Have you been on SWANA's new online group yet? If you haven't joined the I AM SWANA Online Group then you're missing some great conversations.
This weekend, Jason Hale from Alaska asked about Special Service for the Elderly & Handicapped and he's already getting assistance. And Connie Burns recently asked about Operating Procedures and was able to connect with a fellow online group member to help her review her current practices. Maybe you have some expertise that you can share with Jason or Connie or a question you need help with.
Check out the I AM SWANA Online Group and join the conversation - whether you have a question or want to share your advice.
And attention SWANA British Columbia and Northern Light Members - your chapters have recently opened up chapter groups on I AM SWANA - bringing your local members even closer.
Have an opinion on a recent development in the solid waste industry? Want to share some tips and successes with other solid waste professionals? Write for the I AM SWANA blog and share your views. Just email marketing@swana.org for more information.
Monday, December 8, 2008
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Green Marketing and Outreach Campaigns
Terrence Gellenbeck with the city of Phoenix Public Works Department in Arizona presented his city's new recycling program Wednesday afternoon during the Green Marketing and Outreach Campaign session. Terrence provided excellent information on how they improved their recycling program by rolling out the “Recycling Changes Everything” campaign.
Keys to improving their city’s program included a three part initiative: new slogan, community outreach, and media outreach. The first part of their program included changing their slogan. The city has provided recycling since 1989 and had used the same recycling slogan for eight years, so Terrence believed the city needed a new recycling slogan to revamp and improve the program.
Secondly, community outreach was vital to improving recycling participation and reducing contamination. They formed a focus group and asked residents how to improve the recycling program. The focus group’s best idea was to incorporate pictures on education literature and materials. Terrence said this idea really helped their recycling program.
Lastly, he provided ways to maximize advertising. The city program organizers developed 30-second radio commercials, but radio stations sell advertising in one-minute blocks, so the city worked with a public water organization to share the cost of the advertising.
Another initiative the city of Phoenix rolled out was a bag reduction program. In three months, they found a 12 percent increase number of cloth bags used at grocery stores and an 8 percent decrease of plastic bags being used at grocery stores.
Lessons learned from a new campaign:
Know your customers
Identify key stakeholders
Develop a common vision for your organization
Be cost consciousness
Terrence’s parting words on recycling: It’s more expensive, but it legitimizes what you do.
Keys to improving their city’s program included a three part initiative: new slogan, community outreach, and media outreach. The first part of their program included changing their slogan. The city has provided recycling since 1989 and had used the same recycling slogan for eight years, so Terrence believed the city needed a new recycling slogan to revamp and improve the program.
Secondly, community outreach was vital to improving recycling participation and reducing contamination. They formed a focus group and asked residents how to improve the recycling program. The focus group’s best idea was to incorporate pictures on education literature and materials. Terrence said this idea really helped their recycling program.
Lastly, he provided ways to maximize advertising. The city program organizers developed 30-second radio commercials, but radio stations sell advertising in one-minute blocks, so the city worked with a public water organization to share the cost of the advertising.
Another initiative the city of Phoenix rolled out was a bag reduction program. In three months, they found a 12 percent increase number of cloth bags used at grocery stores and an 8 percent decrease of plastic bags being used at grocery stores.
Lessons learned from a new campaign:
Know your customers
Identify key stakeholders
Develop a common vision for your organization
Be cost consciousness
Terrence’s parting words on recycling: It’s more expensive, but it legitimizes what you do.
For more than two years Roberta Fernandez has committed to taking action to educate others on climate change.
Roberta spoke at Wednesday's keynote presentation and her passion and commitment showed as she talked about Al Gore's Inconvenient Truth climate project message.
Al Gore personally trained Roberta in Nashville to present his climate change message publicly. She said every action taken by an individual or organization that is positive and measurable is meaningful.
Roberta provided clear data about how the planet is becoming hotter and the stated the 9 of the 10 hottest year occurred in our last decade. She provided three reasons why our planet's temperature is changing. I. Population 2. Scientific and technological advances 3. The way we think.
The third reason, the way we think is harder to understand because people may not believe that we have caused the planet to become warmer based on our activities such as industry or driving. Many people don't believe this is a real problem.
Roberta said the misunderstanding is based on media perspective, which tries to explain both sides of the story, when scientific journals clearly and unanimously agree that the planet is warming and burning fossil fuels is a major culprit. We get 86 percent of our energy from burning fossil fuels!
She said every action taken by an individual or organization that is positive and measurable is meaningful. She changed her consulting business into Planet Partnership. It's an organization that educates people to take action in their own lives to reduce their carbon footprint.
Her message was clear, there are no national boundaries when discussing climate change and we're all in this together. So, let's take action and make a commitment to reduce our carbon footprint!
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Waste Conversion Technologies: What does the future hold?
Many communities are adopting greater diversion goals and must find new ways to reduce municipal solid waste. Technologies discussed at Tuesday’s session included Waste-to-Energy, Gasification, Plasma Arc, and anaerobic digestion of MSW.
Dan Costello with DHR Engineering, Inc. presented at the Waste Conversion Technologies session. To improve their waste diversion goals, DHR completed five international tours in three years to get a feel of the global community on waste diversion technologies.
Tour sites were chosen in Asia and Europe, including Japan, Germany and Belgium.
Waste-to-Energy sites are mainly used in Germany and Belgium. With more than 300 plants in Europe, this technology costs about $150-$200 US per ton.
Gasification processes are mainly present in Japan, but not in Europe, Dan said.
This technology seems to work best with more uniform and select waste feedstock. This technology costs about $300 per ton.
The Plasma Arc technology has operational issues due to fuel feed stock that is still being worked out, Dan said. No extension operation studies at a full load rate and cost per ton information were not available on the plasma arc technology.
The last technology he discussed included anaerobic digestion of MSW. Dan stated odor is a problem with this technology and no emissions data is available, though he expected emissions to be low compared to EPA MACT standards.
Patrick Matthews, with Salinas Valley Solid Waste Authority in California discussed their research on the autoclave system technology.
The authority is made up of five cities and eastern unincorporated area of Monterey County and generates approximately 260,000 tons of waste per year. Fortunately, their authority diverts 50 percent of their waste, but has set of goal of 75 percent by 2015 and 50 years of sustainable processing/disposal capacity.
With strong opposition to landfills, Patrick wanted to research other technologies to divert waste with less environmental impacts. The authority is conducting a 2-year testing program on the autoclave system.
The autoclave is basically a large pressurized steam cooker and looks like a big cement mixer, Patrick said. The authority is in second year of testing. When speaking about the marketability of products from steaming MSW in the autoclave, high amounts of cellulose remains. Cellulose is a feedstock for ethanol production. The autoclave can process up to 2 tons of municipal solid waste per day up to three times a day and reduces waste volume by 60 percent.
We have to consider new technologies because there will probably not be very many landfills built in the next 10 years, so we have to look at new ways to handle waste stream, Patrick added.
Dan Costello with DHR Engineering, Inc. presented at the Waste Conversion Technologies session. To improve their waste diversion goals, DHR completed five international tours in three years to get a feel of the global community on waste diversion technologies.
Tour sites were chosen in Asia and Europe, including Japan, Germany and Belgium.
Waste-to-Energy sites are mainly used in Germany and Belgium. With more than 300 plants in Europe, this technology costs about $150-$200 US per ton.
Gasification processes are mainly present in Japan, but not in Europe, Dan said.
This technology seems to work best with more uniform and select waste feedstock. This technology costs about $300 per ton.
The Plasma Arc technology has operational issues due to fuel feed stock that is still being worked out, Dan said. No extension operation studies at a full load rate and cost per ton information were not available on the plasma arc technology.
The last technology he discussed included anaerobic digestion of MSW. Dan stated odor is a problem with this technology and no emissions data is available, though he expected emissions to be low compared to EPA MACT standards.
Patrick Matthews, with Salinas Valley Solid Waste Authority in California discussed their research on the autoclave system technology.
The authority is made up of five cities and eastern unincorporated area of Monterey County and generates approximately 260,000 tons of waste per year. Fortunately, their authority diverts 50 percent of their waste, but has set of goal of 75 percent by 2015 and 50 years of sustainable processing/disposal capacity.
With strong opposition to landfills, Patrick wanted to research other technologies to divert waste with less environmental impacts. The authority is conducting a 2-year testing program on the autoclave system.
The autoclave is basically a large pressurized steam cooker and looks like a big cement mixer, Patrick said. The authority is in second year of testing. When speaking about the marketability of products from steaming MSW in the autoclave, high amounts of cellulose remains. Cellulose is a feedstock for ethanol production. The autoclave can process up to 2 tons of municipal solid waste per day up to three times a day and reduces waste volume by 60 percent.
We have to consider new technologies because there will probably not be very many landfills built in the next 10 years, so we have to look at new ways to handle waste stream, Patrick added.
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Greetings fellow trash lovers!
I'm probably not alone saying last night's Opening Reception of SWANA's WASTECON 2008 was a wonderful kick-off to the conference! It's a great, relaxed way to network and make new friends.
I feel such synergy when talking to others about waste reduction, recycling and sustainability! Not only did I chat with folks from the United States, I spoke with attendees from Canada and Australia, this truly is an international conference! It truly makes me believe that we're all in this together.
John Biedenharn, solid waste manager of Coconino County's Public Works Department, which is located in Flagstaff, AZ is looking forward to renewing his professional career with SWANA after being out of the country for more than 10 years. John worked in solid waste careers in Guam and North Queensland, Australia before moving to the states. "The short version of my passion in this work is to try to make a difference. It's the truth," John said.
Also attending last night's festivities included former international president Tom Parker encouraged members of SWANA to become involved with the organization. He has been involved on committees and boards throughout the past 10 years and feels he has gotten a lot more out of the organization by being involved.
Enjoy the conference and please come back to read more of our conference coverage!
I'm probably not alone saying last night's Opening Reception of SWANA's WASTECON 2008 was a wonderful kick-off to the conference! It's a great, relaxed way to network and make new friends.
I feel such synergy when talking to others about waste reduction, recycling and sustainability! Not only did I chat with folks from the United States, I spoke with attendees from Canada and Australia, this truly is an international conference! It truly makes me believe that we're all in this together.
John Biedenharn, solid waste manager of Coconino County's Public Works Department, which is located in Flagstaff, AZ is looking forward to renewing his professional career with SWANA after being out of the country for more than 10 years. John worked in solid waste careers in Guam and North Queensland, Australia before moving to the states. "The short version of my passion in this work is to try to make a difference. It's the truth," John said.
Also attending last night's festivities included former international president Tom Parker encouraged members of SWANA to become involved with the organization. He has been involved on committees and boards throughout the past 10 years and feels he has gotten a lot more out of the organization by being involved.
Enjoy the conference and please come back to read more of our conference coverage!
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Carbon is a Hot Topic - For Everyone
WASTECON in Tampa is just a days away and it sounds amazing! This year's conference showcases energy and climate issues. There has been a lot of interest and concern about the reducing our carbon footprint lately. It's a hot topic!
Energy use and climate are issues that require assistance and action from an individual, business and governmental perspective. It must be addressed domestically and internationally since we're all in this together, right?
Some of the technical sessions you don't want to miss include: Food Waste to Energy, Sustainable Recycling and How Green is your Landfill? The latter session will discuss how to measure the carbon footprint of your landfill!
Be sure to check out the WASTECON blog at www.wastecon.org for conference information and updates.
I'll see you at Opening Reception!
Energy use and climate are issues that require assistance and action from an individual, business and governmental perspective. It must be addressed domestically and internationally since we're all in this together, right?
Some of the technical sessions you don't want to miss include: Food Waste to Energy, Sustainable Recycling and How Green is your Landfill? The latter session will discuss how to measure the carbon footprint of your landfill!
Be sure to check out the WASTECON blog at www.wastecon.org for conference information and updates.
I'll see you at Opening Reception!
Monday, September 22, 2008
Maximizing Recovery and Beneficial Use of Disaster Debris - Workshop in conjunction with WASTECON 2008
Complimentary Workshop Registrations Available for
Florida Public/Government Officials!
On Monday October 20th, Kessler Consulting Inc. (KCI) will present an in-depth workshop on maximizing recovery and beneficial use of disaster debris. Sponsored by Sumter County with a grant from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, the workshop will be held in conjunction with SWANA’s upcoming WASTECON Conference (Tampa Bay Convention Center, Monday, October 21 -23, 2008).
This four hour workshop will go well-beyond traditional disaster debris management training courses and focus squarely on implementing tactical plans that maximize recovery and beneficial use of disaster debris. Through a series of intensive case studies and interactive discussions, the workshop will feature the following best practices:
• Pre-planning steps to identify and secure end-markets for vegetative and other storm debris and create processing systems to meet the material quality specifications of those markets;
• Key elements in debris management contracts that require contractors to maximize diversion and beneficial use of vegetative storm debris;
• Public outreach strategies to ensure residents and businesses adhere to storm preparedness guidelines and follow curbside debris set-out procedures that maximize material quality and minimize contamination.
The first 50 Florida public / government officials that register online will be provided with a complimentary workshop registration. The registration deadline for this offer is October 13, 2008. Please remember that you must be a Florida public/government official to take advantage of this offer. All others can register directly through SWANA: http://wastecon.swana.org. Florida public/government officials can register online using the following link: http://workshop-registration.notlong.com.
If you need further assistance with the registration process for Florida public/government officials only please email Jessica DelGrosso with KCI at jdelgrosso@kesconsult.com.
Florida Public/Government Officials!
On Monday October 20th, Kessler Consulting Inc. (KCI) will present an in-depth workshop on maximizing recovery and beneficial use of disaster debris. Sponsored by Sumter County with a grant from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, the workshop will be held in conjunction with SWANA’s upcoming WASTECON Conference (Tampa Bay Convention Center, Monday, October 21 -23, 2008).
This four hour workshop will go well-beyond traditional disaster debris management training courses and focus squarely on implementing tactical plans that maximize recovery and beneficial use of disaster debris. Through a series of intensive case studies and interactive discussions, the workshop will feature the following best practices:
• Pre-planning steps to identify and secure end-markets for vegetative and other storm debris and create processing systems to meet the material quality specifications of those markets;
• Key elements in debris management contracts that require contractors to maximize diversion and beneficial use of vegetative storm debris;
• Public outreach strategies to ensure residents and businesses adhere to storm preparedness guidelines and follow curbside debris set-out procedures that maximize material quality and minimize contamination.
The first 50 Florida public / government officials that register online will be provided with a complimentary workshop registration. The registration deadline for this offer is October 13, 2008. Please remember that you must be a Florida public/government official to take advantage of this offer. All others can register directly through SWANA: http://wastecon.swana.org. Florida public/government officials can register online using the following link: http://workshop-registration.notlong.com.
If you need further assistance with the registration process for Florida public/government officials only please email Jessica DelGrosso with KCI at jdelgrosso@kesconsult.com.
Monday, September 15, 2008
Things To Do in Tampa Bay
You might know Tampa Bay for its beautiful sunsets and sparkling beaches but there is so much more to enjoy! Acclaimed for its tropical weather and colorful foliage, Tampa Bay also offers diverse attractions and exciting nightlife.
If you want to enjoy a little piece of the “Big Guava” during your stay for WASTECON, you should check out…
Raymond James Stadium
Check out Jon Gruden and his Tampa Bay Buccaneers as they take on the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday, October 19th. Click here for ticket information and pricing.
Visit trendy International Plaza for nationally acclaimed restaurants and bars after the game. You’ll enjoy exquisite flavors, artistic presentations, and a dining experience with international inspiration. Capital Grill and The Grape both offer extensive wine collections.
St. Pete Times Forum
Check out Tampa Bay Lightning Hockey after the WASTECON conference. Games start at 7:30 pm and tickets start as low as $15.
October 18th – Wild vs. Lightning
October 21st – Threshers vs. Lightning
October 25th – Sharks vs. Lightning
Tickets can be purchased at the McDonald’s Box Office at the St. Pete Times Forum and all Ticketmaster outlets. To order tickets by phone, call Ticketmaster at 813.287.8844 or 727.898.2100, or call the Lightning Ticket Office at 813.301.6600.
St. Pete Times Forum isn’t just about great hockey – they tout impressive recycling stats too. Here are some recycling facts from their website:
If you want to enjoy a little piece of the “Big Guava” during your stay for WASTECON, you should check out…
Raymond James Stadium
Check out Jon Gruden and his Tampa Bay Buccaneers as they take on the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday, October 19th. Click here for ticket information and pricing.
Visit trendy International Plaza for nationally acclaimed restaurants and bars after the game. You’ll enjoy exquisite flavors, artistic presentations, and a dining experience with international inspiration. Capital Grill and The Grape both offer extensive wine collections.
St. Pete Times Forum
Check out Tampa Bay Lightning Hockey after the WASTECON conference. Games start at 7:30 pm and tickets start as low as $15.
October 18th – Wild vs. Lightning
October 21st – Threshers vs. Lightning
October 25th – Sharks vs. Lightning
Tickets can be purchased at the McDonald’s Box Office at the St. Pete Times Forum and all Ticketmaster outlets. To order tickets by phone, call Ticketmaster at 813.287.8844 or 727.898.2100, or call the Lightning Ticket Office at 813.301.6600.
St. Pete Times Forum isn’t just about great hockey – they tout impressive recycling stats too. Here are some recycling facts from their website:
- The Times Forum recycles an average of 24,000 pounds of beverage cans per year
- It uses more than 320,000 aluminum cans per year with a near 100% recycle record
- It uses approximately 70,000 wine and liquor bottles per year; 100% of those are recycled
- Its recycling efforts reduce green house gas emissions, equal to taking 123 cars off the road per year
- Its energy savings from recycling equals the total energy used by 30 houses per year
- Its paper recycling program saves 576 trees from being cut down per year
- Its waterless urinals save an average of 1,665,000 gallons of water per year
Singer, songwriter Neil Diamond is performing at the St. Pete Times Forum for only one night on Friday, October 24th, 2008. Tickets are on sale now. Visit the St. Pete Times Forum website for tickets and more information.
Libations after the game?
After the game, hang out with the locals at Hatricks Bar located at 107 S. Franklin St. Tampa. Or, take the charming trolley to trendy Channelside Bay Plaza where you can enjoy a movie, martini or both! You can sing along at the lively piano bar, Howl at the Moon, or catch a fruity drink at Margarita Mama’s or Banana Joe’s. Convenient connections between the vintage replica trollies and streetcars transport visitors between downtown hotels, historic Ybor City and Channelside.
Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center
TBPAC is located downtown on a picturesque nine-acre site along the east bank of the Hillsborough River, the 335,000 square-foot TBPAC provides an environment for a wide variety of world-class events. It boasts one of the nation's leading Broadway series and is nationally respected for producing grand opera, as well as presenting a wide variety of concerts, performances and events. More than 500,000 patrons attended 4,375 on-site events in TBPAC's 2006-2007 season.
The performing arts complex consists of five distinct theaters, a performing arts Conservatory, a rehearsal hall, boutiques, and three on-site restaurants and banquet facilities. The five individual theaters at TBPAC are Carol Morsani Hall (2,610 seats), Ferguson Hall (1,042 seats), the Jaeb Theater (268 seats), the TECO Energy Foundation Theater (250 seats) and the Shimberg Playhouse (130 seats).
Performances during WASTECON:
October 14th – 19th Wizard of Oz
October 16th – 19th Hats the Musical
October 23rd –November 9th Hats the Musical
October 24th Florida Orchestra presents: Opening Night: Beethoven Symphony No. 7
And that's not even the tip of the iceberg...next time we'll go across the Bay into Pinellas.
Thursday, September 4, 2008
Getting in Touch with the Local Committee
As we near this year’s WASTECON, the local Florida committee has been hard at work setting up a great Wednesday night party, and assisting the SWANA association offices with the other logistics of WASTECON – setting up recycling, recruiting volunteers, etc.And to give you a better idea of what is going on in FL, we have a guest blogger joining, Rick Clarke with the Pinellas County Solid Waste Dept. Rick currently works in the recycling section of the dept and gives tours and presentation of their facility to local children. As a matter of fact, Pinellas County recently won 2 SWANA Excellence Awards for its education program. Check out some info on their programs here: http://www.pinellascounty.org/utilities/PDF/swo_student_tours.pdf
So check back as Rick gives as an inside view of all things FL as well as a behind the scenes look at the great work the local committee is doing as a guest blogger for Around the Bin.
Thursday, August 7, 2008
WASTECON Video Premiere
SWANA staff put together the following video on WASTECON for the recent International Board Meetings. It was tough, but we were able to get all that WASTECON has to offer in 9 minutes 59 seconds (the limit for video uploads). Check it out:
Can't play the video on the blog? View the clip on YouTube at
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ikqOZjoVuKs&NR=1
Have a video on solid waste you'd like to share? Post your links in the comment field or email marketing@swana.org.
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
WASTECON 2008 Podcast Premiere
Want a sneak peek at one of over 25 WASTECON sessions? Well now's your opportunity with the premiere WASTECON 2008 podcast.
This podcast, we speak to Del Lisk of Drive Cam, Inc., who discusses the importance of How Driver Risk Management Technologies Can Improve Driver and Environmental Safety.
This podcast, we speak to Del Lisk of Drive Cam, Inc., who discusses the importance of How Driver Risk Management Technologies Can Improve Driver and Environmental Safety.
(or right click and select save as to save a copy)
Check out the full presentation on Thursday October 23 at 3:30 pm.
What other techniques do you use to encourage driver safety?
Thursday, July 31, 2008
What's your MTCO2E?
No, it's not the latest pick up line.
No, it's not any of that new-fangled text messaging code.
MTCO2E is short for Metric Ton of CO2 (Carbon Dioxide) Equivalents. This is the standard measurement for carbon equivalent emissions. In the case of traveling, your mode of transportation and length of stay will create a certain amount of emissions. If you haven't already calculated your MTCO2E for your WASTECON travel, you can take a few moments and use our new online calculator. With the help of our WASTECON Carbon Advisors, HDR, we have created this online tool for each attendee to figure out his or her own emissions for travel to WASTECON.
But wait, I know what you're thinking! Aren't we supposed to be reducing our emissions? Yep! That's right. So, I thought about how we could reduce our emissions from our WASTECON Travel. One idea that I came up with is to start a Ride-Sharing thread on our new WASTECON Group site. Here you can offer a ride or get a ride to the event. You might also find other attendees who you could share a taxi to or from the airport.
That's one idea. What are some of your ideas??
No, it's not any of that new-fangled text messaging code.
MTCO2E is short for Metric Ton of CO2 (Carbon Dioxide) Equivalents. This is the standard measurement for carbon equivalent emissions. In the case of traveling, your mode of transportation and length of stay will create a certain amount of emissions. If you haven't already calculated your MTCO2E for your WASTECON travel, you can take a few moments and use our new online calculator. With the help of our WASTECON Carbon Advisors, HDR, we have created this online tool for each attendee to figure out his or her own emissions for travel to WASTECON.
But wait, I know what you're thinking! Aren't we supposed to be reducing our emissions? Yep! That's right. So, I thought about how we could reduce our emissions from our WASTECON Travel. One idea that I came up with is to start a Ride-Sharing thread on our new WASTECON Group site. Here you can offer a ride or get a ride to the event. You might also find other attendees who you could share a taxi to or from the airport.
That's one idea. What are some of your ideas??
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
An Interview with Dr. Jean Bogner, this Year's Lawrence Lecturer
I recently had an opportunity to chat with this year’s Lawrence Lecturer, Dr. Jean Bogner, about waste, energy and climate. Dr. Bogner served as the coordinating lead author of the Waste Management Chapter of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) 4th Assessment Report “Mitigation of Climate Change”. The IPCC was awarded the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize with former Vice President Al Gore. Jean Bogner is the President of Landfills +, Inc., and a Research Professor at the University of Illinois Chicago.
SWANA - Dr. Bogner, thru your own studies and your work on the IPCC report, how have you seen waste impact energy and climate?
Dr. Bogner - There are two things to emphasize with respect to climate and energy. First is that waste is actually a small contributor to global greenhouse gas emissions. Less than three percent of global anthropogenic emissions are caused by the waste sector. On the other hand, there are also significant opportunities for greenhouse gas mitigation from the waste sector with respect to landfill gas recovery and to activities which either reduce greenhouse gas generation or reduce waste generation such as recycling and waste minimization. Secondly, energy from waste (via landfill gas utilization, waste-to-energy, or use of anaerobic digester biogas) is an important renewable energy resource.
SWANA - How would you recommend a solid waste facility to mitigate their emissions?
Dr. Bogner - Well of course for landfills, landfill gas recovery and utilization, which has been a fully commercial technology now for over thirty years, is a good strategy. Incineration reduces greenhouse gas generation. Also, waste minimization and recycling activities reduce waste generation in the first place. So, I think the “take home” message is that we must preserve all our waste management options and sensibly apply greenhouse gas mitigation strategies that best fit local situations and regulatory guidelines.
SWANA - Do you foresee any new mitigation techniques which are starting to evolve in the industry?
Dr. Bogner - One technique is landfill biocovers, which is a strategy to design and construct landfill covers so that methane is oxidized at high rates before it can be emitted to the atmosphere. The oxidation is accomplished by methanotrophic bacteria which are aerobic microorganisms that naturally live in the soil.
SWANA - How would you encourage those who are collecting the waste to mitigate their emissions?
Dr. Bogner - On the waste collection side there could be opportunities to reduce transport distances, reduce redundant routes, and improve fuel efficiencies.
SWANA - How would you recommend that a facility that is working with either landfill gas or incineration portray the benefits of these technologies to the general public?
Dr. Bogner - I think the tremendous benefits are on the energy side. Landfill gas is roughly fifty percent methane. So there are significant energy benefits to recovering and using the landfill methane for direct use in gas-fired broilers or onsite electrical generation, or for upgrading to a substitute natural gas. Incineration is the pathway where you get the most energy benefit from solid waste through direct combustion.
SWANA - As this years Lawrence lecturer for WASTECON in Tampa, what is one thing that you hope that attendees will really take away from your presentation?
Dr. Bogner - Well as I mentioned at the beginning of this interview, I think the fact that the waste factor is a small contributor to global anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions but there are significant opportunities within the sector for cost-effective mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions. Thus, the sector is a small part of the problem but can be a larger part of the solution.
End
Don’t miss Dr. Bogner’s presentation at this year’s WASTECON Lawrence Lecturer Session, Wednesday October 22 at 9:30am as we continue to explore the connection between energy, climate and solid waste.
Member thoughts:
How is your facility mitigating its emissions?
What other mitigating techniques do you see coming down the pike?
Post your comments here.
Friday, July 25, 2008
Around the Bin Is Back
Around the Bin is Back and Better Than Ever – at least that’s the goal – but we need your help! While the blog will begin by focusing on WASTECON, please feel free to discuss anything related to solid waste. The blog is for you and should cover the information that you want and/or need.
The idea of the blog is to give you an outlet to communicate with the other 8,000+ members of SWANA without leaving your home or office. SWANA staff will also be posting news, clips and information on WASTECON 2008 in Tampa to get the conversation started!
So join the blog today by e-mailing marketing@swana.org and share your thoughts! You can:
The idea of the blog is to give you an outlet to communicate with the other 8,000+ members of SWANA without leaving your home or office. SWANA staff will also be posting news, clips and information on WASTECON 2008 in Tampa to get the conversation started!
So join the blog today by e-mailing marketing@swana.org and share your thoughts! You can:
- Provide links to articles, presentations and topics for discussion
- Submit videos, photos, podcasts or other web jewels
- Participate in SWANA interviews
- Comment on other posts
- Try something new!
We’re looking forward to hearing from you!
P.S. Stay on top of all the latest blog action by subscribing under the Subscribe Now section in the upper right hand column. We have email subscription and RSS Feed (more on RSS in future posts).
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
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