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07 Aug 01 - paper towels; job; disposable phones; retreads; Roundup ** WASTE PREVENTION FORUM ** -- A project of the National Waste Prevention Coalition -------- Forum archive: http://www.reuses.com/nwpcarchive -------------------- From Stephanie Davis, Waste Reduction Remedies, Berkeley, CA: The following information is from the Products page in "Materials Management in Health Care," page 32, July, 2001: "WASTE-REDUCING TOWELS A patented fold formula designed for individual dispensing is just one feature of the newly improved Kleenex Scott-Fold Towels by Kimberly-Clark. This design eliminates extra tear-outs, controls waste and reduces maintenance. Also, washroom cleanliness and appearance is improved. A new manufacturing process also ensures the towels are stronger and softer, with users preferring Scott-Fold nine-to-one over competitor towels. They are available in 9.4" x 12.4" and 8.1" x 12.4" sizes, with 120 sheets to a pack...." Has anyone tried these towels? And are they as "good" as self-described? E-mail: ScD18 ( A T ) WasteReductionRemedies ( D O T ) com -------------------- Excerpted from a job announcement sent by Sarah Land, INFORM, New York City: JOB OPENING - DIRECTOR, INFORM'S SOLID WASTE PREVENTION PROGRAM INFORM, a national not-for-profit environmental research and education organization based in New York City, has an immediate opening for a Solid Waste Prevention Program Director. The director is responsible for shaping the vision and goals of this program, and designing and overseeing its research and outreach strategies. The director works with INFORM's development staff to raise the program's funds. 2001 Program Focus INFORM's Solid Waste Prevention Program is national in scope but also has a specific focus on New York City, which recently closed its last remaining landfill. The program promotes model waste prevention practices, including changes in procurement guidelines and facility-operating practices that reduce waste and increase the purchase of products and packaging that contain recycled materials. The program may also focus on advancing waste preventing policies at the federal, state or local level that can drive businesses to design products that are more durable, reusable and recyclable. The director's first responsibility is to implement the program goals that have been established for 2001, which is the second year of a multi-year initiative aimed at making New York City a leader in solid waste prevention. The goals include: - Evaluating the New York City solid waste budget to insure that funding is sufficient for effective implementation of feasible solid waste prevention programs. This includes, but is not limited to, two key initiatives that were mandated in the November, 2000, NYC Solid Waste Management Plan Modification: 1) a three-year $6.3 million Local Waste Prevention Coordinators Program; and 2) establishment of an Office of Environmental Purchasing in the City's central procurement agency, the Department of Citywide Administrative Services (DCAS). - Seeking to advise DCAS and other city agencies on procurement and operational strategies they can use to reduce product and packaging waste, drawing on INFORM's extensive expertise. - Monitoring and reporting on the progress the city makes in implementing various waste prevention programs, with an emphasis on waste that is generated by government agencies, public institutions and residents. - Collaborating with the NYC Waste Prevention Coalition, a group of local and national organizations created in 1999 to advocate for comprehensive solid waste prevention. - Testifying at NYC Council hearings on solid waste issues. - Developing briefing materials for Mayoral and City Council candidates in order to bring waste prevention issues into the dialog of the upcoming elections. The program director also: - Works with the development staff to create and market grant proposals. - Hires and oversees staff. - Works with the editor and production coordinator to publish reports, fact sheets and articles. Qualifications for this position: - Experience in working with solid waste policy and program issues, preferably waste prevention and/or recycling. - Demonstrated ability in program management and strategic planning. - Excellent analytical, writing and communication skills. - A Bachelor's degree (or equivalent professional experience); graduate degree preferred. Salary: Depends on experience. To apply: Please e-mail or send a resume, a writing sample, the names and addresses of three references, and a cover letter to Samuel Arnoff at: E-mail: arnoff [AT] informinc [DOT] org Regular mail: INFORM, Inc., 120 Wall Street, 16th Floor, New York, NY 10005 The full job announcement is at: http://www.informinc.org/jobdirsolwst.htm ------------------- Excerpted from an article by Sarah Milstein in the 8/2/01 New York Times: HOT ON THE TRAIL OF THE DISPOSABLE MOBILE PHONE Most consumers don't think twice about using a disposable pen and throwing it away when it has expired. Soon people may be able to take that carefree approach toward mobile phones. Technological hurdles, high production costs and environmental concerns have long hindered the development of phones that would join disposable pens, razors and cameras in the wastebasket after use. But several companies now say they can overcome the barriers, thanks to new flexible circuit board technology and evolving wireless systems that pair "smart" network servers with simple hand-held devices. Those companies are developing disposable wireless phones that they hope to begin selling nationwide early next year, although telecommunications experts still question whether they can be made and distributed profitably. Experts have also raised doubts about whether carriers can make money from disposable phones, given the high user turnover that they will have to oversee while selling relatively few minutes per phone. "Disposable phones are a technological, economic and environmental challenge, probably in that order of difficulty," said Nicholas Negroponte, director of the Media Laboratory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. "I am not totally convinced the product is real but would love to be wrong." Perhaps the company with the most eagerly anticipated product is Dieceland Technologies of Cliffside Park, N.J., founded by a toy inventor, Randi Altschul. Dieceland has a trademark on the Phone-Card-Phone, an apt name given that the prototype looks like a credit card with a keypad. A plastic battery case with one AAA cell battery slips over one end and a reusable headset plugs into one corner. The units, to be sold at convenience stores, gas stations, supermarkets and other outlets, will be inexpensive, possibly as little as $10 for a complete phone with 60 minutes of airtime. The first Phone-Card-Phones are not expected to be refillable, although later models might be. In April, Dieceland entered an agreement with GE Capital to have its GE Prepaid operation market and distribute the phone. Telespree of San Francisco is developing a semi-disposable system relying on a reusable colorful handset and a disposable pack supplying power and airtime that snaps onto the back. The handsets are expected to sell for roughly $30 and provide an initial 30 minutes of airtime. The disposable cartridge, known as the AirClip, is likely to cost 30 to 50 cents per minute of use. Like the Phone-Card-Phone, the AirClip phone does not have a display. It does not even have a keypad, only an on-off button and a 911 emergency button. Calls are voice-activated: the user simply recites the phone number aloud after pushing the main button to gain access to a carrier's network. A third company, Hop-On Wireless, based in Garden Grove, Calif., is developing a voice-activated wallet-size disposable. The initial unit will cost $30 for an hour of airtime and can be renewed for $25 (for one hour of airtime) or tossed. Dieceland and GE plan to test-market the Phone-Card-Phone in a few cities around the country this fall, pending approval from the Federal Communications Commission. Then the product will be marketed nationwide, probably in late winter. Telespree also plans to roll out its phone in the first quarter of 2002. Hop-On hopes to begin selling this fall, and other companies are expected to enter the market in the next year. Obvious markets for the phones exist, including travelers, children and consumers who now use calling cards but do not always have access to a phone. The phone may also appeal to people who need a wireless one only for safety. "Disposable phones could serve a real purpose as emergency and rarely used devices, kept in cars, on boats and in remote places," said Professor Negroponte. "Car rental companies would be foolish not to include them for emergency road service." Of course, disposable phones have the drawback of generating significant waste because batteries, conductive metals or casing materials will be tossed after airtime is used up. Conventional wireless phones have a limited shelf life as well, but Bill Machrone, editor-in-chief of the ExtremeTech Web site, argues that this does not make the disposables any more acceptable. "Regular cell phones only last two or three years," Mr. Machrone said. "But just putting the idea in consumers' heads that you could use a phone for two or three weeks and throw it away - it just strikes me as incredibly wasteful." Ken Gilleo of Cookson Electronics agreed. "There's only so much silver in the world," he said. "Let's design this stuff so we can keep using those materials over and over." Still, it is likely that the potential for profit will trump environmental concerns and the disposable phone will hit the market, and landfills, before long. -------------------- Link to the U.S. Army's list, updated in April, 2001, of approved tire retreaders for light trucks, heavy trucks, buses and trailers (first seen in the National Recycling Coalition's newsletter): http://www.ofee.gov/recycled/tacom.htm These tires and manufacturers have passed qualification testing or technical reviews, to meet the Army's standards. The Army's Cooperative Tire Qualification Program is a voluntary program designed to help ensure tire quality and performance. ------------------- Excerpted from an article by David Barboza in the 8/2/01 New York Times: Roundup, a chemical herbicide, or weed killer, is the best-selling agricultural chemical product ever. Monsanto, which makes Roundup, produces 160 million gallons of the herbicide each year. Last year Roundup racked up $2.8 billion in sales. Developed two decades ago, Roundup now commands 80 percent of the world market in nonselective herbicides (those that do not target specific weeds). Roundup is a glyphosate herbicide that kills just about anything green. However, Monsanto has also developed genetically-modified crops that are immune to Roundup; that way a farmer can plant the Monsanto crops, and still spray Roundup to kill the weeds in the field. Note from Tom: A number of environmental organizations have criticized the excessive use of Roundup, and at least one study has shown that exposure to Roundup increases the risks of cancer. - end -