were hailing the program as a success and were calling for additional voluntary programs to replace regulatory actions wherever possible. The Program experienced successes in establishing government–industry partnerships, reducing pollution, and fostering the development of creative pollution reduction techniques within industry. This paper presents an overview of the 33/50 Program, some examples of the technologies implemented under the Program, the reasons why the 33/50 Program was successful, and how to apply some of the lessons learned under the Program to the development of future voluntary programs aimed at reducing pollution. The lessons learned from the 33/50 Program are universal, and are valuable to consider in the decision between choosing ‘the carrotʹ or ‘the stickʹ for policymakers around the world, including those in both developed and developing nations.