Monthly Archives: August 2012

Substitutes for Flame Retardant Chemicals

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The US Environmental Protection Agency and the Design for the Environment Alternatives Assessment Program has recently released a report on alternative solutions that manufactures can use in place of highly toxic flame retardant chemicals, and in particular, decaBDE. DecaBDE is used extensively in the construction of building materials, automobiles, and electronics but it is linked to developmental problems in both humans and animals. The report provides information on thirty different alternatives to decaBDE which will not longer be produced in this country by the end of 2013.

The alternative chemicals that are discussed in the EPA’s report are readily available in the marketplace and will be used with increased frequency as the decaBDE ceases production. These alternatives are not considered environmentally friendly as each contains different toxic components. Some are consider safer for human exposure but cause greater environmental harm. Others are less hazardous than decaBDE but still contain toxic chemicals. The EPA has stressed that on-going testing and monitoring will be necessary to completely understand the long-term hazardous impact of these alternative solutions.

The Design for the Environment Alternatives Assessment Program helps governments, businesses, and industrial sectors select safer chemicals and provides research and data on environmental and human impacts.

WasteCare Wants You to Remember: If your business uses flame retardant chemicals it’s important to understand the dangers to both your employees, your customers, and your community. Use research to make the best decision possible and everyone will benefit from it!

Hazardous Chemicals Need Safe Management

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Three waste management facilities in Utah must pay fines for failure to adhere to Risk Management Program policies related to the Clean Air Act. In addition to the monetary fines, the businesses must also correct the cited violations for use of toxic chemicals. The Clean Air Act requires that all facilities have established Risk Management Program policies if they handle, use, store, process, or manufacture hazardous chemicals such as ammonia or chlorine. Not having approved policies can place the general public and surrounding environment at risk should an accidental spill or air release happen.

The Utah facilities were inspected by the Environmental Protection Agency which discovered violations in the areas of programs for preventing accidental hazardous chemical spills and policies to minimize the effects of accidental releases should they occur. The three waste management facilities are responsible for storing extremely hazardous chemicals in large quantities and thus subject to federal and state regulations for ensuring the safety of area residents and the surrounding environment.

Establishing strong and effective risk management policies assists businesses in operating in a responsible manner toward their employees and community, and also provides valuable information to emergency response personnel in the event of an accidental spill or release.  The three businesses have certified that they are now fully compliant with Risk Management Program requirements.

WasteCare Wants You to Remember: If your facility deals with hazardous chemicals it is essential that you establish and conform to Risk Management Program policies. Failure to do so endangers your employees, your community, and the environment – and can also land you in court facing legal action and fines. Do what’s right and follow the law!

Increase in Plastic Bag Bans Worldwide

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The call to ban plastic bags throughout Southeast Asia becomes louder with each passing month. Environmental supporters cite that the abundance of plastic bags is contributing to street flooding, clogged drains, and damage to marine life.

Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam’s largest city, has been considering a ban on plastic takeout bags and Malaysia has imposed a ban on free bags one day a week in an effort to reduce. Current waste recycling efforts are very low in Malaysia with close to ninety-five percent of all waste being sent to landfills.

The rapid increase in the amount of waste generated throughout the region can be attributed to growing populations, economic growth, and greater affluence creating a large consumer class that did not previously exist.

Municipalities are most concerned with drainage issues created by the plastic bags which result in flooded streets, contribute to visual pollution, and are not biodegradable. In addition to reducing the amount of bags, officials are also trying to eliminate the habit of littering by promoting the concepts of reusing and recycling.

When the furniture and household goods retailer Ikea announced last year that its Malaysia store would eliminate all plastic bag use it said that it wanted consumers to think about their attitudes towards free plastic bags and encourage the habit of using reusable bags for their shopping.

WasteCare Wants You to Remember: Is your business considering an expansion in Southeast Asia? If you’re in the reusable container or waste recycling business, opportunities might exist for you!

 

Fort Worth Increases Waste Recycling Options

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The residents of Forth Worth, Texas, now have increased recycling opportunities in their community. The city did has recently announced that households can now recycle pots, pans, pizza boxes, paper beverage cartons, and juice boxes as part of the regular trash and waste recycling services. The city currently accepts plastics, glass, cans, paper and cardboard in its recycling facility.

For the newly added items, residents are being asked to clean food waste off of boxes and containers so that they are easier to process. For kitchen pans and pots, sorting to determine if the item is aluminum or steel will take place at the recycling facility.

Due to the anticipated influx in recycling, it is expected that the sorting facility will be hiring new employees.  The facility will continue to process materials using manual labor from a conveyor belt, however, if the new recycling initiate is a success, the facility will invest in acquiring new sorting technology to enhance and improve the waste recycling process.

WasteCare Wants You to Remember: Think recycling can’t improve your business? Think again! Not only can you do your part to protect the environment, but you can add dollars to your bottom line and help to increase employment.

Landfill Waste Provides Power

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Beginning in early 2012, a Coca-Cola bottling facility in Georgia started using energy powered by landfill gas to provide most of the businesses energy requirements.

This innovative new waste recycling energy system provides electricity, chilled water, and steam. According to Coco-Cola, it is one of the largest landfill-gas energy installations in the United States.

This energy efficient system assists the company in attaining environmental objectives while also cutting cost associated with the manufacturing process.

The biogas system in Georgia generates a minimum of forty-eight million kilowatt-hours of energy yearly. This is equal to removing the carbon dioxide emissions of six thousand vehicles annually.

As a result of this innovative new system, Coca-Cola has earned a top five spot on the Environmental Protection Agency’s list of biggest in-house environmentally friendly power generators.

WasteCare Wants You to Remember: Energy costs are something that every business incurs  Why not try to find ways to reduce those costs while enhancing the environment? You might save more “green” than you’d expect!

Gum Recycling Sticks in the U.K.

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How many times have you found gum stuck to the bottom of your shoe? Gum is a very popular confectionery. Whether it’s chewed to freshen breath, blow bubbles, help with smoking cessation or weight loss, of just for fun, it’s consumed by children and adults alike. However, unlike chocolates or other candies, chewing gum is not easily digestible and at some point looses its flavor – requiring that it be thrown away. Not everyone is conscientious about placing their used chewing gum in the trash and as a result those gooey, chewy pink gummy bits end up stuck to a shoe like glue!

However, a new chewing gum waste recycling program has begun at the Southampton Airport in England that is targeting gum chewers. The airport now has twenty-five pink containers that are for used for chewing gum recycling. The containers are emptied on a regular basis and the used gum is sold to be recycled into car tires, cell phone covers, and toys.

The Southampton Airport has over two million people travelers annually and would spend an average of five thousand dollar a year on chewing gum removal from floors, furniture, and walls. The airport hopes that the eye-catching containers will encourage travelers to properly dispose of their used chewing gum and reinforce the message that the airport is providing recycling opportunities to its patrons.

WasteCare Wants You to Remember: Instead of spending thousand of dollars on waste removal could you be saving, or earning, money with waste recycling? Whether it’s chewing gum or something else, take a look at where your business is spending money. You might find a green alternative!

Remyxx’s 100% Recycled Shoes

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How about this for an innovative business idea? Using a mixture of number 5 recycled plastics such as yogurt containers, Remyxx shoes is making a name for themselves while promoting recycling. Printed on the very top of the shoe, and making quite a statement, is the number 5 recycling symbol of a triangle made of three arrows.

Gary Gagnon is the founder of this new venture, and he is currently working on getting these shoes in front of a larger audience. The entire shoe is 100% recyclable from the bottom sole to the laces to the padding in-between. The idea for the Remyxx shoe came about when he noticed a pair of old sneakers in a trash can – ready to go off to a landfill. He  then met with a chemist who helped him to create the mix of plastics that go in to making his distinctive, unique sneakers.

The material created by the recycled plastics has the appearance of canvas, but is something else entirely. Remyxx has recently raised almost forty five thousand dollars through a fundraising campaign and plans on using the funds to make more of the eco-friendly shoes and officially start his business. The average cost of the shoe, which will be available in both youth and adult sizes, averages $65.

Each year over three hundred million pairs of shoes end up in landfills through traditional waste disposal means. The break-down time for most footwear is up to forty years depending on the material they are made of.

For buyers of the shoes, the company will offer the incentive program Reduce, Reuse, Remyxx, where their old Remyxx shoes can be sent back for recycling in return for a five dollar coupon for their next pair.

WasteCare Wants You to Remember: One person’s trash can be another person’s goldmine! Take a look at what ends up in your trash bin. Are you missing out on an opportunity to make money and increase your business?

 

An End to Plastics Waste Recycling Codes?

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The plastics recycling industry has introduced a new community outreach and education plan that removes resin identification codes from plastics. The group cites that the codes prevent recycling as they cause confusion among most consumers.

The new recycling plan instead uses the six types of plastics that are most popular and easily identified by consumers.

Resin identification codes, which are a number located inside of a triangle made of arrows and stamped on the bottom of plastic containers, were initially designed for the recycling industry and not for household individuals. They have been in use for over twenty fice years. Consumers often have difficulty identifying the number or have uncertainties about which numbers are accepted by their municipality.

The new plastics recycling plan illustrates six different categories:

1) Plastic bottles
2) Plastic containers without thermoformed packaging
3) Plastic containers with thermoformed packaging
4) Rigid plastic without bags or foam
5) Plastic with bags or film wrap
6) Plastic without bags or film wrap.

Each category will have a corresponding graphic as well as facts designed to help individuals properly identify the plastic they are looking to recycle. The hope is that consumers will be able to easily and quickly determine which plastics can be put in their recycling bin without searching for resin codes.

WasteCare Wants You to Remember: If you’re looking to increase waste recycling in your home or business, make it as simple and easy as possible for everyone to know what belongs in the recycling bin and what goes out for the trash. Educating all involved will have to reduce your waste disposal costs!

Safely Recycle e-Waste

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Does this scenario sound familiar? You business would like to recycle electronics waste but you’re not sure where to take it, when to take it, and how to make sure that any information on the device has been successfully destroyed. As a result, you have a closet, or another storage area that is filled with old computer monitors, phones, printers, and other devices that haven’t been produced in years! You would like to use that space for something else, but you just don’t know how to get rid of the old electronics.

If your business is in this situation, you are not alone. Fear of having data get in the hands of unscrupulous individuals is a primary reason why businesses are hesitant to recycle.  While many recycling facilities buy hard drives and other computer parts of the valuable metals they contain, most of these locations do not have the proper training or authority to destroy the data found on e-waste equipment.

This uncertainty leads many businesses to simply smash the equipment and dispose of it with other trash in a landfill. Unfortunately, this has a very negative consequence on the environment as the components of e-waste often contain toxic substances that leech into the groundwater.

It pays to take the time to find a reputable recycler for your e-waste that fits your businesses needs. Some facilities offer money for the metals found in your devices, others will not. Some provide drive shredders right on site where you can verify that your material was properly destroyed. Select municipalities also offer public shredding and e-waste days where residents and businesses can properly dispose of their waste.

When you find a facility that accepts e-waste, ask for their procedures for destroying your materials. A trustworthy recycler will have this information on hand, along with the proper licenses and authorizations. Taking small steps to recycle your e-waste can help to improve the quality of the environment, possibly earn you a little money, and certainly free up some space in that storage closet!

WasteCare Wants You to Remember: The recycling opportunities are numerous for various business materials. Are you looking for ways to save money? Look to the e-waste that’s collecting in your office!

 

Renewable Packaging Choices

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As consumer attitudes about environmentalism become increase in awareness, more and more businesses are incorporating these concerns into their delivery model. Utilizing sustainable packaging is one area that has seen great interest by consumers and adoption of by businesses.

For businesses looking to shift to environmentally-friendly packaging, many concerns arise in the areas of affordability, safety, and overall effectiveness. When it comes to packaging your product, you want materials that are strong and durable. Consumers need to trust that products are secure within and won’t be damaged during transport. While many packaging options made of recycled cardboard and plastic are just as stable as their traditional counterparts, it’s always worth conducting safety tests of your own to ensure the packaging meets your customers’ standards.

Making the switch to environmentally-conscious packaging is something that can benefit both your customers and your public relations efforts within your community. Once you select the packaging option that best meets your business needs, be sure to let the word out! You may be pleasantly surprised at the response you receive!

WasteCare Wants You to Remember: Every business needs to stay in-tune with the changing needs of their customers. If you utilize packaging for your products or services, consider the benefits of going green – you may win more customers and support because of it!