(1) The general assembly hereby finds and declares that:

(a) Colorado is blessed by natural beauty and an excellent quality of life, which should be maintained;

(b) The prevention of pollution will assist in maintaining quality of life in our state;

(c) There are resources and expertise in Colorado, including industry, government, and citizen groups, which can provide information and assistance to promote the cost-effective prevention of pollution;

(d) There are opportunities to reduce or prevent pollution through voluntary changes in procurement, production, operations, and use of raw materials throughout the state;

(e) The purpose of this article is to create a cooperative partnership among business, agriculture, the environmental community, and the department of public health and environment in which technical assistance, outreach, and education activities are coordinated and conducted to achieve pollution prevention and waste reduction and source reduction;

(f) The prevention of pollution is preferable to treatment and disposal of toxic substances and is the cornerstone of the future of environmental management.

(2) The general assembly, therefore, determines and declares that the state policy of Colorado shall be that pollution prevention is the environmental management tool of first choice. The state policy shall be that: Pollution should be prevented or reduced at the source by means including the reduction in the production or use of hazardous substances; pollution that cannot be prevented should be recycled in an environmentally safe manner; pollution that cannot be prevented or recycled should be treated in an environmentally safe manner; and disposal or other releases into the environment should be employed only as a last resort and should be conducted in an environmentally safe manner.