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April 28, 2012  10:00 AM – 2:00 PM

The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has scheduled another National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day which will take place on Saturday, April 28, 2012, from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.  This is a great opportunity for those who missed the previous events, or who have subsequently accumulated unwanted, unused prescription drugs, to safely dispose of those medications.

Americans that participated in the DEA’s third National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day on October 29, 2011, turned in more than 377,086 pounds (188.5 tons) of unwanted or expired medications for safe and proper disposal at the 5,327 take-back sites that were available in all 50 states and U.S. territories. When the results of the three prior Take-Back Days are combined, the DEA, and its state, local, and tribal law-enforcement and community partners have removed 995,185 pounds (498.5 tons) of medication from circulation in the past 13 months.

“The amount of prescription drugs turned in by the American public during the past three Take-Back Day events speaks volumes about the need to develop a convenient way to rid homes of unwanted or expired prescription drugs,” said DEA Administrator Michele M. Leonhart. “DEA remains hard at work to establish just such a drug disposal process, and will continue to offer take-back opportunities until the proper regulations are in place.”

“With the continued support and hard work of our more than 3,945 state, local, and tribal law enforcement and community partners, these three events have dramatically reduced the risk of prescription drug diversion and abuse, and increased awareness of this critical public health issue,” said Leonhart.

Collection Site Locator:

Find a collection site near you. Check back frequently as collection sites are continuously being added.

Law Enforcement Agencies Only:

For law enforcement agencies that wish to host a collection site please call the POC in your area.

Take-Back Day Partnership Toolbox:

Here you will find a list of files that you can download to use for your own purposes.

General Public Inquiries:

Inquiries can be made at 1-800-882-9539.

From San Francisco Environment

Each year, Earth Day, April 22nd, marks the anniversary of what many consider to be the birth of the modern environmental movement in 1970. Earth Day 1970 capitalized on the emerging consciousness of its era, channeling the energy of the anti-war protest movement and bringing environmental concerns front and center.

The idea for Earth Day came from founder Gaylord Nelson, then a U.S. Senator from Wisconsin, after witnessing the environmental destruction caused by the massive 1969 oil spill in Santa Barbara, California. Outraged by the devastation from the oil spill, Nelson proposed a “national teach-in on the environment” to be observed by every university campus in the U.S. Nelson persuaded Pete McCloskey, a conservation-minded Republican Congressman, to serve as his co-chair; and recruited Denis Hayes as national coordinator. Hayes built a national staff of 85 to promote events across the United States.

On the 22nd of April, 20 million Americans took to the streets, parks, and auditoriums to demonstrate for a healthy, sustainable environment in massive coast-to-coast rallies. Thousands of colleges and universities organized protests against the deterioration of the environment. Groups that had been fighting against oil spills, polluting factories and power plants, raw sewage, toxic dumps, pesticides, freeways, the loss of wilderness, and the extinction of wildlife suddenly realized they shared common values.

Earth Day 1970 achieved a rare political alignment, enlisting support from Republicans and Democrats, rich and poor, city slickers and farmers, tycoons and labor leaders. The first Earth Day led to the creation of the United States Environmental Protection Agency and the passage of the Clean Air, Clean Water, and Endangered Species Acts. It is now observed in 175 countries, and coordinated by the nonprofit, Earth Day Network, according to whom Earth Day is now “the largest secular holiday in the world, celebrated by more than a half billion people every year.”

Read the complete story at San Francisco Environment

FedEx Ground, Purolator, and UPS to Evaluate Fuel Savings Estimated 40% or More Using Cutting-Edge New Technology

PASADENA, CA — (Environmental Expert.com) — 04/17/12 — Members of the Hybrid, Electric and Advanced Truck Users Forum (HTUF) Parcel Delivery Working Group have announced the receipt of their hydraulic hybrid package delivery evaluation vehicles from Freightliner Custom Chassis Corporation (FCCC), Morgan Olson and Parker Hannifin. FedEx Ground, Purolator, and UPS each purchased an evaluation vehicle with assistance from CALSTART through a grant from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).

These are the first-of-their-kind commercially available hybrid hydraulic parcel delivery vehicles. The vehicle chassis includes a Parker hydraulic hybrid drive system, integrated and assembled by FCCC, with bodies installed by Morgan Olson.

Braking energy is recovered and stored in hydraulic accumulators, where it is used to power the truck during acceleration. Parker’s onboard controller incorporates an advanced engine-off strategy to minimize unnecessary run time. As a result, fuel use can be reduced by 40% or better fuel economy based on route profile.

‘Purolator is excited about the new FCCC truck with Parker hybrid hydraulic technology. We look forward to the improvements to fuel economy and drivability that this new technology brings to the industry and are willing to work with the OEMs to validate these improvements for other fleets to help build business cases to introduce these vehicles into their fleets as well,’ said Serge Viola, General Manager Fleet/GSE & GLH, Purolator.

Mike Britt, Director of Vehicle Engineering, UPS said, ‘We are optimistic that this new technology will perform as well as it did in the test vehicles improving fuel economy and reducing emissions.’

‘Parker is excited to deploy our first three hydraulic hybrid drive systems with the CALSTART-led HTUF Working Group. After recent EPA testing, Parker’s system came out best in class compared to similar hybrid systems. We are anxiously awaiting to see real world test results from our three customers: FedEx Ground, Purolator and UPS,’ said Shane Terblanche, General Manager, Parker’s Hybrid Drive Systems Division.

The Parker hybrid drive system installed in these trucks is designed specifically for medium duty, start-stop applications such as parcel delivery. Advancing upon Parker’s RunWise© heavy duty system presently available for refuse applications, this medium duty version incorporates an infinitely variable transmission in its design. Power from Parker’s hydraulic pump/motors and accumulators is seamlessly blended with engine power depending on driver demand.

‘We are very proud to have assembled this world class team of leading manufacturers and fleets to help demonstrate and deploy this exciting new product. The fact that FedEx Ground, UPS, Purolator are interested in testing this technology is a positive statement about the potential of this American-made and manufactured vehicle and technology,’ said John Boesel, President and CEO, CALSTART.

The three package delivery companies will be cooperating with CALSTART and FCCC to gather data on the operation of the vehicles to establish expected fuel economy improvements and reduced brake and engine maintenance costs. Although hydraulic hybrid systems have shown promise over the last few years, commercial deployment of these systems has been limited to Class 8 refuse trucks. This evaluation will assess an efficient hydraulic hybrid system for the lighter, Class 6 vehicle applications. Successful demonstration could pave the way for additional purchases of hydraulic hybrid vehicles throughout the trucking industry.

The UPS vehicle will be on display at Fortune Brainstorm Green, April 17-18 in Laguna Niguel, California.

About HTUF

Hybrid, Electric and Advanced Trucks Users Forum (HTUF) is a national, multi-year, user-driven program to speed the commercialization of medium- and heavy-duty hybrid, electric and high-efficiency technologies. It is operated by CALSTART in partnership with the U.S. Army’s National Automotive Center (NAC), with project support from the Hewlett Foundation and the U.S. Department of Energy. HTUF has been very successful in helping launch the first production of hybrid and electric trucks and is credited with cutting up to two years from product development. Since 2001, HTUF has helped educate and create first markets; investigated and analyzed the most cost-effective applications for cutting-edge technologies; helped make a business case for hundreds of thousands of American jobs and has crafted a successful collaborative model with engaged Working Groups to make these strides.

FedEx Ground, Purolator, and UPS to Evaluate Fuel Savings Estimated 40% or More Using Cutting-Edge New Technology

PASADENA, CA — (Environmental Expert.com) — 04/17/12 — Members of the Hybrid, Electric and Advanced Truck Users Forum (HTUF) Parcel Delivery Working Group have announced the receipt of their hydraulic hybrid package delivery evaluation vehicles from Freightliner Custom Chassis Corporation (FCCC), Morgan Olson and Parker Hannifin. FedEx Ground, Purolator, and UPS each purchased an evaluation vehicle with assistance from CALSTART through a grant from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).

These are the first-of-their-kind commercially available hybrid hydraulic parcel delivery vehicles. The vehicle chassis includes a Parker hydraulic hybrid drive system, integrated and assembled by FCCC, with bodies installed by Morgan Olson.

Braking energy is recovered and stored in hydraulic accumulators, where it is used to power the truck during acceleration. Parker’s onboard controller incorporates an advanced engine-off strategy to minimize unnecessary run time. As a result, fuel use can be reduced by 40% or better fuel economy based on route profile.

‘Purolator is excited about the new FCCC truck with Parker hybrid hydraulic technology. We look forward to the improvements to fuel economy and drivability that this new technology brings to the industry and are willing to work with the OEMs to validate these improvements for other fleets to help build business cases to introduce these vehicles into their fleets as well,’ said Serge Viola, General Manager Fleet/GSE & GLH, Purolator.

Mike Britt, Director of Vehicle Engineering, UPS said, ‘We are optimistic that this new technology will perform as well as it did in the test vehicles improving fuel economy and reducing emissions.’

‘Parker is excited to deploy our first three hydraulic hybrid drive systems with the CALSTART-led HTUF Working Group. After recent EPA testing, Parker’s system came out best in class compared to similar hybrid systems. We are anxiously awaiting to see real world test results from our three customers: FedEx Ground, Purolator and UPS,’ said Shane Terblanche, General Manager, Parker’s Hybrid Drive Systems Division.

The Parker hybrid drive system installed in these trucks is designed specifically for medium duty, start-stop applications such as parcel delivery. Advancing upon Parker’s RunWise© heavy duty system presently available for refuse applications, this medium duty version incorporates an infinitely variable transmission in its design. Power from Parker’s hydraulic pump/motors and accumulators is seamlessly blended with engine power depending on driver demand.

‘We are very proud to have assembled this world class team of leading manufacturers and fleets to help demonstrate and deploy this exciting new product. The fact that FedEx Ground, UPS, Purolator are interested in testing this technology is a positive statement about the potential of this American-made and manufactured vehicle and technology,’ said John Boesel, President and CEO, CALSTART.

The three package delivery companies will be cooperating with CALSTART and FCCC to gather data on the operation of the vehicles to establish expected fuel economy improvements and reduced brake and engine maintenance costs. Although hydraulic hybrid systems have shown promise over the last few years, commercial deployment of these systems has been limited to Class 8 refuse trucks. This evaluation will assess an efficient hydraulic hybrid system for the lighter, Class 6 vehicle applications. Successful demonstration could pave the way for additional purchases of hydraulic hybrid vehicles throughout the trucking industry.

The UPS vehicle will be on display at Fortune Brainstorm Green, April 17-18 in Laguna Niguel, California.

About HTUF

Hybrid, Electric and Advanced Trucks Users Forum (HTUF) is a national, multi-year, user-driven program to speed the commercialization of medium- and heavy-duty hybrid, electric and high-efficiency technologies. It is operated by CALSTART in partnership with the U.S. Army’s National Automotive Center (NAC), with project support from the Hewlett Foundation and the U.S. Department of Energy. HTUF has been very successful in helping launch the first production of hybrid and electric trucks and is credited with cutting up to two years from product development. Since 2001, HTUF has helped educate and create first markets; investigated and analyzed the most cost-effective applications for cutting-edge technologies; helped make a business case for hundreds of thousands of American jobs and has crafted a successful collaborative model with engaged Working Groups to make these strides.

Re post from Environmental-Expert.com

MISSION, KS — (Marketwire) — 04/05/12 — (Family Features) Mobile phones, laptops, tablets, game consoles, cameras — electronic devices are a big part of American life. In fact, Americans own an average of 24 electronic products per household, according to the Consumer Electronics Association. With technology changing so rapidly and new ‘it’ devices hitting the market every few months, a lot of those devices get discarded quickly. That adds up to a lot of potential e-waste.

In fact, a recent survey sponsored by RadioShack found:

• More than 90 million American adults 18 and over have unused technology products lying around the house.
• As part of that pile of retired tech, a third of mobile phone users report owning unused phones — and more than half of those with unused phones own two or more.

Some unused electronics just collect dust, but many get thrown away. The Environmental Protection Agency’s most recent report showed that nearly 1.8 million tons of e-waste was simply trashed.

Fortunately, it’s easier than ever to keep old electronics out of the waste stream.
Read more

by Carol Tice, Editor ENTREPRENEUR.

Going green can help small retailers stand out from competitors, but few seem to be focusing on becoming more environmentally friendly.

An MIT Sloan Management Review study released last year found that while most big retail chains already have green initiatives in place, only 9 percent of businesses with fewer than 1,000 employees haveembraced sustainability as a core value.

That small percentage may reflect two of the major challenges small retailers face: their landlord and their budget. When you don’t own your store and don’t have a lot to spend, it’s hard to make expensive changes that could bring big energy savings, such as adding insulation or installing skylights.

But going green doesn’t necessarily have to be costly. Here are 12 easy steps you can take to reduce your carbon footprint and cut waste:

1. Switch to energy-efficient lighting. You may be able to reap some cost savings and reduce energy use by trading incandescent or older fluorescent light bulbs for newer light-emitting diode (LED) or compact fluorescent (CFL) lights, says Chris Lynch, director of the Business Environmental Program at the University of Nevada-Reno. “If you have five years left on your lease, the savings could pay for the project before the lease ends.”

Read the rest of the article at ENTREPRENEUR

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.
Read more

Reprint from Environmental Leader

On March 21, 2012, the United States Supreme Court unanimously ruled that a US Environmental Protection Agency administrative order issued under the Clean Water Act is a final agency action for which there is no adequate remedy other than judicial review, and therefore such orders are subject to judicial review under the Administrative Procedures Act (APA) even if the EPA has not yet sought to enforce such an order. Sackett v. Environmental Protection Agency, 566 U.S. ___ (2012), No. 10-1062 (March 21, 2012). In so ruling, the Supreme Court reversed the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals’ holding in the underlying action that the Clean Water Act precluded pre-enforcement judicial review of EPA Clean Water Act administrative orders, and that such preclusion did not violate a party’s right to due process. Justices Ginsburg and Alito each authored a concurring opinion.

The case involved property owners who filled in a portion of a lot in Idaho where they intended to build a home. A few months after completing the fill work, the owners received an administrative compliance order from EPA that included findings that the property contained wetlands for which a fill permit was required, and that by failing to obtain such a permit the owners violated the Clean Water Act. The order also directed the owners to restore the property to its pre-fill condition pursuant to an EPA created Work Plan. The owners disagreed with the conclusion that their property contained wetlands subject to the Clean Water Act. They asked EPA for a hearing, which was denied. They then brought a suit in the United States District Court for the District of Idaho seeking declaratory and injunctive relief under the APA and the 5th Amendment (alleging lack of due process). The District Court dismissed the suit for lack of jurisdiction. The owners appealed to the Ninth Circuit which, as noted above, affirmed the dismissal.

The opinion focused on the threat of $75,000 per day penalties for failure to comply with the order and the lack of ability for an order recipient to force a hearing with EPA in finding that the order constituted a final agency action. The final action conclusion coupled with the absence of an express or implied preclusion of pre-enforcement judicial review in the Clean Water Act was sufficient for the Court to reach its ultimate decision.
Read more

A successful sustainability team will include members from all company departments

By Stephen Ashkin, Executive Director of the Green Cleaning Network
published on CleanLink

Sustainability is becoming an increasingly important issue for building service contractors, whether it is being driven by customer requirements, internal cost reductions or marketing/sales opportunities to differentiate from the competition.

Regardless of the motivation, the most essential key to success is recognizing that sustainability is not about reporting. Fundamentally from a business perspective, sustainability has to be about reducing environmental impacts; improving the impacts on employees, customers and communities; and improving the financial performance of the company.
If the company is small, perhaps sustainability can be the responsibility of a single individual. But for most organizations, in order for a sustainability program to succeed it has to become an overall commitment, requiring people at all levels and locations throughout the organization to be involved.

Even though the sustainability program will most likely be a group effort, it’s still important to clearly identify a leader to be in charge. This person should be passionate about sustainability. Contractors can succeed with a good accountant who has little passion or excitement for accounting, as long as they know what they are doing and meet all the legal, tax and other requirements. But sustainability is different as there are evolving requirements and it will take the power of persuasion and passion to light the fire and begin the organizational change.

Of course, the leader will also need other important skills such as being organized and knowing how to manage a meeting, make assignments, and hold people accountable — and they’ll also need to have the time to do the job.

Beyond selecting a good leader, it is important to think about the overall structure of the company. This is because the sustainability program should be designed to drive corporate cultural change, so consider selecting individuals throughout the company to participate as a member of the sustainability team.

The team should include representatives from sales, customer service, HR and operations. And for contractors with operations in many geographical locations, try to have at least one official representative, as well as an alternate, from each location. Being selected to the Sustainability Team should be an honor, not just another job for an already overburdened employee.

Don’t forget that sustainability isn’t just about the service that is offered. It is also about how the business itself is operated. So make sure to consider including office staff such as accounting, purchasing, marketing and other administrative support personnel. They, too, have an impact on what the business uses internally and can affect both the environmental impacts from what they use and purchase, and the corresponding environmental and cost impacts.

Again, it is helpful if all team members actually have an interest in sustainability or general “green” issues. This is especially important in the early stages of the program because skeptics, naysayers, doubters, etc., will make it harder for everyone else and for the program to succeed. And be especially careful about those who like playing devil’s advocate. This strategy is used by people who often aren’t trying to find answers to difficult questions, but rather are making work for others. Admittedly, with sustainability, there are numerous questions that remain unanswered, so if the effort focuses on answering all the questions before action can take place, the program is destined to fail.