News | WSPPN - Part 11

Jan

NRDC Warns FDA Approved Livestock Antibiotics Harmful to Humans

Categories: News

Tags: animal antibiotics, antibiotic-resistant bacteria, human exposure, natural resources defence council, NRDC

Posted: January 29, 2014
Source: Environmental Protection On-line.com

A new National Resources Defense Council report released this week alleges that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has been allowing the use of 30 penicillin and tetracycline antibiotic feed additives that could be exposing humans to antibiotic-resistant bacteria. FDA reviewed 30 antibiotic feed additives (approved for non-therapeutic use, which means preventing disease or promoting growth) between 2001 and 2010 that most likely would not be approved as new additives if submitted for use today, according to NRDC.
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Jan

Meth in London? Ecstasy in Oregon? Sewage pinpoints drug use in communities

Categories: News

Tags: cities, drugs, illegal drugs, privacy, students, testing, wastewater

Comments: No

Posted: January 24, 2014
Source: Mother Nature News.com

Scientists, increasingly able to detect minuscule amounts of compounds, have begun to test sewage to gauge communities’ use of illegal drugs.

By Brian Bienkowski for Environmental Health News

Dan Burgard, an associate chemistry professor, knew students tried to get an edge. But he didn’t know about the “study drug.”

“I was walking with a student,” Burgard said, “and they bemoaned that it wasn’t students cheating nowadays to get ahead, but that they were taking Adderall,” a potent amphetamine used to treat attention disorders.

Burgard had an idea: Let’s test the campus sewage. What he and his students at University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Wash., found confirmed their suspicions.

“The amphetamine levels go through the roof during finals,” Burgard said.

Scientists, increasingly able to detect minuscule amounts of compounds, have begun to test sewage to gauge communities’ use of illegal drugs. When people take drugs, they are either unchanged or the body turns them into metabolites before they’re excreted.
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Jan

Alternative Utility Services Announces No-cost Benchmarking Services for All Its Contracted Energy Clients

Categories: Hospitality

Tags: alternative utility services, benchmarking, hospitality, procurement

Comments: No

Posted: January 22, 2014
Source: Hotel News Resource.com

As energy benchmarking and disclosure ordinances expand, Alternative Utility Services is offering benchmarking services at no-cost to its contracted commercial energy clients.

Alternative Utility Services (AUS), a national energy and sustainability consulting firm, has announced it is offering energy benchmarking services to all of its contracted commercial energy clients, at no cost. This free benchmarking service from AUS is of significant importance in cities with benchmarking and disclosure ordinances.

Several cities and two states currently have ordinances requiring building owners to track and report their properties’ energy use. The list includes California, Washington State, Washington DC, Austin, Portland, Boston, New York City, Boulder, Seattle, San Francisco, Philadelphia and Minneapolis. Chicago’s benchmarking ordinance has been placed on hold at least until September and may be added to the list.

Benchmarking provides important baseline data to assess a building’s energy use. The information gathered is used to establish future goals for projects to improve energy efficiency such as demand response, automated energy management systems and lighting upgrades. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, buildings that are benchmarked consistently, over time save an average of 7% in energy.
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Jan

EPA Takes Important Step in Implementing the Hazardous Waste Electronic Manifest Establishment Act

Categories: News

Tags: electronic manifest, EPA, hazardous waste regulations, rcra

Comments: No

Posted January 17, 2014
Source: EPA
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today issued a final rule that is a crucial step in the development of a national electronic manifest (e-Manifest) system, which will upgrade the current paper-based system of tracking hazardous waste to an electronic one.

“Today’s action is a key step in bringing the oversight of these potentially dangerous materials into the 21^st century,” said Mathy Stanislaus, EPA assistant administrator for the Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response. “Once fully implemented, the national e-Manifest system will provide greater access for emergency responders to information about the types and sources of hazardous waste that are in transit between generator sites and waste management facilities.”

The final rule authorizes the use of e-Manifests to track hazardous wastes under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act. This will allow the current process, which requires paper forms, to be streamlined and greatly reduce the millions of paper manifests produced each year.
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Dec

Universal Notebook Charger: Secret Weapon in Slashing E-Waste?

Categories: News

Tags: dc power supply, e-waste, electronic waste, environmental leader, notebook, universal charger

Comments: No

Posted: December 20, 2013
Source: Environmental Leader.com

The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) has published the first technical specification for a universal charger for notebook computers and laptops that the international standards organization says will “significantly reduce” e-waste.

IEC Technical Specification 62700: DC Power supply for notebook computer, will be available in early 2014.

Each year billions of external chargers are shipped globally. Power supplies for notebooks weigh typically around 300 but sometimes up to 600 grams. They are generally not usable from one computer to the next. Sometimes they get lost or break, leading to the discarding of computers that may still work perfectly well.

IEC estimates that the total e-waste related to all kinds of chargers of information and communication devices exceeds half a million tons each year.
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Dec

Light ’em up

Categories: Hospitality, News

Comments: No

Posted on December 19, 2013
Source: Reno News & Review Green Guide
By: Sage Leehey

Peppermill saves electricity by changing to LED lights

With its own geothermal power plant on site powering all heat and space, the Peppermill Resort had already cut its energy bills down quite a bit—about $1.8 million a year. But they’re always looking for more ways to save, and they recently cut down their electricity bill by an estimated $130, 539 a year by switching their parking lot lights from 1,000-watt metal-halides to 188-watt LEDs.

These savings come from switching both of the Peppermill properties—the Reno Peppermill Resort and the Western Village in Sparks—to LED-lighted parking lots.

“In August of this year, we put in these new units. We’re already seeing about a 90 percent energy reduction at Western Village because they have meters that are dedicated to the lights,” said executive director of facilities at the Peppermill, Dean Parker.
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Dec

EPA plans to sharply reduce inspections

Categories: News

Tags: EPA Enforcement

Comments: No

Posted: December 16, 2013
Source: LA Times

By Neela Banerjee

Saying it wants to focus on the biggest polluters, the EPA proposes to cut federal inspections by one-third and reduce civil enforcement cases 23%. Environmental groups are alarmed.

WASHINGTON — The Environmental Protection Agency plans to substantially reduce inspections and civil enforcement cases against industry over the next five years, arguing that focusing on the biggest polluters would be the most effective way to clean up air and water.

In a draft strategic plan, the EPA proposes to cut federal inspections by one-third from the 20,000 inspections it conducted in the last fiscal year, ended Sept. 30.

Moreover, it plans to initiate about 2,320 civil enforcement cases a year, compared with the 3,000 cases initiated last fiscal year, a 23% reduction.

The EPA said the shift for fiscal years 2014 to 2018 is not a retreat from enforcement but a more effective allocation of resources.
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Dec

EPA Releases Updated Sustainability Plan

Categories: News

Tags: epa press release, sustainability plan

Comments: No

Posted: December 5, 2013
Source: EPA Sustainability

WASHINGTON – As part of President Obama’s Climate Action Plan to cut carbon pollution and lead in clean energy, EPA today released its 2013 Strategic Sustainability Performance Plan that outlines actions planned over the next year to cut energy use and waste in agency operations. President Obama signed Executive Order 13514 on Federal Leadership in Environmental, Energy, and Economic Performance in October 2009, setting aggressive targets for reducing waste and pollution in Federal operations by 2020. EPA’s 2013 Sustainability Plan builds on four years of progress under the Executive Order and provides an overview of how the agency is saving taxpayer dollars, reducing carbon emissions, and saving energy.
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Dec

Clean Diesel Rebates Available from EPA for Public and Private Construction Equipment

Categories: Fleets

Tags: construction equipment, EPA, national clean diesel, rebates

Comments: No

Posted: December 4, 2013
Source: EPA National Clean Diesel Campaign (NCDC)

EPA’s National Clean Diesel Campaign opened a new rebate program on November 20, 2013. This round of rebates focuses on the retrofit and replacement of nonroad construction equipment engines in both public and private fleets. The total funding for this opportunity is approximately $2 million. To learn more about the rebate program, applicant and location eligibility, technology options, and selection process, please visit EPA’s Diesel Emission Reduction Program Construction Rebates website.

EPA will collect rebate applications from November 20, 2013, to January 15, 2014. Applicants may submit only one application for up to five pieces of equipment and up to $120,000 in rebate funds. Applications may be downloaded from the website. Completed applications and required documentation should be sent by email with the subject line “DERA Construction Equipment Rebate Application.”

EPA will offer a webinar to interested applicants on December 9, 2013, at 1pm EST. Webinar registration.

Dec

EPA and DOE Release Annual Fuel Economy Guide with 2014 Models

Categories: Fleets, News

Comments: No

Posted: December 3, 2013
Source: U.S. EPA

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Energy (DOE) are releasing the 2014 Fuel Economy Guide, providing consumers with a valuable resource to identify and choose the most fuel efficient and low greenhouse gas emitting vehicles that meet their needs. The 2014 models include efficient and low-emission vehicles in a variety of classes and sizes, ensuring a wide variety of choices available for consumers.

“For American families, the financial and environmental bottom lines are high priorities when shopping for a new vehicle,” said Administrator Gina McCarthy.” This year’s guide is not just about how the latest models stack up against each other; it’s about providing people the best information possible to make smart decisions affecting their pocketbooks and the planet.”
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All posts in News

Scientists, increasingly able to detect minuscule amounts of compounds, have begun to test sewage to gauge communities’ use of illegal drugs.

Peppermill saves electricity by changing to LED lights

Saying it wants to focus on the biggest polluters, the EPA proposes to cut federal inspections by one-third and reduce civil enforcement cases 23%. Environmental groups are alarmed.