Category: News

By Jeff Ferenc

With looming federal reimbursement reductions poised to burden already financially challenged hospitals, sustainability’s potential to cut costs stands like an oasis in the desert. But this is no mirage. More than ever, sustainability offers opportunities to cut costs and improve the environment.

In keeping with the pursuit of optimization and sustainable operations, exploring sustainability strategies inherently forces hospitals to assess whether each department and system serving a facility’s infrastructure is a peak performer. Experience shows that cost-saving opportunities exist at even the environmentally savvy hospitals and often require simple actions with minimal investments that can pay substantial financial dividends.

Health care facilities also are learning that sustainability is an ongoing process rather than a single event; no facility climbs the green mountain in one day. Developing and executing effective plans that make efficient use of energy, water, waste management and environmental services take time.

After a brief lull in activity in 2010, it appears that taking steps to cut energy costs is experiencing a rejuvenation, according to the 2011 Energy Efficiency Indicator survey administered by the American Society for Healthcare Engineering (ASHE), Johnson Controls’ Institute for Building Efficiency (IBE) and others.

Read the complete article at Health Facilities Management

OSU researcher hopes ultrasound can destroy pharmaceuticals, compounds we flush into rivers and lakes

Every time we flush the toilet, some of the compounds and medicines we take every day end up in our streams, rivers and lakes.

These “emerging contaminants” include antibiotics, birth-control drugs, antidepressants and caffeine.

As scientists better understand the threat these pollutants pose to wildlife and people, Ohio State University researchers are developing a method to destroy them before they cause harm.

A process that fires high-frequency sound waves through water holds great promise, said Linda Weavers, an OSU environmental engineer.

The idea is based on a similar technique she helped develop that uses ultrasound to clean mercury from lake and stream bottoms. “It works reasonably fast,” Weavers said. “You flip a switch, it works, and you don’t have to use a lot of chemicals.”

For years, environmental studies have detected a host of drugs, chemicals and compounds in waterways across the United States.

Read the complete article at The Columbus Dispatch

BETHESDA, Md., Dec. 13, 2011 /PR Newswire/ —  A car battery can lead a long and productive life, but sooner or later, this important part of the vehicle’s starting and charging system will need to be replaced. When the time comes to say goodbye to your car battery, rest assured that it’s being recycled by 98 percent of automotive aftermarket companies, including auto repair shops, manufacturers, distributors, retailers and jobbers, according to a study by the Automotive Aftermarket Industry Association (AAIA).

As a result of these efforts, an estimated 65 million automotive batteries were recycled in 2010, equal to 1.5 billion pounds of lead, according to AAIA’s Aftermarket Factbook.

‘Battery recycling is just one of many ways automotive aftermarket companies contribute to a cleaner environment,’ said Rich White, executive director, Car Care Council. ‘These businesses have been ‘green’ long before being ‘green’ was mainstream.’

More than 95 percent of an automotive battery can be recycled. The lead, plastic, acid and sulfuric acid found in batteries are reclaimed and reused in the manufacturing of new batteries.

The lead is cleaned and melted and used in the production of new lead plates and other parts for new batteries. The plastic is cleaned and melted into pellets used to manufacturer new battery cases. Old battery acid can be neutralized into water, which after treatment, cleaning and testing, can be released into the public sewer system, or it can be converted into sodium sulfate and used in laundry detergent, glass and textiles.

In addition to recycling batteries, automotive aftermarket companies recycle tires, used oil and oil filters, parts cleaning solvents, scrap metal, plastics, cardboard and paper, a/c refrigerant, dunnage and wood pallets.

The study is part of AAIA’s initiative to illustrate the automotive aftermarket industry’s widespread efforts on behalf of the environment. The information is presented in AAIA’s ‘Driving Toward a Cleaner Environment: The Automotive Aftermarket’s Green Story,’ and in the short video, AAIA Green. For more information, visit www.aftermarket.org/green.

The Car Care Council is the source of information for the ‘Be Car Care Aware’ consumer education campaign promoting the benefits of regular vehicle care, maintenance and repair to consumers. For a copy of the council’s Car Care Guide or for more information, visitwww.carcare.org.

Take the EPA Expert Quiz Now

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has always played a pivotal role in the Environmental Compliance, EH&S and Sustainability arenas. Since its creation over 30 years ago, whether developing and enforcing regulations, giving grants or publishing studies and research, the EPA has been a part of our professional lives in one way or another.

What better way to celebrate such a central institution than to test your knowledge about it? Just because you use the name every day, doesn’t mean you are an EPA expert. Or does it?

Take our challenge and have fun with it. Send it to your colleagues and start a competition in your office. You can compare scores, post your scores online or even print your certificate.

Accept the challenge – find out if you’re an EPA expert

Six out of the eight most common sources of waste in warehouses can be found in the battery room, according to Harold Vanasse, vice president of sales and marketing at battery company Philadelphia Scientific.

The eight main sources of waste are overproduction, motion, waiting, transportation, over-processing, inventory, defects, and people. All but overproduction and over-processing are evident in the average warehouse’s battery room, making the storage area a source of considerable waste, Vanasse argues in a feature for Manufacturing.net.

The majority of these battery room wasteful practices occur due to human error. For example, if staff are correctly trained on battery life span and maintenance, they would be able to make the appropriate number of trips to the battery room to replace spent cells and those batteries would be watered and charged by the appropriate number of people.

If these processes are set up inefficiently if can also result in people moving too much while setting up batteries for recharge, and extended periods of waiting for fresh batteries by those employees on the floor, Vanasse argues.

Indeed, the main cause of limited battery run time, reduced battery life and waste in the battery room is a poor battery rotation system, according to Vanasse.

Six out of the eight most common sources of waste in warehouses can be found in the battery room, according to Harold Vanasse, vice president of sales and marketing at battery company Philadelphia Scientific.

The eight main sources of waste are overproduction, motion, waiting, transportation, over-processing, inventory, defects, and people. All but overproduction and over-processing are evident in the average warehouse’s battery room, making the storage area a source of considerable waste, Vanasse argues in a feature for Manufacturing.net.

The majority of these battery room wasteful practices occur due to human error. For example, if staff are correctly trained on battery life span and maintenance, they would be able to make the appropriate number of trips to the battery room to replace spent cells and those batteries would be watered and charged by the appropriate number of people.

If these processes are set up inefficiently if can also result in people moving too much while setting up batteries for recharge, and extended periods of waiting for fresh batteries by those employees on the floor, Vanasse argues.

Indeed, the main cause of limited battery run time, reduced battery life and waste in the battery room is a poor battery rotation system, according to Vanasse.

Read the complete article at Environmental Leader

The cleaning products that we use to wipe down our countertops, wash our dishes and clothes and scent our air contain potentially toxic chemicals, and they’re getting into our bodies.

That’s according to a recent report that I authored, “Dirty Secrets: What’s Hiding in Your Cleaning Products,” for the NGO Women’s Voices for the Earth.

More and more evidence comes out every year, finding that chemicals linked with asthma, reproductive harm and breast cancer are turning up in our bodies. Even newborn babies are born with over 200 industrial chemicals in their systems. The dose of chemicals coming from a single spray may be minimal, but chemical exposures can build up over time to have cumulative, long-term health impacts, especially on women and children. The mixtures of chemicals we are exposed to also pose a concern.

Some cleaning product companies have made efforts to “green up” their practices, pledging to take out chemicals that have a particularly bad rap, notably phthalates and synthetic musks. But if tests reveal that these chemicals are still contained inside, even after statements to the contrary, consumers will start to lose faith in a company’s ability to have the consumer’s best interests in mind.

Read the complete article at GreenBiz.com

ENERGY STAR builder partners across the nation are making a public commitment to build ENERGY STAR qualified homes that follow the Version 3 guidelines. Builders who have committed to building homes to the new Version 3 guidelines in 2012 are listed below in the order in which they have made their commitment.

View the list of Builders here.

Make your commitment today. Fill out and submit the commitment form and join the growing list of builders who have committed to build to Version 3 guidelines.

Working to find solutions that are both safe and effective, many hospitals are implementing environmental cleaning programs that use non-toxic products to properly clean and disinfect medical facilities and equipment. But there’s a bit of confusion about just how green cleaning for hospitals should be carried out.

Currently, a number of organizations offer guides to green cleaning in hospitals including Practice Greenhealth and Health Care Without Harm. But there are no industry-wide standards that administrators can use to determine the plan that will be beneficial for their particular facilities.

A recent report by the Health Care Research Collaborative notes that more studies are needed to determine the ways in which green cleaning for hospitals affect cleanliness and infection transmission. Entitled ‘Green Cleaning in Healthcare: Current Practices and Questions for Future Research’, the report was based on a literature review and five case studies in addition to analysis of 150 responses to an online hospital survey on current green cleaning practices.

Read the complete article at Mother Nature Network