Resource Recycling Systems is taking the year of 2012 to highlight all of our service sectors and showcase relevant projects, clients, and trends in each area. In correlation with our conference schedule, we focused January on organics management and biomass energy, but as the month comes to a close, we are shifting February’s focus to our business roots in residential recycling. Read the whole story…
The growing market for green projects and renewable power has increased the demand for biomass energy projects. We excel in developing fuel availability prospects, assessment/feasibility analysis, feedstock plans and the execution of contracts for the delivery of feedstocks whether they are from farms, institutions, commercial or industrial sources.
Below is an example of a feedstock feasibility assessment we conducted for a private client in 2010. This case study provides a brief overview on how we conducted a feedstock and economic assessment to identify the amount of recycled wood feedstock available for a potential biomass energy project.
Read the whole story…
As our world focuses their attention to renewable energy and ways to be more sustainable in our energy production, biomass and biomass energy systems continue to be at the forefront of this discussion. Before you can start evaluating this energy solution, we need to start with defining what we are talking about. What does biomass energy mean? Let’s start with the basics.
Biomass
Biomass is simply organic matter such as plants, agriculture/crop residuals, forest/forestry residuals, urban wood wastes (from construction and demolition), animal manure and the organic components in municipal and industrial wastes. Biomass energy (or biopower as it can be called) is the energy that is produced from these materials as technologies break down the organic components to release stored energy originally captured from the sun. Biomass is an attractive type of energy producing resource as it is renewable, it is much more evenly distributed over the Earth’s surface and the ability to collect this material is more environmentally friendly than most petroleum based fuels.
Nicole Chardoul’s article on “Waste Stream Reduction, Recycling and Cost Savings within Healthcare Facilities” was recently published in the Medical Tourism Magazine on January 17, 2012. The full article is viewable at this link and has been reprinted below.
Hospitals face growing operational challenges as they balance the delivery of excellent health care services with a changing economy, tight regulations and large volumes of waste requiring proper management. Since hospitals pay for waste in three different ways – when they purchase materials, handle these materials and then dispose of these materials – best practices in waste reduction and management are essential to keep operational costs real and manageable. A resource management system can help hospitals effectively implement high-impact yet simple waste reduction best practices while also allowing for the planning and implementation of more complex or expensive initiatives. A resource management system can provide a model and framework for implementation of these best practices that ensures program visibility, waste volume reduction and regulatory compliance. Read the whole story…
Article copied from MLive.com – Article source – The Flint Journal, written by Kristin Longley
The city of Flint is hoping for a second chance at the $1.1 million energy grant that was terminated by federal officials in October.
After the U.S. Department of Energy yanked the grant because of what it called “serious mismanagement and misuse,” Flint officials have submitted a revised proposal for spending the money on projects that promote energy efficiency.
Federal officials are expected to decide by Jan. 13 whether to reinstate the grant award, officials said.
Details of the proposal weren’t immediately available on Wednesday, but City Attorney Peter Bade said the city is partnering with Ann Arbor-based Resource Recycling Systems to develop the plan for using the grant funds.
From Waste360.com | Article By Allan Gerlat
Dec. 4, 2011 10:14pm
You might not notice them in your refrigerator. They represent less than 1 percent of the waste stream. But beverage carton recycling is hot.
In 2009 only 18 percent of U.S. households had access to recycling of cartons, those plastic-lined paperboard containers used for milk, juice, soups, wines and a few other consumables. That year four packaging companies formed the Carton Council to develop a strategy to jumpstart recycling of the product. Two years later 37 percent, or roughly 40 million households, have access to carton recycling. The council expects that rate to expand at a healthy clip. Waste Management Inc. and Tropicana Products Inc. have worked with the council and large metropolises like Los Angeles (July) and Dallas (September) recently added the carton recycling option Read the whole story…
Copied from Huffington Post Business Section – Article by Michael Zacka
Tuesday is American Recycles Day, and every individual who recycles, or makes it their business to purchase recycled materials, is a hero. And here is a tale of recycling that highlights the collaborative efforts of many stakeholders in a basic industry who have made heroic strides to increase recycling efforts in the United States.
The saga starts with the carton.
Want to learn how to get the most useful life out of your stuff? Interested in learning about how some products can be re-purposed to keep them out of the waste stream even longer? The Reuse Alliance is offering a free webinar on October 20, 2011 at 2pmEST to discuss the “Environmental, Economic, and Social Benefits of Reuse.”
The Reuse Alliance was formed in 2005 in New York and now has chapters in California, New York, North Carolina, Minnesota, Oregon, and Texas. The Alliance is working towards having October 20th recognized as National Reuse Day. Any one interested in showing support for the initiative, can sign this petition.
Would you like to learn about how to add cartons to your recycling programs? If so, you’re in luck! RRS’s CEO Jim Frey and Project Consultant Anna Collinson – along with Jeff Epstein and Tom Wright of the Carton Council – are hosting a series of free webinars all about carton recycling during the month of August.
The webinar will cover basics of carton recycling as well as examine the success of the recent flip in Los Angeles, California. These webinars are free to everyone and are full of valuable information about expanding your recycling program.
We will be hosting three webinars during August! If you would like to sign up, please email Tina Colatruglio at tcolatruglio@recycle.com. More information will be available soon.
Long-time RRS client Lucas County, Ohio, recently made headlines in the American Recycler newspaper. City officials from Toledo and the Lucas County Board of Commissioners came to the decision to privatize waste and recycling services for 180,000 households in northwestern Ohio after reviewing case studies from similar programs across the country. The new collection strategy will be more efficient, incentivize recycling and work to expand program sustainability over the next year. Congratulations, Lucas County and the City of Toledo!
Click here to read the full article in American Recycler.
