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06 Jan 03 - paper; door hangers; freebies; underwear; hybrid cars; perc; song ** WASTE PREVENTION FORUM ** -- A project of the National Waste Prevention Coalition -------- Forum archive: http://www.reuses.com/nwpcarchive -------------------- From Terry Foecke, Materials Productivity, Richfield, MN: I am doing a "calculator" to support office paper use reduction for the Metro counties here (Minneapolis/St. Paul). One element is to allow those with no idea of paper use to still go through the calculations (and get motivated by the astonishing numbers) by providing a pull-down menu of common business types, which we would load with paper-use estimates. For example, small school = 3000 lbs/yr; medium bank = 10,000 lbs/yr; and so on. We have some data from projects, but we need more. Any ideas? I can't find anybody at Hewlett-Packard or Lexmark to talk to, even though I think they have info. E-mail: tfoecke [AT] matprod [DOT] com --------------------- From Nate Sturm, Northern Kentucky Area Development District, Northern Kentucky Solid Waste Management Area, Florence, KY: A city in my area has received complaints from citizens about the "Doorstore." Their complaints were mostly about the accumulation of door hanger advertisements in their yard, especially if they go on vacation, etc. I couldn't find anything in the Waste Prevention Forum archives about this issue. Are there any communities who have outlawed the door hangers? What are some solutions to this problem, where other communities have found success? Do we run the risk of inhibiting free speech rights? I find these door hangers to be environmentally and aesthetically offensive. How do we stop them? Thanks. E-mail: nate [ DOT ] sturm [ AT ] nkadd [ DOT ] org --------------------- Excerpted from a message from Crispin Stutzman, Pacific Northwest Pollution Prevention Resource Center (PPRC), Seattle, WA: Today a message was posted on a pollution prevention e-mail listserv, and we here at PPRC have been puzzling over the waste reduction implications. The message was from someone at a state agency in the Southeast, who described something new that they are trying in her office. This is the message, in part, that she sent to the staff in her office: "We all travel and stay at hotels or motels for business or pleasure, but most times we take our own beauty/toiletry products and leave the 'free stuff' behind. Or we receive samples of items in the mail or magazines that we discard or don't intend to use. We would like you to collect the 'free stuff' for us and bring it into the office, where we will have a basket set up. We want items such as shampoo, conditioner, soaps, perfume samples, toothpaste, toothbrushes, razors, or anything of the sort. Also, small toys from fast food restaurants that are included in kids' meals that you don't want or won't use for your own children. And small baskets or containers would also be a bonus! Each time we have a significant amount collected, these items will be delivered to local battered women's shelters in small decorative baskets to be distributed to women and children. For some, this will be a much needed and appreciated gesture of kindness. We appreciate your support and hope to touch many lives through this New Year!" This is Crispin again. Our staff here at PPRC ponders: Is this one of those convoluted issues, like paper or plastic? I always shun this stuff in hopes that manufacturers/vendors won't be able to construe my use of the junky little stuff as a reason to crank out even more of it. Then again, since it exists, we might as well put it to good use. E-mail: cstutzman (AT) pprc (DOT) org --------------------- From Larry Warnberg, oyster farmer, Nahcotta, WA, responding to the 1/3/03 news item about the new disposable panties being marketed in India: No doubt you'll get a flurry of protests from folks whose shorts are in a knot over the disposable panty. More waste for the landfill. Too bad they aren't made from biodegradable material that could go in the compost pile. Laundry savings could make them cost effective, if they aren't an additional load on the solid waste stream. E-mail: warnberg ( A T ) pacifier ( D O T ) com --------------------- Excerpted from a 1/6/03 Associated Press article by John Porretto: GENERAL MOTORS TO BUILD FUEL-EFFICIENT HYBRID CARS In one of the clearest signs yet that hybrid cars may be going mainstream, General Motors Corp. plans to offer a variety of the gas-and-electric powered vehicles over the next four years. The plan by the world's biggest automaker, to be announced today, includes hybrid models for cars, pickups and sport-utility vehicles (SUVs) Hybrids draw power from two different energy sources, typically a gas or diesel engine combined with an electric motor. While environmentally friendly and fuel efficient, their high cost has prevented them from finding more than a niche market. For now, the only versions available in the United States are small cars made by Honda Motor Co. and Toyota Motor Corp. GM will offer hybrid options on several vehicles, starting later this year with the GMC Sierra and Chevrolet Silverado pickups for use in commercial fleets. The hybrid versions of the trucks will increase fuel economy by 10 to 12 percent, the company says. Those same trucks will be available to retail consumers in 2004. If demand is high for all hybrid models, GM said, it could produce a million or more a year by 2007. GM sold nearly 4.8 million vehicles in 2002. In 2005, GM will begin producing a hybrid Saturn Vue SUV. It will also include a hybrid option on its forthcoming Chevy Equinox SUV in 2006 and its Chevy Malibu sedan in 2007. Ford Motor Co. and DaimlerChrysler AG's Chrysler Group are also planning hybrid models. The Union of Concerned Scientists said in a report last week that while a hybrid could cost $4,000 more than a conventional vehicle, drivers could save nearly $5,500 in gasoline expenses over the vehicle's driving life. --------------------- Link to a 12/6/02 release from the South Coast Air Quality Management District, Los Angeles, CA, area (forwarded by David Stitzhal), following up on recent postings: http://www.aqmd.gov/news1/perc_adopt.htm This release describes the agency's phase-out of the toxic chemical used at dry cleaners, perchloroethylene, or "perc," by 2020. -------------------- From Renee Kimball, waste prevention advocate and musician, Portland, OR: I thought people might like to see the words to a song that my bandmate Pete DuBois and I wrote for our band "Enuf!": HOW MUCH STUFF IS ENOUGH You work 50 hours 6 days a week Just nod to your neighbors 'cause there's no time to speak You're trying so hard just to pay off the debt You never see your family or even your pet CHORUS: You try to paint a picture that'll turn out right, whoa whoa How much, how much, how much stuff is enough You maxed out your credit on the presents you bought So you got a second mortgage on your time-sharing slot Need more cash to keep your business afloat 'Cause you spent all you had on a bargain speed boat Put a few dollars down on a fancy sports car But the payments are so high that you can't drive it far Bought a summer home by the edge of the sea So you can race up the dunes in your new ATV You've got every gadget and three color TVs Don't know your kids and they watch what they please When will you learn that there's never enough And you'll never be happy just 'cause you've got stuff! E-mail: rrrrenee ( A T ) aracnet ( D O T ) com Note from Tom: The website for Enuf!, a band "with a mission and a beat," is at: http://www.enufwaste.com - end -