Great Lakes Regional Pollution Prevention Roundtable
Sustainability information for the Great Lakes Region
U.S. EPA Region 5 recently issued an update to their ethylene oxide fact sheet, which now includes a case study. They have also developed a regulatory update for dry cleaners that includes recommendations for alternatives to percloroethylene (perc).
Download the ethylene oxide fact sheet at http://go.illinois.edu/region-5-eto-case-study.
Download the dry cleaning regulatory update at http://go.illinois.edu/region-5-dry-cleaning-fact-sheet.
Two grant projects, funded through MPCA’s Environmental Assistance Grant Program, supported the development of Green Chemistry and Design curricula at Northwestern Health Sciences University and a new laboratory experiment at the University of Minnesota – Twin Cities to teach introductory chemistry students about sustainable polymers.
Further information and links to previous case studies are available here.
Join the Great Lakes Regional Pollution Prevention Roundtable (GLRPPR) and U.S. EPA Region 5 for a webinar on May 12. Space is limited. Reserve your webinar seat now at: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/440261202. After registering you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
The GLRPPR/EPA Webinar provides an opportunity to hear about P2 Programs in the region, ask questions and stay connected.
Agenda:
Title: GLRPPR/EPA Region 5 Forum
Date: Thursday, May 12, 2011
Time: 8:30 AM – 10:30 AM PDT 
System Requirements:
Contact Bob Iverson, GLRPPR Executive Director, for further information or questions.
Our thanks to Donna Walden, Regional Coordinator at the Western Sustainability and Pollution Prevention Network (WSPPN), one of our sister P2Rx Centers, for assisting with the set up and administration of this webinar.
The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) recently recognized three New York City hospitals and three energy service companies for energy efficiency efforts. The awards were made through NYSERDA’s Peak-Load Reduction Program, an incentive program designed to improve the reliability of New York’s electric grid while helping businesses and industries reduce operating costs.
New York Methodist and Mount Sinai Hospitals, along with New York Medical College, were each presented a plaque in recognition of their energy efficiency projects that will significantly reduce load demand during peak summer hours. The projects included the installation of two new, high efficiency dual-stage absorption chillers (New York Methodist), a lighting retrofit (Mount Sinai), and the installation of three high efficiency electric chillers and consolidating the air distribution system (New York Medical College). Combined, the three hospitals will save over $1 million a year in operating expenses and reduce electric consumption by over 7 million kilowatt hours per year.
LC Associates, NES Energy, and Con Edison Solutions were each presented awards for their work in numerous cooling, motor, and lighting projects.
GLRPPR is pleased to announce the availability of a new compendium of resources on Pharmaceutical & Personal Care Product (PPCP) Wastes & Impacts. This compendium focuses on the environmental impacts of pharmaceutical and personal care product residues in the environment, as well as on how to properly dispose of such products to avoid environmental contamination. As with any Sector Resource, expert contact information and lists of relevant events and funding opportunities are provided, as well as relevant Help Desk questions and answers. An RSS feed is available. This sector resource includes a link to the recently released Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant guide Disposal of Unwanted Medicines: A Resource for Action in Your Community, which also happens to be the GLRPPR Site of the Month for September 2007.
This new Sector Resource is a work in progress, so subscribe to the RSS feed or check the web site frequently for updates. If you have suggestions for resources to include, please email them to Joy Scrogum.
The Great Lakes Regional Collaboration announces a sixty day public comment period for a Draft Great Lakes Mercury in Products Phase-Down Strategy. In fulfillment of a Collaboration Strategy recommendation, in April 2006, State, Tribal, and City staff commenced development of a basin-wide Strategy for the phase-down of mercury in products and waste.
A draft Strategy is now available for public comment at http://glrc.us/initiatives/toxics/drafthgphasedownstrategy.html, through October 27, 2007. We invite comments on the Strategy itself and on how best to move forward with implementation, as well as commitments from stakeholders to implement components of the Strategy.
A copy of the draft document was first distributed to government agency experts for technical review, then revised and distributed to a limited group of industry and environmental group stakeholders. A summary of comments that were received and incorporated can also be found at the above web link.
Please send comments electronically to Debra Jacobson at djacobso@wmrc.uiuc.edu. When sending comments by e-mail be sure to put the words “Great Lakes Mercury Strategy Comments” in the subject line.
If you have questions please contact Debra Jacobson at djacobso@wmrc.uiuc.edu or (630) 472 – 5019 (Phone).
Thanks to Deb Jacobson for submitting this information.
In May, GLRPPR announced the new P2 Search tool, designed to search several different pollution prevention (P2) related web sites simultaneously. Now we’re pleased to report that the total number of sites currently included in this search engine is 45. GLRPPR Help Desk Librarian Laura Barnes has added the “GreenBiz” family of web sites (www.greenbiz.com, www.greenerbuildings.com, www.climatebiz.com and www.greenercomputing.com), as well as OSHA, CDC’s National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences to this customized Google search tool. The complete list of sites included in P2 Search is available at http://www.glrppr.org/search/p2_search_list.cfm. If you have suggestions for other web sites you think should be included in P2 Search, contact Laura Barnes.
We appreciate feedback on P2 Search. Our thanks go out to Harmony Madill of Environment Canada’s Canadian Pollution Prevention Information Clearinghouse (CPPIC), who contacted us recently after trying out P2 Search and noticing that some documents available on CPPIC weren’t showing up in the search results, even though they were showing up in the results of a standard Google search. Laura Barnes did some investigating and discovered that P2 Search was looking at the index of the English version of the CPPIC site (it’s available in English and French, of course), rather than the more generic http://www.ec.gc.ca/cppic (sometimes you can be too specific). Laura remedied the situation by broadening P2 Search to include the entire Environment Canada domain. Nice catch, Harmony!
You can add P2 Search to your own web site or to your customized Google homepage (iGoogle) by following the links and instructions available in the lower right hand corner of the P2 Search homepage. Code is provided for adding the tool to your web site, so if you’re not technically savvy or not authorized to alter your organization’s web site, you’ll need to provide this to your webmaster. If you do this, tell us about it to help us get a feel for how many people are using this option. Happy searching!
The latest edition of the Minnesota Technical Assistance Program (MnTAP) newsletter, Source is now available online. Included in this issue:
Sign-up for a free subscription of the MnTAP newsletter. You can receive the newsletter via e-mail. Minnesota businesses and organizations can choose to receive a hardcopy in the mail, ideal for routing to colleagues.
Archived past issues of Source are available on the MnTAP web site.
The Teleosis Institute has a released a new brochure called Drugs in Our Water. The brochure provides a basic overview of the problem of pharmaceuticals and personal care product residues in waterways; some simple tips for consumers as well as pharmacists and health care providers; and a description of the Green Pharmacy Program.
Thanks to Evin Guy for notifying GLRPPR about this resource.
The latest edition (Vol. 4, No. 2) of the Teleosis Institute‘s journal, Symbiosis, focuses on pharmaceutical pollution prevention. The Teleosis Institute is a non-profit organization based in Berkeley, California, devoted to developing effective, sustainable health care provided by professionals who serve as environmental stewards. Teleosis recently launched a Green Pharmacy Campaign, which is a collaboration with local pharmacies, health providers, and consumers, aimed at reducing the “footprint” of pharmaceutical medicine. The campaign includes a pilot program in Berkeley to take-back unused medicines at pharmacies and doctor’s offices.
The contents of this edition of Symbiosis include:
All articles are available online in PDF format at the link above.
Thanks to Evin Guy of the Teleosis Institute for sharing this information.