After doing a little research, I have several suggestions for you. Buffalo ReUse (http://www.buffaloreuse.org/Donate/Materials) takes donations of old building materials and other items to resell in their retail store. Profits from the store support their non-profit job training program. According to their donation guidelines, they accept all bathroom fixtures, including tubs. I don't know if this includes hot tubs or not.
If you don't want to donate or they won't take it, you could call around to spa dealers in the area to see if any of them buy back old spas and refurbish them. I found several companies on the West Coast that do this. I don't know if there are any in your area though.
Auto Fuel Savers RunningCarWithWater.com, claims they can double your auto gas mileage and reduce fuel emissions by installing one of their devices that supposedly extracts a hydrogen compound that mixes with your gas to improve engine efficiency. They claim to be EPA approved. Is this true?
I assume you meant http://www.runacaronwater.com/. RunningCarWithWater.com doesn't appear to be a valid URL. I haven't been able to find a definitive answer to your question. I've forwarded it to one of our technical assistance engineers, who may be able to give you an answer.
Meanwhile, you may want to take a look at the following:
I looked briefly at the web page runacaronwater, and I've seen other "easy" bolt-on systems that claim similar improvements. The claims are attractive, especially to the conspiracy theorists in many of us. I'm both curious and skeptical, leaning very much towards skeptical/doubtful. I've never seen more than performance claims via the internet.
I'd be very happy to see an actual system in place or meet someone who's done it.
Maybe you can find enough interested people to chip in the money to conduct a test. If you ever do, I hope you'll share your results.
Paper use I have a question regarding using paper fast food napkins, paper towels and toilet paper to help save the world in doing our part for conservation. The other day on the Oprah show, a guest suggested we should cut down our use of paper napkins to save a bunch of trees. I think we should use less paper towels too. And, I wondered if the use of single ply toilet paper would also help save the trees as well as saving us trouble with our potty drains not just in homes but in homes where the drainage system isn't that great. What do you think? Should we all buy single ply? Shouldn't we use linen napkins more. Any additional suggestions for conservation with regard to paper?
As with most consumer choices, there are trade-offs. For example, if you use cloth napkins instead of paper, you're still going to effect the environment every time you wash them, especially if you're not using eco-friendly laundry detergent. However, if you use paper products made from post-consumer recycled content, you'll also minimize your environmental footprint.
For an excellent discussion these issues, take a look at The Consumer's Guide to Effective Environmental Choices (http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/39335766). Although it was published in 1999, it's still the best book I've seen for helping consumers make choices that really will have an environmental impact.
That being said, there are ways that we can all reduce our use of paper (although I'm personally not willing to skimp on the toilet paper). Some resources include:
The Green Burial Council (http://www.greenburialcouncil.org/) has a wealth of information on green funerals, including information about providers.
You might also want to check out the book Grave Matters: A Journey Through the Modern Funeral Industry to a Natural Way of Burial. See http://gravematters.us/ for more information. To find libraries near you who have the book, see http://worldcat.org/oclc/71189919.
I also found some posts on the topic at Treehugger. The most recent include:
Where can I find a recycling center in Houston that takes plastics and glass? Where can I find a recycling center in Houston that takes plastics and glass?
The City of Houston web site's recycling page has a list of neighborhood drop-off sites at http://www.houstontx.gov/solidwaste/recycling.html#dropoff. They accept glass food and beverage jars and plastic bottles and jugs (#1 and #2 only).
What is the meaning of biodegradable/biocomposites contained in plastic? May I know what is are the definitions of and difference between biodegradable and biocomposites?
Biocomposites: A biocomposite is a material formed by a matrix (resin) and a reinforcement of natural fibers (usually derived from plants or cellulose). With wide-ranging uses from environment-friendly biodegradable composites to biomedical composites for drug/gene delivery, tissue engineering applications and cosmetic orthodontics. They often mimic the structures of the living materials involved in the process in addition to the strengthening properties of the matrix that was used but still providing biocompatibility, e.g in creating scaffolds in bone tissue engineering. [Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biocomposite]
Biodegradable: Biodegradation is the process by which organic substances are broken down by living organisms. The term is often used in relation to ecology, waste management, environmental remediation (bioremediation) and to plastic materials, due to their long life span. Organic material can be degraded aerobically, with oxygen, or anaerobically, without oxygen.
[Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biodegradable]
According to Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whole_Earth_Catalog), the last Whole Earth Catalog was published in 1998. You can purchase used copies from various sellers on E-Bay, Amazon, and Half.com, among others.
What are the simple steps for making a 10 person professional office green?
We would like to be a carbon neutral office by October of next year but how do we get started? We operate a small business in the Northeast.
One of the easiest ways to reduce your carbon footprint is to decrease your energy use. Some ways to do that include replacing incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescents, turning off lights when leaving a room, and shutting computers down at night. For other ideas, see:
Take a look at http://tinyurl.com/o47xs for information about getting a rain barrel from the city. It looks like the rain barrels are gone now but you can put your name on a notification list and they will contact you if more become available.
The Chicago Center for Green Technology has sponsored workshops on making your own rain barrel in the past. You can contact them at (312) 746-9642 or email greentech@cityofchicago.org to see if they still offer them.
In addition, you might want to contact the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Great Lakes National Program Office (http://www.epa.gov/glnpo/). They have a link to a comments form at the bottom of the main page of their site.
P2 for funeral homes/mortuaries/the funeral industry Have any of you ever worked on tech assistance for funeral homes/mortuaries? I found one 1995 study on Formaldehyde Use Reduction, do you know of any other good ones out there?
There was a discussion on P2Tech about four years ago about environmental issues associated with crematoria, which are slightly different than funeral homes, but certainly related. At the time, I did a search for one of our staff people on the issue too. Here's what I found:
· Subject: Re: crematoria
· From: "Robert B. Pojasek"
· Date: Tue, 29 Dec 1998 15:42:47 -0800
· List-Name: P2Tech
The problem that I understand is that the fillings in the deceased teeth are heated causing some mercury to be volatilized. Crematoria typically do not have air pollution control devices. I understand that in California
the morticians have to pull the teeth prior to the baking. This is pollution prevention at work. I do not know what other types of emissions are released from the naked point source (often in close proximity to a
neighborhood). Sort of conjures up scenes from ghostbusters!
· Subject: RE: crematoria
· From: John Calcagni
· Date: Tue, 29 Dec 1998 11:16:06 -0500
· List-Name: P2Tech
I would expect some of the same issues associated with medical waste incineration. EPA has published air standards for medical waste incineration. The background documents for this standard are at
http://www.epa.gov/ttn/atw/129/hmiwi/rihmiwi.html. EPA also included crematoria in their Mercury point source inventory in their report to Congress. There may be some unique mercury related issues. Also we have a number of articles related to medical waste at our Website http://wrrc.p2pays.org. Go to search databases and then to RLIBY. We can send you any articles you find relevant.
· Subject: RE: crematoria and medical waste
· From: John Calcagni
· Date: Tue, 29 Dec 1998 16:34:25 -0500
· List-Name: P2Tech
Follow up to my previous message: I spoke to Rick Copeland at EPA who headed up the effort on the medical waste incineration standards for air, regarding medical waste incinerators(MWI) and he indicated that the issues are not transferrable to crematoria. In fact, crematoria are specifically exempt from the MWI standards. MWI burn a lot of plastics and contaminated supplies which contribute substantial chlorine to the formation of HCl and possibly dioxins and heavy metals. These constituents pose the greater air risk. Tissue matter which is 96% water does not pose these kinds of problems. The EPA air program is looking into crematoria as part of other waste disposal such as combustion of chicken carcasses. He expects mercury from fillings being a problem unique to crematoria since it volatilizes at low combustion temperatures and is not easily removed. Ironically the chlorine levels in MWI result in the formation of HgCl2 which can be removed from the air more easily but ends up in the water.
· Subject: Re: crematoria
· From: "Kirsten Sinclair Rosselot"
· Date: Tue, 29 Dec 1998 21:17:02 -0800
· List-Name: P2Tech
According to the L&E document for dioxins and furans ("Locating and Estimating Air Emissions from Sources of Dioxins and Furans (Draft)," U.S. EPA, May 1996), crematories are a source of dioxin and furan emissions.
Incomplete combustion, don't you know.... I've wondered if maybe it wasn't the materials burned with the bodies (clothing, containers, etc.) that caused the dioxin and furan emissions, or perhaps things like artificial
hips made of plastic. Emissions could depend on factors such as body composition, too, I suspect.
The quantities of dioxins and furans emitted are tiny -- on the order of ten to the minus 13 kilograms per pound of body. However, even tiny amounts of these compounds can be cause for concern.
· Subject: Crematoria
· From: Jeff Cantin
· Date: Wed, 06 Jan 1999 13:51:10 -0500
· List-Name: P2Tech
I also did some searching on the web and found the following sites:
Environmental Effects Main Crematorium Concern http://www.gmnews.com/Atlanticville/News/2001/0802/Front_Page/008.html
Dioxinlike Components in Incinerator Fly Ash: A Comparison between Chemical Analysis Data and Results from a Cell Culture Bioassay (article abstract) http://ehpnet1.niehs.nih.gov/docs/1997/105-12/till.html
Inventory of Sources of Dioxin in the United States (see section 3.4 beginning on page 3-37 for information on crematoria. A look at the References section at the end may also yield relevant journal articles) http://www.epa.gov/ncea/pdfs/dioxin/dioxin.pdf
Emission Tests Provide Positive Result for Cremation Industry http://www.cremationassociation.org/html/environment.html
EPA Publishes New Mercury Data for Crematories http://www.cremationassociation.org/html/pressrelease6.html
Making Funeral Pyres Eco-Friendly (India) http://www.hindu.com/2005/05/15/stories/2005051504721000.htm
Florida DEP Division of Air Resource Management: Human Crematories http://www.dep.state.fl.us/air/permitting/humancrematory.htm
There are also green products available for the industry:
EcoCasket http://www.environmentalcaskets.com/index.html
Yes, this is what it sounds like.
Environment Protection Coffin http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PALL&p=1&u=/netahtml/srchnum.htm&r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=6640401.WKU.&OS=PN/6640401&RS=PN/6640401
An environment protection coffin is constructed to include a coffin body made by folding up a patterned sheet material into shape, which patterned sheet material is formed of an outer shell, an inner shell, and at least one intermediate lining shell sandwiched in between the outer shell and the inner shell.
ECOCEMETERY OFFERS NATURAL BURIAL IN WOODLAND PRESERVE Conventional burial in the United States bears a resemblance to toxic waste disposal. The Environmental Protection Agency has raised concerns about discharge of embalming fluids from funeral homes into septic and sewage systems. Caskets and vaults may contaminate soil and groundwater by leaching varnishes, preservatives, sealants and metals. Most cemeteries are kept verdant by regular applications of herbicides and pesticides and are "beautified" with turf and invasive exotic species. But in Westminster, South Carolina, Billy and Kimberly Campbell have founded Memorial Ecosystems, the first contemporary cemetery in the nation dedicated to ecosystem preservation while providing a lower-cost burial alternative. At the company's pilot "ecocemetery," unembalmed bodies are buried in biodegradable cardboard cremation boxes or simple pine coffins in a native woodland. Plots are sited close to the trail to avoid visitors' trampling the woodland vegetation. Where topsoil must be removed, it is replaced after burial. Grave markers are simple inscriptions on stones mostly found on the property. The Campbells will allow an average of 30 graves per acre, compared to 1,000 or more per acre in some contemporary cemeteries. While burial requirements differ from state to state, they are less constricting than one might expect. In South Carolina, for example, not even a box is legally required. More: http://www.memorialecosystems.com (http://www.memorialecosystems.com/) . Landscape Architecture, Oct 2002, p 74, by J. William Thompson. [Source: GreenClips.com]
I also found a list of funeral related association web sites at http://healthweb.org/browse.cfm?subjectid=55. Some of these groups may have environmental information posted there.
U.S. EPA's Great Lakes National Program Office is a very good place to start when looking for information about the Great Lakes. They have many resources, including information about each lake. In particular, the Great Lakes Atlas provides comprehensive information about the history, ecosystem, environmental concerns, and joint management of the Lakes.
Another good resource is the Great Lakes Center for Environmental Education. They're on the web at http://www.greatlakesed.org/.
A good book on the topic is Kehoe, Terence. Cleaning up the Great Lakes : From Cooperation to Confrontation. DeKalb, IL : Northern Illinois University Press, 1997. You should be able to borrow a copy through your local library.
I've been asked to develop a fact sheet discussing the pros and cons of using polystyrene for things such as beverage or food containment. I'm looking for research based information on the environmental and economic aspects of polystyrene use.
As an authoritative source for questions like this, I highly recommend the book The Consumer's Guide to Effective Environmental Choices, which you should be able to obtain through your local library. There is a discussion of styrofoam (polystyrene) on p. 16. For more information about the book, see http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/060980281X/ref=sib_rdr_dp/104-0579898-7891101.
Some journal articles of relevance include the following. You should be able to obtain copies of these through your local library:
Zabaniotou, A; Kassidi, E. (2003) "Life cycle assessment applied to egg packaging made from polystyrene and recycled paper." Journal of Cleaner Production 11(5), 549-559.
Abstract: In the present study, the application of life cycle assessment (LCA) for the comparison of two egg packages, from polystyrene and recycled paper, is presented. The input and output streams of mass and energy are examined and the environmental impacts associated with the two systems are analyzed. The application of LCA by using EcoIndicator 95 has made possible the comparison of the environmental impacts of two egg packages. The results of this LCA study are discussed and reveal that the PS packages contribute more to acidification potential, winter and summer smog, while recycled paper egg packages contribute more to heavy metal and carcinogenic substances impact. Nevertheless, it seems that paper eggcups have less environmental impact than the polystyrene ones with the assumption that the accuracy of the results is confined by the credibility of European databases used for primary data.
Ohno, K; Azuma, Y; Nakano, S; Kobayashi, T; Hirano, S; Nobuhara,Y ; Yamada, T. (2001) "Assessment of styrene oligomers eluted from polystyrene-made food containers for estrogenic effects in in vitro assays." Food and Chemical Toxicology 39(12), 1233-1241.
Abstract: Recently, several substances from among the huge numbers of chemicals used by mankind have been implicated as instigators of disrupted endocrine function and related human health problems. Polystyrene (PS) is one of the most frequently used resins in the world, and the styrene oligomer dissolved out from PS has been designated as a potential trigger of estrogen-like activity in the Wingspread Declaration and the Japan Environment Agency's SPEED98 [JEA (Japan Environment Agency) Strategic Problem on Environmental Endocrine Disruptors '98 (SPEED) '98), http://www.env.go.jp/en/chemi/ed/speed98/sp98.html]. In order to assess the endocrine disrupting effect of styrene oligomers, we tested
one styrene monomer (SM), three styrene dimers (SDs) and seven styrene trimers (STs), newly isolated from optical isomers, known to dissolve in small amounts from cup noodle containers made of polystyrene by the estrogen receptor binding assay, luciferase reporter gene assay, and human breast cancer cell MCF-7 proliferation assay. In all three tests, none of the SM, SDs and STs showed any significant activity. Accordingly, we concluded that these substances have no estrogenic activity.
Prinsen, MK; Gouko, Nobuaki (2001). "Determination of the Oestrogenic (Uterotrophic) Activity of Extracts of 'General Purpose Polystyrene (GPPS)' using Immature Female Rats." Journal of Applied Toxicology 21(3), 235-239.
Abstract: In Japan there is growing concern about the possible adverse effects of consumption of food from styrene containers (mainlythose made from polystyrene paper) due to the alleged oestrogenic activity of styrene oligomers (dimers and trimers), which may migrate into the food. To examine the possible oestrogenic activity of styrene dimers and trimers, extracts were made from 'general purpose polystyrene (GPPS)' and administered orally to immature female rats over a 4 day period. Increase of uterus weight (wet and blotted) was used for assessment of possible oestrogenic activity. To establish the sensitivity of the test method, immature rats were treated with diethylstilboestrol (DES), a well-known oestrogenic compound. It was found that treatment of rats with levels of up to 60 mu g of styrene dimers and 930 mu g of styrene trimers per kilogram body weight per day did not give any statistically significant increase of the uterus weight (wet or blotted), whereas DES caused statistically significant, dose-related increases in uterus weight at levels as low as 0.89 mu g kg super(-1) body weight day super(-1). It was concluded that, compared with the estimated maximum human daily intake of styrene trimers of 1 mu g kg super(-1) body weight day super(-1) from polystyrene food containers, the risk of adverse human health effects with respect to oestrogenicity may be considered negligible.
The Energy Information Administration has current and historical statistics on gas prices by region and for certain large metropolitan areas like Chicago. See:
Gas Prices: How Are They Really Set?
http://www.senate.gov/~gov_affairs/042902gasreport.htm Report from the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations regarding the production, marketing, and pricing of gasoline in the United States.
Several of these terms have been coined by Janine Benyus who has been studying biomimicry. Her book is called Biomimicry: Innovation Inspired by Nature.
Amory & Hunter Lovins at the Rocky Mountain Institute have coined a number of these terms as well related to natural capitalism. Visit their web site at http://www.natcap.org/ or reference their books. The titles dealing with this topic are Natural Capitalism: Creating the Next Industrial Revolution, The Natural Advantage Of Nations: Business Opportunities, Innovation And Governance In The 21st Century, and A Road Map for Natural Capitalism, an e-book available through Amazon.com.
You might also want to check out The Dictionary of Sustainable Management at http://www.sustainabilitydictionary.com/, a project of the Presidio School of Management.
If these sources don't help you determine definitions for some of the terms, try using Google's DEFINE search (search syntax is define:word or term). As a test, I used the search string define:"environmental labeling". Google didn't come up with a definition, but did ask if I wanted to search the web. The first result in the web search was to EPA's About Environmental Labeling page, which explains how they define it.
A search for define:biomimicry produced no definitions, but clicking on the "search" link provided a link to http://www.biomimicry.org/intro.html, which has a definition at the top of the page.
If you type the above terms into Google's search box (with or without define: at the beginning), you'll find that a page at or near the top of the results list will give you a generally accepted definition or explanation of the term.
