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01 Aug 01 - job; NRC booth; junk faxes; rain barrels; materials exchange ** WASTE PREVENTION FORUM ** -- A project of the National Waste Prevention Coalition -------- Forum archive: http://www.reuses.com/nwpcarchive -------------------- Excerpted from a job announcement sent by Dwight Mercer, waste diversion program, City of Regina, Saskatchewan: WASTE DIVERSION OFFICER - Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada The City of Regina is seeking a Waste Diversion Officer in the Solid Waste Collection Division of the Public Works Department. The successful candidate will operate, monitor, evaluate, implement and maintain waste minimization programs and projects related to reduction, reuse, and recycling of solid waste. Functions will include working within the organization and with businesses, citizen groups, governments, service organizations, and the public to operate current waste minimization programs and inform, promote, and maintain these waste diversion activities. The candidate of choice will have a degree or diploma from a recognized institution with relevant courses in waste diversion, bylaw enforcement, environmental studies, urban planning, business administration, geography, economics, or other waste management-related areas, coupled with a minimum of one to two year's experience in public outreach, advocacy programs and contract administration. Experience in the area of solid waste management and/or the waste minimization business sector would be an asset. You must have a valid driver's license and vehicle available for work usage (a travel allowance is provided). Additionally, you will be required to work non-standard hours, including evenings and weekends. The salary ranges from $35,425 to $44,290 (Canadian) annually. Interested individuals may apply in confidence, indicating competition #01-142, by August 17, 2001 to: Human Resources Department 11th Floor, City Hall P.O. Box 1790 Regina, SK S4P 3C8 Inquiries: (306) 777-7550 Fax: (306) 777-6825 We will contact applicants we wish to consider within six weeks of the competition closing date. For information on the City of Regina, visit our website at http://www.cityregina.com Dwight's e-mail: dmercer ( A T ) cityregina ( D O T ) com Note from Tom: I asked Dwight whether U.S. citizens are eligible for this position. He replied: "We are looking for the BEST person, and with free trade, there is fairly smooth movement across the borders for professionals." ------------------ From Tom Watson, King County Solid Waste Division, Seattle, WA, and the National Waste Prevention Coalition: As we have done several times in the past, the National Waste Prevention Coalition - the group I coordinate, which sponsors this Forum - will have a joint booth at the National Recycling Congress (NRC), along with the Reuse Development Organization (ReDO). I'm especially excited about NRC this year because it's in my home city of Seattle. The dates are Sept. 30 - Oct. 3. Our booth will be a nice, double-sized booth, and I call it the Waste Prevention Lounge, because we invite people interested in reduction and reuse to stop by, sit for awhile, learn some new things about waste prevention, and meet each other. We'll have a couch and some comfortable chairs. If you're at NRC, be sure you come by. The booth will feature educational materials, products, etc., related to reduction and reuse. If you have any interesting new materials from your programs, please send them to me, and we may feature them in the booth. Some striking posters would be great. Make sure they deal with reduction or reuse, not recycling. We can't promise to use everything people send, but we'll consider it (but please don't send too much stuff). We can't promote specific products, but we will consider displaying single examples of innovative reuse or reduction-related products. Here's the address to send materials to: Tom Watson, King County Solid Waste Division, 201 South Jackson St., Room 701, Seattle, WA, 98104. We also could use some people to help staff the booth (show and explain the materials, greet people, introduce people, answer questions about waste prevention, etc.). The exhibit hall is open Monday, Oct. 1, from 11 until 5:30, and Tuesday, Oct. 2, from 11 until 5. If you are interested in helping out, let me know. We would like people to do two-hour shifts if possible. This is not part of the official NRC volunteer program. Thanks everyone, and we hope to see you in a couple months! E-mail: tom ( D O T ) watson ( A T ) metrokc ( D O T ) gov Phone: (206) 296-4481 ------------------ Excerpted from an article by William Glaberson in the 7/22/01 New York Times: JUNK FAXES COME BACK TO HAUNT HOOTERS When Sam Nicholson in Augusta, GA, received faxed advertisements from the Hooters restaurant chain and other businesses, he filed a class-action suit. This spring, a jury in Augusta found that the six faxes that rolled off his machine in 1995 violated a little-known federal law that prohibits sending advertising by fax without permission. As a result, it awarded Mr. Nicholson and others a $12 million judgment, forcing Hooters of Augusta, which is owned by the national chain, to file for bankruptcy protection. Hooters has appealed the award, which is believed to be the largest under the "junk fax" provision of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991. Experts on the law say there may be a dozen similar class-action cases around the country. ------------------ Excerpted from an article by Rick Brooks in the 8/1/01 Wall Street Journal: RAIN BARRELS ARE BACK With 18 states suffering this summer from severe drought, more and more people are collecting rain in reused barrels, to water their lawns and gardens. Rain barrels these days are usually plastic, and might have originally been used to store pickles, for example, or other food products. Until the 1940s, the rain barrel was a common sight at farms and homes throughout rural America. Rainwater often was softer than pipe-supplied water, and wooden feed-barrels scattered beneath the steep roof of a barn could catch hundreds of gallons of water during a brief shower. But with modern plumbing, the rain barrel became unnecessary. Until now. In Florida, several counties are teaching people how to make rain barrels out of an old plastic drum, adding a spigot and a screen on top. Those workshops have been filled to capacity. In Plant City, Florida, the TR Drum & Freight company buys used plastic storage barrels and resells them as planters, feeders for livestock and now, as rain barrels. Sales are up - 500 reused olive and pepper barrels a month, up from 100 a month about six months ago. In Olympia, Washington, in May, the city sold its entire supply of 278 rain barrels in four hours, at $20 each. Some gardeners say they have had to get rid of their rain barrels after the standing water spawned swarms of mosquitoes. However, topping the barrel with a screen or adding a few drops of vegetable oil usually handles that problem. Note from Tom: Here are a couple websites with more information on rain barrels: - You Grow Girl: http://www.yougrowgirl.com/garden/rain_barrel.php - King County (WA): http://dnr.metrokc.gov/wlr/PI/rainbarrels.htm -------------------- Link to a column by Jon Hahn in the 7/31/01 Seattle Post-Intelligencer about the Industrial Materials Exchange (IMEX) in Seattle: http://seattlep-i.nwsource.com/hahn/33252_hahn31.shtml This column gives examples of the wide variety of items available on materials exchanges. - end -