The company will also pay a civil penalty of $2.4 million to resolve alleged Clean Air Act violations.

Mosaic will install modern pollution control equipment, upgrade existing controls, and make multiple modifications to its operating procedures to meet new, lower sulfur dioxide emission limits at its Uncle Sam facility. In addition, Mosaic agreed that it will permanently cease sulfuric acid production at its Mulberry sulfuric acid plant.

A settlement agreement filed Oct. 5 in federal court in New Orleans outlines the terms.

The government’s complaint, filed concurrently with the consent decree, accused Mosaic of modifying its Uncle Sam facility and increasing emissions of sulfur dioxide without first obtaining pre-construction permits and installing required pollution control equipment. The Clean Air Act requires major sources of air pollution to obtain such permits. The government discovered the modifications through a request for information to the company.

Mosaic produces sulfuric acid and combines it with phosphate rock to produce phosphoric acid, which in turn is combined with ammonia to produce fertilizer.

The government has posted information on the Mosaic settlement at www.epa.gov

The town received permits from the city of Raleigh late last month to begin using a water reuse system at the Zebulon Municipal Complex.

The reuse system will allow the town to use recycled water for irrigation and other non-drinking uses.

The town already uses a similar system at Five County Stadium.

Grants from the Clean Water Management Trust Fund and the Golden Leaf Foundaton paid for the extension of 17,000 feet of water lines from the stadium area through the town’s industrial park and on to the municipal complex.

The new system will allow the town and the city of Raleigh — which controls Zebulon’s water system — to conserve drinking water supplies.

During the 2007 drought, towns liminated the use of municipal water supplies for jobs such as irrigation.

By using a source of water that can not be used for drinking, the town will be able to continue irrigating its property even in times of drought.

Zebulon Mayor Bob Matheny said the reuse system will also allow the town more room to grow.

“While the system has been used for some time in the Five County Stadium area, bringing it through our industrial park and into the heart of town allows us to expand the use of this asset and have our potable water capacity saved for the growth of our community,” Matheny said.

The next step in the project is to connect GlaxoSmithKline to the system.

Raleigh’s city council approved an agreement last month that will allow the extension of the water lines to that facility beginning this fall.

Raleigh public utility officials plan to expand the water reuse system to several communities throughout the region. The city serves as the water supplier to six Wake County towns, including Zebulon, Wendell and Knightdale. Wake Forest, Rolesville and Garner are also Raleigh water customers.

The use of reclaimed water is allowed by the state for a small number of narrowly defined uses, including dust control, vehicle washing at constrution sites and automatic car washes, sewer line flushing and in decorative ponds that don’t drain into surface waters.

By Johnny Whitfield

The bulbs, known as CFLs, generally use less power than incandescent light bulbs. CFLs use trace amounts of the toxic metal mercury to produce light, says Mark Kohorst, senior manager for environmental health and safety at the National Electrical Manufacturers Association. If a bulb breaks, he says, there is a “minimal” risk from exposure to mercury, which can damage the lungs and central nervous system if inhaled.

In May, Maine became the first state to pass a law requiring manufacturers to limit mercury levels in the bulbs and pay for recycling them safely.

Elsewhere:

• The Illinois Legislature passed a law in May that requires recycling information on CFL labels.

• In Nevada, a special committee is working on regulations that would require utilities to inform consumers on how to recycle CFLs.

• A committee in the Massachusetts Legislature is debating a law that would require manufacturers to provide consumers convenient drop-off locations for spent bulbs and labels that educate consumers about recycling, says Democratic state Rep. William Straus.

• In California, a bill regarding CFL recycling has passed the State Assembly and awaits Senate approval.

CFLs’ mercury content has been reduced by nearly 80% since they were introduced in the 1980s, Kohorst says.

General Electric, a major manufacturer of the bulbs, advocates federal legislation, spokeswoman Kim Freeman says. “We do not believe a patchwork or state-by-state approach will work,” she says.

EnergyStar, a federal program on energy efficiency, says CFLs use up to 75% less energy than traditional bulbs. CFLs’ market share has increased from about 5% to just over 20% in the past five years, EnergyStar reports.

Environmental Protection Agency spokeswoman Latisha Petteway says the EPA “strongly encourages” proper recycling of CFLs because it “prevents the release of mercury into the environment.”

By Tina Irgang

Australia-based scrap metal recycler CMA Corp. and German machinery manufacturer Scholz AG have developed unique recycling equipment for the “environmentally friendly removal” of zinc from galvanized steels. Use of the patented Meretec Technology is being tested at CMA plant in East Chicago, Ind., and Melbourne, Australia.

The partners say the Meretec technology, developed in the U.S. and England and purchased last year by CMA, represents a significant world breakthrough” in the recycling of zinc-coated galvanized steel that is used widely in applications where rust resistance is needed.

A CMA statement says some steelmaking plants and most foundries can’t tolerate zinc in their steel scrap feeds. Yet, an estimated 9 million metric tons of galvanized steel is produced annually. The plan is to use the Meretec process at the pilot plants to recycle enough steel to 3,000 metric tons of hazardous waste (zinc and other coating contaminants) annually. At full capacity, each Meretec plant is expected to recycle 120,000 metric tons of galvanized steel and generate 2,000 metric tons of high grade zinc powder and 118,000 metric tons of clean black steel. A press release says the Meretec technology is a six-step de-zincing process:

1. Shredding: Galvanized scrap from the auto and building industries plus end of life coated products are pulverized into fist sized pieces.
2. Removing the zinc coating: The steel is added to the reactor drum where hot caustic washes the coating from steel.
3. Washing: The steel is washed and a rust inhibitor added to produce, clean melt stock ready for foundries.
4. Purification process: The solution is purified to remove dirt and elements limiting zinc recovery.
5. Electro winning: The solution is electroplated in cells where the zinc is grown and harvested. The solution is returned via the evaporator to the drum and is washed.
6. Separation, washing, packing: The zinc is sent to a centrifuge and drier for drying and packaging.

CMA says each ton of galvanized steel de-zinced by Meretec and recycled saves more than one ton of iron ore, 0.635 metric ton of coal, 0.055 metric ton of limestone and 0.020 metric tons of fresh zinc.

by Tom Stundza

Types of battery

There are a number of different types of household batteries used by householders for a variety of purposes. The three main types are:

Wet-cell: Lead acid batteries used to power vehicles and by industry.

Dry-cell non-rechargeable: These are the most common types of household battery.

General purpose disposable household batteries include:

• Zinc carbon used in low drainage appliances such as torches, clocks, shavers and radios.
• Zinc chloride used in similar applications.
• Alkaline manganese used in personal stereos, radio-cassette players. Less prone to leaking than the above two types and longer lasting.

Dry-cell rechargeable – general purpose rechargeable batteries for the above uses, and also including Nickel cadmium, Nickel metal hydride and Lithium-Ion batteries used in power tools, cordless appliances, mobile phones etc.

• Nickel cadmium (NiCd) batteries represent one of the fastest growing sectors in the battery market. Used for cordless power tools, personal stereos, portable telephones, lap-top computers, shavers, motorised toys etc, with a life of 4-5 years.
• Nickel metal hydride (NiMH) batteries are a less environmentally harmful alternative to NiCd and tend to have a longer life.
• Lithium ion (Li-Ion) batteries have a greater energy storage capacity than NiCd and NiMH batteries.

Using rechargeable batteries reduces the number of batteries requiring disposal, but 80% of them contain nickel cadmium, a known human carcinogen, and therefore need to be disposed of safely.

Why bother?

It is estimated that in 2000, almost 19,000 tonnes of waste general purpose batteries and 113,000 tonnes of waste automotive batteries required disposal in the UK.

Currently, only a very small percentage of consumer disposable batteries are recycled (less than 2%) and most waste batteries are disposed of in landfill sites. The rate for recycling of consumer rechargeable batteries is estimated to be 5%.

The average household uses 21 batteries a year. The UKgenerates 20,000 – 30,000 tonnes of waste general purpose batteries every year, but less than 1,000 tonnes are recycled.

Automotive batteries, on the other hand, are more routinely recycled in the UK, with a current recycling rate of approximately 90%. They are collected at garages, scrap metal facilities and many civic amenity and recycling centres.

Whilst the exact chemical make-up varies from type to type (see below), most batteries contain heavy metals, which are the main cause for environmental concern. When disposed of incorrectly, these heavy metals may leak into the ground when the battery casing corrodes. This can contribute to soil and water pollution and endanger wildlife. Cadmium, for example, can be toxic to aquatic invertebrates and can bio-accumulate in fish, which damages ecosystems and makes them unfit for human consumption. Some batteries, such as button cell batteries, also contain mercury, which has similarly hazardous properties. Mercury is no longer being used in the manufacture of non-rechargeable batteries, except button cells where it is a functional component, and the major European battery suppliers have been offering mercury-free disposable batteries since 1994.

How’s, what’s and where’s of recycling batteries?

Battery collection schemes

An increasing number of householders recognise the residual value of spent batteries and separate them from their general household waste for recycling. A number of local authorities now collect waste household batteries as part of multi-material kerbside collections, such as the well-publicised Bristol scheme (see below). If your local authority does not provide such as service, some regional based retailers have set up schemes, although these are admittedly few and far between. Businesses can contact RABBITT Recycling or G&P Batteries (see Useful Contacts below) for further information on collections for recycling.

Rechargeable batteries can also be recycled once they have reached the end of their useful lives. REBAT was set up in 1998 to manage and collect the main types of portable rechargeable batteries in the UK. Their website contains a list of company contact details and collection points (see Useful Contacts below).

Battery reprocessing

Batteries contain a range of metals which can be reused as a secondary raw material. There are well-established methods for the recycling of most batteries containing lead, nickel-cadmium, nickel hydride and mercury. For some, such as newer nickel-hydride and lithium systems, recycling is still in the early stages.

There are a number of different recycling processes for batteries, which are aimed at recovering a variety of materials:

• Lead can be recovered by either separating the different materials that make up the battery (lead, plastics, acid, etc.) prior to metallurgical processing. Alternatively, batteries can be processed as a whole through heat treatment in a particular type of furnace with metals being recovered at the end of his process.
• NiCd batteries can be reprocessed through a similar thermal technique, which recovers cadmium and iron-nickel for steel production.
• Batteries containing mercury (button cells) are most commonly processed using a vacuum-thermal treatment, in which the mercury vaporises. It condenses and eventually solidifies when temperatures are reduced and can then be reintroduced into the material cycle.
• NiMH batteries are reprocessed by mechanically separating the individual materials (plastic, hydrogen and nickel) within a vacuum chamber to prevent the escape of hydrogen. The output of this process is a product with high nickel content which can be used in the manufacture of stainless steel.
• Li-Ion batteries are currently reprocessed through pyrolysis (heat treatment) with the primary recovery the metal content.
• Zinc-carbon/air and alkaline-manganese batteries can be reprocessed using a number of different methods, which include smelting and other thermal-metallurgical processes to recover the metal content (particularly zinc).

G&P Batteries (see contact details below) have recently opened the UK’s first battery dedicated recycling plant for household batteries. It is estimated that the West Bromwich plant, which opened in March 2005, will be able to recycle up to 1800 tonnes per year. It is anticipated that the opening of this plant will stimulate an increase in domestic battery recycling rates in the UK.

The majority of automotive and industrial lead-acid cells are processed by two UK lead smelters (Britannia Refined Metals in Kent and HJ Enthoven & Sons in Derbyshire). Button cell batteries containing mercury are reprocessed at two UK facilities (Odin Research & Development and Mercury Recycling).

In September 2002, Britannia Zinc at Avonmouth and Bristol based Resource Saver launched a trial scheme, which piloted the collection and reprocessing of disposable household batteries in the area. However, the scheme’s existence was threatened following the closure of Britannia Zinc, the only UK zinc reprocessing plant, in February 2003. The pilot scheme was concluded successfully and kerbside collection of batteries will continue in Bristol, but batteries now have to be sent to France for reprocessing, which has increased the cost of the scheme.

In October 2003, AEA Technology (AEAT) launched a £2 million research and development facility in Sutherland, north Scotland, for Li-Ion battery recycling. This new process employs a series of separation technologies to disassemble the battery systematically and focuses on maximising the recovery of cobalt and other metals such as copper from the battery for resale. All types of lithium-ion and lithium -ion polymer batteries will be treated.

Other European reprocessing facilities include:

Batrec AG in Switzerland – reprocessing of a wide range of batteries. Batrec was the first company in the world to recycle batteries commercially (up to 2,000 tonnes a year). Their reprocessing method is based on a Japanese system developed by Sumitomo Heavy Industries which allows 95% of the component parts to be re-used. Resultant products are ferromanganese, zinc, zinc oxides and mercury.

Citron in France – thermal-metallurgical reprocessing primarily of zinc-carbon/air and alkaline-manganese (including older ones containing mercury), but also NiMH, Li-Ion, NiCd and lead batteries.

Recupyl in France – recovery of metals through hydro-metallurgical recycling of all types of batteries

SAFT-NIFE in Sweden – reprocessing of industrial NiCd batteries

SNAM (Societe Nouvelle d’Affinage des Metaux) in France – mechanical recycling of rechargeable NiCd and Li-Ion batteries and nickel-hydride batteries

Valdi/Tredi in France – pyrolysis (heat treatment with recovery of metals such as zinc, cadmium and lead) of zinc-carbon, aluminium-manganese and NiCd batteries

What the law says

In 1991, the EU Directive on Batteries and Accumulators (91/157/EEC) was introduced. It requires that batteries containing more than 25mg of mercury (except alkaline manganese batteries), 0.025% of cadmium by weight and 0.4% lead by weight to be collected separately from household waste for recycling or special disposal. It also sets permissible limits for these heavy metals. The directive largely affects lead-acid, NiCd and mercuric oxide batteries.

The 1991 Directive was amended by a 1998 Directive (98/101/EEC) in order to adapt the original Directive to technical progress. The amendment further reduces the permissible heavy metal limits and prohibits the marketing of batteries and accumulators containing more than 0.0005% of mercury and button cells containing more than 2% of mercury by weight from the 1 January 2000.

A further EU Directive (93/86/EEC) requires the marking of button cells or batteries made of button cells:

• containing more than 5 ppm (parts per million) mercury per cell up to 2 % mercury, applying to silver oxide, zinc air and alkaline button cells
• containing more than 0.025% cadmium by weight, applying to nickel cadmium batteries
• containing more than 0.4% lead by weight, applying to lead acid batteries

Currently, the EU and its Member States are negotiating a further amendment to the 1991 Directive. The draft Directive is expected to propose the following measures:

• Member States will be expected to ensure that 90% of portable batteries enter a recycling process.
• A recycling weight-based efficiency target, i.e. this proportion of materials will have to be recovered during the recycling process. This is to be achieved within three years of the Directive coming into force.
• A mandatory weight-based collection target per head of population. This replaces earlier percentage targets.
• Mandatory collection targets of 80% and a recycling target of 75% (with 100% for the cadmium component) for NiCds.
• A ban on landfilling and incineration of all industrial and automotive batteries.
• Producers of all types of batteries will be responsible for treatment and disposal costs, except for small household batteries.

The Directive sets collection targets for portable batteries of 25% and 45% of the average annual sales over the past three years. These targets are to be achieved respectively four and eight years after the transposition of the Directive. The Directive now requires a further reading by the European Parliament and is expected to be formally adopted by mid-2006.

What you can do

• Use the mains when possible.
• Use rechargeable batteries and a battery charger. This saves energy because the energy needed to manufacture a battery is on average 50 times greater than the energy it gives out. However, rechargeable batteries are not suitable for smoke alarms as they tend to run out suddenly, preventing the alarm from warning when battery power is low.
• Opt for appliances that can use power derived from the sun via solar panels or from a winding mechanism, e.g. radios, mobile phone wind-up chargers.
• Participate in local authority battery collection schemes where they are available. If you Council does not provide one at the moment, contact them and find out if they are planning to do so in future.
• Seek guidance on how to dispose or recycle batteries from either the distributor who originally supplied the battery, the battery manufacturer or the appliance manufacturer.
• Send batteries back to manufacturers for recycling or reprocessing where such a scheme is available.

Thank you for choosing earth as your planetary vehicle. We hope you enjoy the many wonderful features of this … all » planet, as you hurtle through the cosmos. Please note, that in the event of continued inaction in the face of global warming – your seat cushion can be used as a flotation device. Please take a moment to locate this planet’s emergency exits. As you can see, there aren’t any!

Cadmium: 0.01%
Hexavalent chromium: 0.1%
Lead: 0.1%
Mercury: 0.1%

The act also defines the collection of the Electronic Waste Recycling Fee (effective January 1, 2005) upon purchase of covered devices and the distribution of payments to entities involved in electronic waste management. Their are only about 8 states in the United states that have programs and laws on electronic waste recycling. New Jersey is the most recent state to develop their Electronic Waste Recycling Act that will go in effect Jan. 1, 2009.

More states need laws to help reduce the pollution of e-waste into our environment in which we live. Not only to control improper means of electronic equipment disposal, but controlling the amount of toxic materials used to create electronic devices. Would you want your child to play on a computer if you knew it had high concentrations of lead and mercury? The responsible parent would obviously answer no. Write your house representatives, senators, governors, and mayors to request laws to be established for electronic equipment disposal.

There are also events that will be scheduled in the future. These “Drop-off and Pick-up” events are usually hosted at schools, parks, or private companies. Just load up your car with your computer equipment and head to the event. Recycling computer events usually provide free drinks and snacks, providing for those who want to hang around and make some friends. We encourage people to talk to our ecycling specialist to gain a better understanding in what exactly will be done to your donated computer equipment. All steps taken in computer disposals are 100% legal and environmentally friendly.

As industry leading computer recyclers, we will properly recycle any computer parts including recycling computer monitors, which require special steps to recycle. We also encourage anyone who wants to participate in gathering computers to be recycled to organize your own events in your neighborhood. This is a great way to make friends in your community as well as playing your role in helping save our environment. Those toxic properties inside components in computers can be hazardous to wildlife and even children if they break of certain pieces. In the end, whenever you see a computer, you should ask yourself, “Is that computer broken?”

Just try to think about it…

Prince Charles, president of Business in the Community (BITC), presented the award at the organisation’s annual awards ceremony, held in London.

The award for impact on society is open only to small- and medium-sized independent businesses, having up to 250 employees, and no parent company.

Redeem is an active associate member of Scottish Business in the Community, a sister charity of BITC.

The company began by being a recycler of inkjet devices and mobile phones in 1999, working out of a potato barn. Its name is a reflection of the work it does with the Scottish Prison Service, providing employment for former convicts.

Redeem has recently been awarded multi-million pound contracts by three major UK retailers to recycle their goods in exchange for vouchers or loyalty rewards, and has developed partnerships with nine leading UK charities, increasing its total number of charity partnerships to over 200.

The recycler employs 70 staff to run its operations in the UK, Italy, Ireland and Turkey. Earlier this year, it opened a new centre in Hong Kong.

Recycled Carbon Fibre Ltd was established to develop a new process for recycling carbon fibre composites. Known as continuous pyrolysis, the process constitutes the first phase of operations at the new plant in Dudley, West Midlands, which has the capacity of recycling 1,200 tonnes of waste material.

In the process waste material passes through a furnace, where it undergoes the pyrolysis process. An integrated abatement system, designed to monitor and limit emissions, is built into the furnace.

The recovered material is free of all binders and resin and is unsized, meaning that there is improved bonding capability between the materials and the new matrix. Both cured and un-cured composite waste is recycled by the company, including out-of-date prepreg and end-of-life components.

Products resulting from the recycling process are milled carbon fibre and chopped fibre.