Light industry

For that reason, zoning laws are more likely to permit light industry near residential areas.

[1] One definition states that light industry is a "manufacturing activity that uses moderate amounts of partially processed materials to produce items of relatively high value per unit weight".

[2] Compared to heavy industries, light industries require fewer raw materials, space, and power.

For example, electronics manufacturing, itself often a light industry, can create potentially harmful levels of lead or chemical wastes in soil without proper handling of solder and waste products (such as cleaning and degreasing agents used in the manufacture).

The Oxford English Dictionary traces the use of the term "light industry" from 1916 onwards.