Category: News

New program provides added membership benefit, learning opportunities for water professionals

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — The Water Environment Federation (WEF) is pleased to announce a new webcast program that will provide free training to WEF members and the entire water profession. Featuring a range of timely topics, the monthly webcasts are made possible at no cost through the financial support of industry organizations and companies.

“As a leading resource of water quality education and resources, WEF continues to seek innovative and beneficial ways to serve our membership and the entire water profession,” said WEF Executive Director Jeff Eger. “With the support of our sponsor partners, we are very pleased to be able to provide this training program at no cost so that water professionals may gain access to a breadth of water knowledge without additional financial burden.”

Traditionally hosting between two and four webcasts per month, WEF has historically charged for these events on a fee per site basis, generally $195 per site with unlimited attendees per site. As an added benefit for WEF members and the profession as a whole, this new program allows viewers to participate at no cost while increasing the visibility of the sponsors through the placement of company logos, ads and/or links during live and archived webcasts.

Each webcast features top experts in the field, detailed information from case studies, and the opportunity for participants to submit live questions through the system software. Professional Development Hours (PDH) may also be earned on a case-by-case basis.

Beginning this month, the 2012 topics include: biosolids and biofuels, collections systems, operators training, design fundamentals, membranes, energy recovery/renewal, thermal hydrolysis, marketing, social media, and more.

Visit www.wef.org for more information

E-Waste Recycler and Recycling Directory Operator Partner to Help Electronics Manufacturers, Consumers Divert Devices From Landfills

VISTA, CA — (Marketwire) — 04/16/12 — E-World Online, a leading provider of electronics recycling solutions, and Earth911, Inc., operator of the nation’s largest recycling directory, have partnered to expand E-World Online’s Manufacturer Interstate Take-back System (MITS), the world’s only comprehensive e-waste take-back solution for original equipment manufacturers (OEM), while educating consumers on how to properly recycle or dispose of electronic waste. This innovative alliance solves a complex issue for electronics manufacturers nationwide who are held accountable by state regulations to collect specified amounts of e-waste for recycling as well as demonstrate that the e-waste is handled responsibly.

Integration of E-World Online’s network of managed drop-off locations and Earth911’s database of more than 22,000 e-waste recyclers will provide consumers with the largest online directory of electronics recyclers ever assembled. The directory provides a search feature for consumers to find the closest drop-off location by entering their zip code, as well as information and directions for how to dispose of their device. These additional features fulfill manufacturers’ ‘consumer education program’ obligation mandated by state extended producer responsibility (EPR) regulation.

‘It’s been shown that consumers are less likely to recycle an electronic device if it is not convenient or they don’t have easily accessible information to do so,’ said Robert Erie, CEO of E-World Online. ‘Ultimately, the education and convenience offered through this directory will achieve the end goal of diverting electronics from landfills while providing our manufacturer clients with the comprehensive services necessary to ensure their compliance with state recycling regulations’

‘Manufacturers are able to direct consumers to the recycling locator through a branded call to action,’ said Earth911 President Corey Lambrecht. ‘This is a resource consumers will value greatly as they look to find local recycling locations and it takes a major burden off manufacturers, allowing them to focus on growing their core businesses.’

Both E-World Online and Earth911 will be attending the 2012 ISRI Convention and Expo.

For more on E-World Online, visit www.e-worldonline.com. For more on Earth911, visitwww.earth911.com.

RENO, Nev., April 16, 2012 /Environmental Expert.com/ — With the nation’s need for renewable energy increasing, Waste Management (NYSE: WM) opened northern Nevada’s first and only Gas-To-Energy power plant at its Lockwood Landfill, which will use landfill gas produced onsite to generate electricity. The project will create enough renewable energy to power more than 1,800 homes. To commemorate the event, WM hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony featuring Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval.

When organic materials, like food and yard waste, decompose, they create a gas comprised of about 55 percent methane. Collection wells placed all over the site collect this gas and then pipe it to the power plant, where it is used as a fuel to run two generators. The project, which went online in March, will offset the use of about 700 railcars’ worth of coal.

When compared to fossil fuels, as we all other renewable sources of energy, including wind and solar, landfill gas has several benefits:

• It’s endorsed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
• It’s not dependent on other environmental factors, like wind or sunlight
• It’s reliable during peak energy hours
• It’s an economical alternative to other fuel sources, like natural gas

In total, WM owns or operates 131 landfill gas-to-energy facilities across North America, producing enough electricity to power nearly 475,000 homes. Combined with the company’s other renewable energy projects, Waste Management produces over 9 million megawatt hours of electricity per year, or enough for more than 1.1 million homes. Solar energy, according to 2009 trade association data, generates approximately 5 million megawatt hours annually.

‘The Gas-To-Energy Facility at the Lockwood Landfill ensures that not even garbage will go to waste,’ said Justin Caporusso, Waste Management spokesperson. ‘By investing in landfill gas-to-energy, we are powering homes using the same waste that is left at the curb.’

‘Waste Management has been developing landfill gas-to-energy technology for over two decades, and we operate more of these facilities than any other company in the United States,’ said Paul Pabor, vice president of renewable energy for Waste Management. ‘As a leader in this industry, we understand how landfills operate and how to use technology to extract the most value from the waste stream.’

For more information about this and other renewable energy programs, visit www.wm.com. To watch a video on how landfill gas-to-energy works, visit our YouTube page atwww.youtube.com/wastemanagement.

April 13, 2012

Environmental Leader on-line

NV Energy’s coal-fired Reid Gardner Station north of Las Vegas will reduce its water withdrawals by more than 281 million gallons annually with a Nalco cooling system, the companies said.

The reduction in freshwater use also reduces the facility’s wastewater by the same amount, Nalco said.

The station uses both river and well water in its cooling system, but the source water contains high concentrations of silica, which can cause damaging buildup of sediment in the cooling system. Nalco’s 3D Trasar technology controls the cooling water chemistry with fluorescence-based monitoring and silica dispersant to prevent silica from accumulating, according to the Nalco website.

Nalco said that the deposit occurs when the recirculating water’s silica concentrations exceed 150 ppm and the temperature is less than 70°F (21°C). In NV Energy’s system, silica concentrations were about 230 ppm on average. The incoming water temperature was about 80°F (27°C) with a 20° temperature drop across the tower.

NV Energy also is using 3D Trasar boiler technology at its coal-fired North Valmy Station. The station’s steam turbines were experiencing deposits that reduced overall efficiency. The boiler system controls allow the station to generate the same amount of electricity while reducing fuel consumption by 87,000 tons of coal annually, reducing costs by $3.5 million per year, Nalco said.

The US Green Building Council (USGBC) is revamping the LEED rating system this year. LEED 2012 will focus on improving the rating system’s clarity (providing more precise technical criteria) and making the system more user-friendly. Some may consider these competing notions, so i’’s quite a lofty goal to meet. There will be revisions of prerequisites and point systems. LEED 2012 is going through a third public comment period, and has a proposed launch date in October. A FAQ document developed by the USGBC highlighting the changes may be downloaded from their website.

One major proposed change is to not only to establish that the key equipment and procedures are implemented (i.e., energy meters, plans), but to ensure that performance will remain excellent in the long term. There are separate sections for Establishment and Performance. Building owners will need to perform and record recurring activities (audits, measurements of energy usage) to demonstrate performance. And the emphasis will be to ensure that LEED certified buildings are actually achieving the performance that USGBC wants them to attain, not to just “check off the box” that they made the attempt or procured the technology.

Read the complete article at Environmental Leader

Source: Environmental Expert and The Acta Group, L.L.C. and The Acta Group EU, Ltd

The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) announced on March 20, 2012, that it has revised the Hazard Communication Standard (HCS), aligning it with the United Nations Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS). The final HCS rule will be implemented in various phases with full implementation by 2016 and, according to OSHA, will benefit workers by reducing confusion about chemical hazards in the workplace, facilitating safety training, and improving understanding  of hazards, especially for low literacy workers. OSHA states that the revised HCS will ‘classify chemicals according to their health and physical hazards, and establish consistent labels and safety data sheets for all chemicals made in the United States and imported from abroad.’ According to OSHA, the final rule will be published in the Federal Register on March 26, 2012. It will take effect 60 days after publication in the Federal Register. During the transition period to the effective completion dates noted in the revised HCS, chemical manufacturers, importers, distributors, and employers may comply with either 29 C.F.R. Part 1910.1200 (the final standard), the current standard, or both. More information, including the prepublication version of the final HCS, is available online.
Continue reading OSHA Releases Final HCS Rule

Source: Business Wire

— Fleet Trucks Fuel at Clean Energy’s National Network of CNG & LNG Stations —

SEAL BEACH, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– In increasing numbers, major U.S. contract freight carriers are deploying heavy-duty natural gas-powered trucks to support their customers’ supply chain transport requirements. Clean Energy Fuels Corp. (Nasdaq: CLNE), North America’s leading supplier of natural gas fuel for transportation, contracts with carrier fleet operators to provide compressed natural gas (CNG) or liquefied natural gas (LNG) fueling services at Clean Energy public access stations nationwide.

Among the most recent for-hire fleet operators to opt for natural gas fuel are Premier Transportation, headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia; Transplace, Frisco, Texas, and Glacier Transportation & Logistics, Atlanta, Georgia; Dillon Transportation LLC, Burr Ridge, Illinois; C.R. England, Salt Lake City, Utah; Ryder Dedicated Logistics, El Segundo, California; CEVA Logistics, Hoofddorp, the Netherlands; and Werner Enterprises, Omaha, Nebraska.
Continue reading Supply Chain Fleet Operators Increasingly Turn to Natural Gas Power

Source: Environmental Expert

23 buildings to be upgraded as part of $3.6 million Energy Savings Performance Contract with Lyon County School District

FRAMINGHAM, Mass. & LYON COUNTY, Nev.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Ameresco, Inc. (NYSE:AMRC), a leading energy efficiency and renewable energy company, announced today its Energy Savings Performance Contract (ESPC) with Lyon County School District (LCSD) in western Nevada. The $3.6 million ESPC is expected to save the state’s fourth largest school district over $345,000 annually for 15 years.
Continue reading Ameresco Announces Work on Energy Efficiency Project at Nevada’s Fourth Largest School District