| |
25 Feb 05 - faxes; NYC; businesses; Kenya; wipes; retreads
** WASTE PREVENTION FORUM **
-- A project of the National Waste Prevention Coalition
--------
Forum archive: http://www.nwpcarchive.org
---------------------
The first two messages are in response to the 2/18/05 posting about reducing
unwanted faxes.
---------------------
From Lisa Friend, RE Sources, Bellingham, WA:
For reducing unwanted faxes, we often refer folks to:
http://www.blocklist.com
Also, this Federal Communications Commission (FCC) web page is terrific:
http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/consumerfacts/unwantedfaxes.html
Lisa's e-mail: recycle [ AT ] re-sources [ DOT ] org
(Note from Tom: That FCC web page includes information on a new federal
rule that goes into effect July 1, 2005. This new FCC rule will make it
unlawful to send an unsolicited advertisement to a fax machine without the
prior written permission of the recipient.)
---------------------
From Maile Lono, Northwest Biosolids Management Association, Seattle, WA:
Regarding the fax frenzy - what I have been doing is reusing paper in the
fax machine, so if I am sending these unwanted solicitations to the bin, it
is finishing off a previously printed piece. This may not work, however, if
you don't want an old meeting agenda on the back of an official fax
document.
E-mail: Maile (DOT) Lono (AT) metrokc (DOT) gov
---------------------
Excerpted from a message from MaryEllen Etienne, Reuse Alliance, Long Island
City, NY:
NEW BUILDING MATERIALS REUSE CENTER OPENS IN NYC
I am pleased to announce the Community Environmental Center's opening
earlier this month of "Build It Green!" - New York City's only building
materials reuse center. Also known as BIG, this reuse center is a greener
alternative to "big-box" building supply stores. Located in Astoria, Queens,
the 17,500-square-foot store offers surplus and salvaged building materials
at 30 to 70 percent less than regular retail, and provides tax benefits for
donated materials. Profits help support the Community Environmental Center's
Stuyvesant Cove Park and Environmental Learning Center.
New York City generates 13,500 tons of construction and demolition waste
each day. A large portion of these materials can be reused. BIG is based on
successful non-profit building material reuse centers throughout the US.
In addition to donations, BIG acquires inventory through deconstruction
(dismantling buildings so materials can be reused). A recent deconstruction
contract with the Durst Corporation, a global leader in green building,
yielded over 70 tons of materials. Over the next year, BIG will expand its
inventory to include new green building supplies, like low-VOC (volatile
organic compounds) paint and non-toxic cellulose insulation. BIG also plans
to develop its deconstruction, green building and waste consultation
services. For more information about Build It Green!, see their website at:
http://www.bignyc.org For information on the
Community Environmental Center, see: http://www.cecenter.org
MaryEllen's e-mail: reusealliance [ AT ] optonline [ DOT ] net
----------------------
Link to "Reduce Your Waste," a calculator to help businesses reduce waste, a
project of Miami-Dade County, Florida:
http://reduceyourwaste.org This free online
interactive tool helps businesses generate a customized profile of their
waste stream. It then provides tailored information about reduction options
and local recycling opportunities. Miami-Dade County developed this
calculator with a grant from the Florida Department of Environmental
Protection.
----------------------
Excerpted from an article by Zipporah Musau in the 2/24/05 Nation newspaper,
Nairobi, Kenya, and from a 2/24/05 Reuters news service article:
PLASTIC BAGS TARGETED IN KENYA
Researchers in Kenya have recommended that thin plastic bags, widely used
for shopping, be banned because they pollute the environment and are a
potential health hazard. In a report released during the February 21-25,
2005, meeting of the Governing Council of the UN Environment Programme
(UNEP) in Nairobi, the researchers also recommended that taxes on the
manufacture of thicker plastic bags be increased, to discourage their use.
A study has shown that shops alone in Kenya use an estimated 100 million
plastic bags each year. The bags, many of which are so flimsy that they are
disposed of after a single use, litter both rural and urban environments,
block gutters and drains, choke farm animals and marine wildlife, and
pollute the soil as they gradually break down, the UNEP-funded report noted.
The recommended ban and tax increase are among proposals aimed at reducing
the use of plastic bags and providing funds for alternative, more
environmentally friendly carriers such as cotton or sisal bags. "I applaud
this thoughtful and comprehensive study," said Klaus Toepfer, UNEP's
executive director.
Wangari Maathai, the 2004 Nobel Peace Prize winner and the Kenyan assistant
minister for the environment, has linked plastic bag litter with malaria.
According to Maathai, the bags, once discarded, fill with rainwater,
offering ideal breeding grounds for malaria-carrying mosquitoes. Maathai
urged the public to use plastic bags sparingly because they are a danger to
the environment. "I'm not saying we don't use plastics at all," she
explained. "What I mean is that we should reduce their usage, reuse, recycle
and repair. Better still, we can use baskets or bags made from sisal or
cotton that are biodegradable."
---------------------
Excerpted from an article by Julie Moran Alterio in the 2/24/05 Journal News
newspaper, White Plains, NY:
WILD ABOUT WIPES
Still spraying, squeezing and mixing? That's so 20th century. Welcome to the
era of the wipe. If there's a way to turn a lotion, spray, detergent, gel or
ointment into a wipe, someone's done it. There are wipes to clean your
countertop, your toilet, your floor, your face and even your teeth, your
tires and your trombone.
Two out of every three people have used a cleaning, disinfectant or
antibacterial wipe, according to a December survey commissioned by the Soap
and Detergent Association of Washington, DC. People are turning to
disposable cleaning cloths because it's easier and more convenient to whip
out a wipe when they are on the go. Plus, when a wipe is tossed in the
trash, all the germs and dirt go with it. Debbie Grieco of Brewster, NY,
turned to wipes for household cleaning to alleviate asthma symptoms. "I try
to cut down on the sprays by using the wipes. It's less of an irritant," she
said. Grieco uses Clorox wipes to disinfect her kitchen countertop, bathroom
vanity, toilet and floors.
Sales of wipes have risen from $669.5 million in 1998 to $1.67 billion in
2003, according to Euromonitor International, a market research firm in
Chicago. Today's wipe craze can be traced to the popularity of baby wipes,
which have largely replaced washcloths for cleaning up after diaper changes.
But it wasn't until Proctor & Gamble's Swiffer dusters came on the market in
1999 that the category was reborn. The Swiffer cloths have an electrostatic
charge that attracts dust, dirt, allergens and hair. Swiffer soon came out
with a wet wipe and other varieties. Proctor & Gamble estimates that more
than 40 million households have at least one Swiffer product. The Swiffer
line accounts for 32.2 percent of all wipe sales in the household cleaning
category, Euromonitor reports. The success of Swiffer prompted all of the
major cleaning products manufacturers to follow suit with wipe versions of
Lysol, Clorox, Windex, Pledge and other popular brands.
These days, the wipes trend is expanding into more niches - with a
corresponding rise in the cost of wiping up. Though Clorox wipes at about 10
cents each are pricier than buying a value-sized bottle, specialty wipes are
even more expensive. Environné Fruit and Vegetable Wipes sell for $3.99 for
a package of 12 - or 33 cents a wipe. Diane Mahoney, president of Consumer
Health Research Inc., the Oregon company that makes Environné produce
washes, said they introduced the wipes last October after consumers of
Environné liquid wash asked for a portable version to take on picnics and
trips overseas.
Tom Vierhile, executive editor of Productscan Online, a database of new
products, said consumers are willing to open their wallets for convenience,
but wonders whether all of the new specialty wipes will find a market.
Productscan Online reports that there were 186 new wipes introduced in the
United States and Canada last year and 187 in 2003. In the past six years,
780 wipes have come on the market. "The thing the format has going for it
is, it's disposable. It's ready to use. You don't have to spray or mix
anything - that's what propelled it," Vierhile said. It's the disposability
of wipes that has some people worried about the environmental impact of
millions of wipes replacing reusable sponges and cleaning rags.
Tom Watson, coordinator of the National Waste Prevention Coalition in
Seattle, said consumers who buy 10 different wipes are just generating more
garbage, particularly since wipes often come in plastic canisters.
"Disposable products have their place, but the proliferation of disposable
wipes sends the false message that disposability is the ultimate virtue,"
Watson said.
Brian Sansoni, vice president of communication and membership for the Soap
and Detergent Association, said manufacturers of wipes are always looking to
reduce the environmental damage of their products. Most of the plastic
canisters are recyclable, he noted, adding that wipes represent less than
5/100ths of 1 percent of household solid waste in the United States.
The price of wipes is also a hurdle for some consumers. David Hackley of
Somers, NY, carries hand-sanitizing wipes in the car for cleanups on the
road, but considers wipes uneconomical for household cleaning. "My feeling
is I can get a big thing of Windex and some paper towels, and I'll be better
off than if I buy the cans of wipes. The packaging is putting cost in
there," Hackley said.
---------------------
Excerpted from an article by Paul Richards in the February 2005 Commercial
Carrier Journal, a trade journal for the commercial-carrier trucking
industry:
WITH NEW TECHNOLOGY, RETREADED TRUCK TIRES ARE ON A ROLL
Since tires typically represent a fleet's biggest maintenance expense, and
since retreaded tires now can perform as well as new tires at about half to
two-thirds the price, retreads are an indispensable tool for containing
operating costs for commercial truck fleets.
But first, let's get the "Big Myth" out of the way. Retreaded tires are not
responsible for rubber on the road, alligators or whatever you like to call
those shards of rubber on our highways. Studies by the Technology &
Maintenance Council and the Tire Retread Information Bureau (TRIB) have
shown that roughly half the rubber fragments found on roadways come from
tires that have never been retreaded.
Savvy fleet executives know that what causes any tire to disintegrate is
underinflation. That's because the reinforcing belts in a tire are meant to
flex a certain amount while rolling under load, which generates a manageable
amount of heat. When a tire is underinflated significantly, however, the
belts flex to a much greater degree and generate enough heat to break down
the tire's integrity. Often, the casing - belts and all - comes apart. If
you see a rubber fragment on the road with wires sticking out of it, that's
not just tread. It's casing, and it has nothing to do with whether or not
the tire has been retreaded.
Myths aside, experts agree that the quality and performance of retreads
definitely have improved over the past several years. "It's more like a
quantum leap," says Harvey Brodsky, TRIB's managing director.
"Non-destructive casing inspection technology is the single biggest reason."
If a casing's integrity is questionable - due to road damage or abuse, for
example - it isn't a good candidate for retreading. An often-used,
nondestructive technology for testing casings is the X-ray. Another method
uses ultrasound to form electronic images of anomalies. Still another uses
electrical current, which is passed through or into a casing as it rotates,
while resistance is measured. A fourth method that's becoming more common is
laser shearography, where images are created of a casing's interior.
Retreading processes have also improved with technology. "We've definitely
seen a reduction in tire failures over the past several years," says Lew
Flowers, manager of vehicle maintenance for the U.S. Postal Service in
Oklahoma City. The fleet currently is using Cooper Tire's Oliver retreading
services. "But they're all good," he says. "Wear and traction are getting
better and better."
"We have seen dramatic decreases in tire costs over the past three years,"
adds Dave Foster, director of maintenance for Southeastern Freight Lines,
which uses Michelin retreads. "According to our tire manager, at least 30
percent of our tire cost-per-mile decrease can be attributed to improvements
in the quality and performance of these (retreaded) tires. The remainder
would be attributed to better tire maintenance and management."
- end -
|
