Environmental, Health and Safety News | Volunteer EHS News Network Dedicated to Protecting People & Our Planet

Toxins found in fracking fluids and wastewater, study shows

Source: Yale University, 1/6/16. In an analysis of more than 1,000 chemicals in fluids used in and created by hydraulic fracturing (fracking), Yale School of Public Health researchers found that many of the substances have been linked to reproductive and developmental health problems, and the majority had undetermined toxicity due to insufficient information.
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Above and beyond: Industrial wastewater technical assistance

Source: Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, 1/5/16. MPCA recognizes the MnTAP Internship Program for helping industry better manage wastewater.
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The Conflict-Free Effect: Better for Society, Better for Business

Source: Triple Pundit, 1/7/16. At the Consumer Electronics Show, the CEO of Intel announced that the company is moving beyond microprocessors to validate its broader product base as conflict-free in 2016. Carolyn Duran, supply chain director and conflict minerals program manager for Intel, explains.
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EPA waste management rules concern retailers

Source: The Hill, 1/5/16. Retail groups are concerned about new waste management regulations from the Environmental Protection Agency that could affect how stores dispose of unsold products and pharmaceuticals.
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How to Get Companies to Care About Recycling? Get the Shareholders on Board

Read the full story in Good Magazine. Though California has one of the highest recycling rates in the nation, America generates more waste than any other country in the world and recycles less. The severity of this issue drives one of the pet projects of As You Sow, a corporate social responsibility (CSR) business....
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Petition Seeks Overhaul of U.S. EPA Testing Following VW Scandal

Read the full story from Bloomberg News. An environmental group is seeking to have every model of car and light trucks sold in the U.S. undergo on-the-road emissions tests, adding to calls for more aggressive efforts following revelations that Volkswagen AG rigged its vehicles to fool laboratory-based screening.Filed under: Auto industry, Energy efficiency, Regulation
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VW says emission scandal investigations to take months

Read the full story from Reuters. Volkswagen said on Thursday it would take longer than expected to investigate its rigging of vehicle emissions tests, raising the prospect of months of uncertainty for customers, shareholders and staff. Filed under: Auto industry
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EU probes TV makers over energy efficiency test scores

Read the full story from the BBC. The European Commission says it is “following up” two reports that raise concerns that software used in TVs may be skewing their energy rating scores. One study indicates that some Samsung TVs nearly halve their power consumption when a standardised test is carried out. Another accuses a...
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One Scientist’s Hopeful View On How to Repair the Planet

Read the full story at Yale Environment360. Ecological crises may be piling up in a seemingly hopeless cascade, but Swedish scientist Johan Rockström says the next few decades offer an unparalleled opportunity to undo the damage.Filed under: Climate change, Pollution prevention
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Farms Harvest Cuts in Carbon Dioxide via Soil

Read the full story in Scientific American. Increasingly more research shows that agricultural practices like cover cropping, no-till farming, composting or even the use of biochar can remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere through photosynthesis, boosting the organic matter in the soil.Filed under: Agriculture, Biochar, Climate change
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Where water leaves the farm

Read the full story at CountryGuide. In the chase for higher yields and improved production, farmers have tapped into everything from precision ag systems to a return to cover crops. Now comes a concept that might not only boost yields and enhance soil health, it might also alleviate some of the pressure on farmers...
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Human Activity Affecting Microbes in Soil

Read the full story from Iowa State University. New research from an Iowa State University ecologist shows that agricultural inputs such as nitrogen and phosphorous alter soil microbial communities, which may have unintended environmental consequences.Filed under: Agriculture, Climate change
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Climate change and agriculture: Challenges and opportunities

Read the full story at Agri-Pulse. Global demand for food is on the rise. Demand is driven by population growth and developing world consumers adding more protein to their diets. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and others project that global agriculture production must double by 2050 to close the gap between food supply...
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Four Trends Driving Profitable Climate Protection

Read the full post at RMI Outlet. Today kicks off Climate Week NYC, the seventh such annual event. But it was four years ago that Rocky Mountain Institute’s (RMI’s) Reinventing Fire predicted that “climate protection…will be led more by countries and companies than by international treaties and organizations, more by the private sector and...
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The Volkswagen Scandal Is Just the Beginning

Read the full story at Climate Desk. The car of the future is a computer with wheels. And wherever there’s software, you’ll also find bugs, hacks, and blue screens of death.Filed under: Auto industry
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Reduce, Reuse, Recycle: Managing Industrial Water Resources

Read the full story in Automation World. The idea of a circular economy, where today’s manufactured goods and byproducts become tomorrow’s resources, is gaining ground. With 7.3 billion people and counting, the world’s resources are becoming increasingly scarce and traditional consumption patterns more costly and unsustainable. Nowhere is that more evident than with water....
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Webinar: Economics of Industrial Water Reuse

November 10, 2015, 11:30 am CST Register at http://www.waterworld.com/webcasts/2015/11/industrial-water-reuse-economics.html To effectively capture and prepare water for reuse will require a greater level of coordination between municipal agencies (water/wastewater), an understanding of the economic drivers influencing treatment or reuse, and the means of paying for the required infrastructure. In the third and final installment of...
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How to Attract Butterflies to Your Garden

Read the full story from the National Wildlife Federation. Brightly colored butterflies can be a welcome addition to your wildlife garden, not only because of their beauty, but also because of their usefulness in pollinating flowers. Attracting butterflies involves incorporating plants that serve the needs of all life stages of the butterfly. The insects...
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Food Wastage Footprint 2

This video from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations explains the full economic, environmental and social costs of food loss and waste.Filed under: Food waste, Video
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NASA Study Quantifies Plants’ Role in Mitigating Urban Heat Island Effect

Via e360 Digest. The presence or scarcity of vegetation is an essential factor in determining how much urban areas heat up, according to a NASA study. Using data from multiple satellites, the researchers found that areas covered in part by impervious surfaces such as asphalt, concrete, and steel had an average summer temperature 3.4...
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Here are some new tools to support local energy efficiency

Read the full post from ACEEE. Each step of a home improvement project requires the right tool. If you are planning to put up a new set of cabinets, for example, the first step requires measuring tape, assembly of the cabinets may require a drill, and then, finally, a hammer would be needed to...
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Meet the new face behind the global green building push

Read the full story at Eco-Business. In the lead-up to the International Green Building Conference (IGBC) 2015, Eco-Business speaks to World Green Building Council chief executive Terri Wills on why buildings are central to the fight against climate change.Filed under: Green building
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How Bad Is the Damage to the Animas River?

Read the full story in The Atlantic. It looked Photoshopped, but it was definitely real: a river in Colorado flowed orange. Last week, a cleanup crew from the Environmental Protection Agency working along the Animas River in southwestern Colorado accidentally broke through a dam, causing a nearby abandoned mine to spew 3 million gallons of wastewater...
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Getting It Right: Weatherization and Energy Efficiency Are Good Investments

Read the full story from U.S. DOE. A working paper released in June by academics with the E2e Project wrongly suggested that the federal Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP) and other energy efficiency programs are not good investments. This result contradicts many past studies and was so surprising that the media was set abuzz. Two...
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Glass Works: Dedicated Glass Container Recycling Produces Results

Read the full story in Ceramic Industry Magazine. Ripple Glass was founded by Boulevard Brewing Co. in Kansas City. About 80% of the U.S. population has access to single-stream curbside recycling collection, which is accompanied by issues of contamination and often ineffective recovery, especially for glass containers. Some alternative recycling systems are in place,...
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Ikea to sell only energy-saving LED lightbulbs

Read the full story in The Guardian. Halogen and compact fluorescent bulbs will no longer be sold worldwide from September by retailer, which says LED technology has reached a tipping point.Filed under: Lighting
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10 questions to ask about wood and paper-based products

Read the full story at Treehugger. The World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) – a CEO-led organization of innovative companies based around sustainability and business – sees forest loss and degradation as a global priority requiring immediate and concerted action: “It is critical we find ways to ensure that more of the world’s...
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This Jewel has some interesting ways to bag your groceries

Read the full story in the Chicago Tribune. One week into Chicago’s plastic bag ban, shoppers have noticed a few hiccups in the transition as major retailers have replaced the old lightweight plastic bags with thicker reusable ones, spurring confusion and complaints.Filed under: Green business
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The 5 Plastics That Nobody Should Be Using

Read the full post at MindBodyGreen. Tom Szaky and Albe Zakes, the eco-entrepreneurs behind global recycling company TerraCycle, have a pretty unique take on trash. Their new book, Make Garbage Great, explores the history of human waste and presents some creative ideas to make less of it in the future. Here’s what they have...
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How Megafires Are Remaking American Forests

Read the full story in National Geographic. Supersize fires are burning up bird habitat, killing trees, and turning forests into open range. Climate change will only make it worse. Filed under: Climate change, Natural resources
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Hospitals look for ways to cut water use during California drought

Read the full story in the Los Angeles Times. Hospitals are among the highest water users in communities, but have a lot of potential to help California fight its ongoing drought, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.Filed under: Health care facilities, Water
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2015 Gulf of Mexico dead zone ‘above average’

Read the full story from NOAA. Scientists have found this year’s Gulf of Mexico dead zone — an area of low to no oxygen that can kill fish and marine life — is, at 6,474 square miles, above average in size and larger than forecast by NOAA in June. The larger than expected forecast...
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Webinar: Energy Models 101 for Building Owners, Managers & Tenants: Strategies for Using Iterative Energy Models to Drive Project Savings

Tue, Sep 8, 2015 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM CDT Register at https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/8918651553020288002 This webinar shares strategies and resources building owners, managers, and tenants can use to transform the energy model from a one-time report provided at the end of design to an iterative tool used throughout the design process to drive energy savings....
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New Advanced Refrigeration Technology Provides Clean Energy, Low Utility Bills for Supermarkets

Read the full story from U.S. DOE. Traditional supermarket refrigeration systems found in most U.S. grocery stores require a substantial amount of energy to keep fruits and vegetables fresh year round. An average supermarket consumes nearly 2 million kilowatt hours per year, and refrigeration accounts for nearly half of that. They are also prone...
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New DOE Report Estimates LED Savings in Common Lighting Applications

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has released its latest report in a series analyzing markets where LEDs compete with traditional lighting sources. The new report, Adoption of Light-Emitting Diodes in Common Lighting Applications, reveals a wealth of insights into promising pathways for SSL technology development, providing estimates of the energy saved in 2014...
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Development and Evaluation of a Sandia Cooler-based Refrigerator Condenser

Download the document. This report describes the first design of a refrigerator condenser using the Sandia Cooler, i.e. air-bearing supported rotating heat-sink impeller. The project included baseline performance testing of a residential refrigerator, analysis, and design development of a Sandia Cooler condenser assembly including a spiral channel baseplate, and performance measurement and validation of...
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What’s Green Worth?

The effect on a property’s value is usually one of the first things to consider before a building is retrofitted with green features. For example, building owners might want to know – how much more will my office building be worth if I add a new state-of-the-art LED lighting system? What if the building...
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DOE Seeking Information on Design and Construction of High-Performance Tenant Spaces

The Building Technologies Office has released a request for information seeking stakeholder input on the design and construction of tenant spaces that achieve high levels of energy efficiency in commercial buildings. The deadline for this request is September 30, 2015. The Energy Department will use input from this Federal Register notice to inform a...
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Using less energy to keep drinks cold

Read the full post from ACEEE. Late yesterday, the Department of Energy (DOE) proposed strong new standards that would reduce the energy consumed by beverage vending machines to keep drinks cold. The proposed standards would cut energy use by 25-65% relative to the least-efficient machines available now, and save money for schools, hospitals, hotels,...
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Where to donate your used stuff in Champaign-Urbana

There are many non-profit organizations in the Champaign-Urbana area that accept donations all year. My ISTC colleague Joy Scrogum compiled a list several months ago and I’ve added to it. If there are any I missed, let me know in the comments. One-Time Drop-off Event — August 7-8, 2015 The City of Champaign and...
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Demand-Side Energy Efficiency in the Final Clean Power Plan

Read the full post at the Climate Law Blog. Yesterday, President Obama and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) unveiled the final version of the Clean Power Plan—the nation’s first ever federal regulatory standards to address carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from existing power plants. As noted by the President in a press conference on Monday...
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Special Edition of Challenges Journal on E-waste Issues Re-Opened, Submissions Due 12/31/15

Via the SEI Blog. Back in 2013, ISTC Emerging Technologies Resource Specialist and current SEI Coordinator, Joy Scrogum, and ISTC Affiliated Faculty Scientist, William Bullock, served as guest editors for a special issue of the journal Challenges, entitled “Electronic Waste–Impact, Policy and Green Design.” The journal’s editors recently received multiple requests to reopen this special...
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Americans May Be Wasting More Food Than They Think

Read the full story from the Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future. The Baltimore Sun also has an article about the study. Most Americans are aware that food waste is a problem, are concerned about it, and say they work to reduce their own waste, but nearly three quarters believe that they waste...
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Chicago Is Hoping to Retire the Word “Waste”

Read the full story at Next City. When it comes to managing city sewage, Chicago is hoping to redefine the word waste. The Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago’s new five-year strategic plan expands on the work the agency has been doing on everything from flood mitigation to infrastructure maintenance, and focuses on...
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Farm Waste and Animal Fats Will Help Power a United Jet

Read the full story in the New York Times. Sometime this summer, a United Airlines flight will take off from Los Angeles International Airport bound for San Francisco using fuel generated from farm waste and oils derived from animal fats. Filed under: Aerospace industry, Biofuels
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New efficiency standards would help address heating bills of many homes in cold climates

Read the full post from the Appliance Standards Awareness Project. On the heels of a proposed rule for new efficiency standards for furnaces, late on Friday the US Department of Energy (DOE) issued a proposed rule for another type of home heating equipment. While the proposed standards for boilers would save money for many...
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Payments for Ecosystem Services? Here’s the Guidebook

Read the full story from the Wildlife Conservation Society. A team of investors, development organizations, conservationists, economists, and ecologists have published in the journal Science six natural science principles to ensure success of Payments for Ecosystem Services, mechanisms that have helped preserve carbon stocks stored in Madagascar’s rainforests, maintain wildlife populations important for tourism...
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Navigating the Clean Power Plan: A Template for Including Building Energy Codes in State Compliance Plans

Download the document. The Environmental Protection Agency’s proposed Clean Power Plan establishes state-specific targets for carbon dioxide emissions from existing power plants. This tool is intended to help states document and claim emissions reductions resulting from the adoption of building energy codes as a means of complying with their obligations under the Clean Power...
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Beer Brewers Unite To Call For Action On Climate Change

Read the full story in the Huffington Post. And lift a real green beer to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. A group of 24 brewers from across the country have come together to cut greenhouse gas emissions from their operations and call for strong national action to address climate change. The breweries, which include Smuttynose...
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Google voice search records and keeps conversations people have around their phones – but the files can be deleted | News | Lifestyle | The Independent

Google could have a record of everything you have said around it for years, and you can listen to it yourself. The company quietly records many of the conversations...
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