Recycling and substitution

Conservation

Strategies: Recycling

and Substitution

Recy

clin

g Definition:The processing of industrial household

waste so that materials can be reused

Why

is R

ecy

clin

g

Nece

ssary

?

Large cities today generate as much as

20000 tonnes of garbage per day

2 planets needed by

2020 Humans using 30% more

resources than sustainable Running up an ecological

debt of $4tr (£2.5tr) to

$4.5tr every year

Types

of

recy

cled

wast

es

Plastics

Glass

Metals

Paper

Rubber

Genera

l Exa

mple

: A

lum

inum

Cans

(1)

Genera

l Exa

mple

: A

lum

inum

Cans

(2)

Pros

and C

ons

of

Recy

clin

g A

lum

inum

Advantages: Saves energy and reduces

greenhouse gas emissions

Recycling a single aluminum can

saves enough to power a TV for 3

hours Quality of metal doesn’t diminish

even after being recycled

Creates jobsDisadvantages: Process pollutes water – adds

metal ions into water, makes it

poisonous Need land to fill the waste

Transportation costs

Genera

l Exa

mple

: Recy

clin

g C

lass

1)Raw Materials

2) Glass Container Making

3)Transportation to Retailers

4) Use at Home

5) The Bin

Collection

6) Treatment (Processing)

Pros

and C

ons

of

Recy

clin

g G

lass

Advantages: Making glass from recycled

materials cuts water pollution by

50% Glass can be recycled indefinite

number of times Recycling one glass jar saves

enough electricity to light a

conventional60 watt bulb for 4

hours Creates Jobs!Disadvantages Still pollutes water Need land to fill the waste

Transportation Costs

Loca

l Case

Stu

dy:

Nove

lis

Inc.

(1)

Warrington, Cheshire, UK

Produces ingots from beverage cans, only aluminum can recycling plant in Europe

Current Capacity – 135000 tonnes per year

Initial Capital investment (1990) - £5 million

Further Capital investment - £7 million

2009 over 97 tonnes of cans (approximately 6.3 million) were sent for reprocessing

Loca

l C

ase

Stu

dy:

N

ove

lis Inc

(2)

The ‘closed recycling loop’ saves 95% of the energy required to make aluminum from its raw materials, and reduces greenhouse gas emissions by the same amount

The plant is currently registered the Environment Agency under the Environmental Protection Act 1990

2009 over 97 tonnes of cans (approximately 6.3 million) were sent for reprocessing

Recy

clin

g in

Euro

pe

Nati

onal C

ase

Stu

dy:

Recy

clin

g in

D

enm

ark

Europe’s “greenest” countries

2003 suggest that 31% of all household waste was recycled

10,000 Danes are in the business of collecting waste - more than 0.1% of the entire population

Glo

bal C

ase

Stu

dy:

US a

nd

Chin

a

US recycles about 28% of its waste 42% of all paper 40% of all plastic soft drink bottles 55% of all aluminium beer and soft

drink cans 57% of all steel packaging 52% of all major appliances are

now recycled

Glo

bal C

ase

Stu

dy:

Recy

clin

g

in C

hin

a China’s paper industry imported almost 20 million

tonnes in, primarily from the US, Europe and Japan- NGO Forest Trend, 2006

USA exported 11.6 million tons of recovered paper and cardboard to China in 2008 – Takes up land

China’s paper recycling industry prevented 54 million metric tons of wood being harvested for pulp – 2006 (BBC)

Brings employment

Con -The recovery process results in the release of waste liquids containing toxic substances, and cases of damage to the environment and public health emerge continuously. Also takes space to store the wastes.

Reso

urc

e

Subst

ituti

on

Definition:Substitution refers to the using one renewable resource than another.

Renewable Resource: Resources

that can be replaced by natural

processes at a rate comparable or

faster than rate of consumption.

Genera

l Exa

mple

: Fo

od

Pack

ing –

Card

board

FO

R S

tyro

foam

An example of resource substitution is the use of

Cardboard packaging rather than Styrofoam in food

packaging.

Pros

and C

ons

of

Card

board

FO

R

Sty

rofo

am

Advantages:Environmental:• Production processes doesn’t emits a lot

of toxic waste• Does not promotes the use of petroleum

• It is biodegradable Social

• Does not expose workers to toxic

chemicals• Does not contaminate foodDisadvantages:• The production of cardboard cuts down

trees – can be unsustainable.

• Not energy efficient – only has 24%

energy savings. (Note: aluminum has

95% energy saving)• More transport cost - heavier

Genera

l Exa

mple

: B

iofu

el F

OR

petr

ole

um

base

d f

uel

Another example of resource substitution

is the use of biofuel

FOR petroleum based fuel. (AVIATION FUEL)

Aviation Fuel: : Specialized type

of petroleum-based fuel to power

aircraft. Biofuel: Are any kind of fuel made

from living things, or from the

waste they produce

Pros

and C

ons

of

Bio

fuel F

OR

Petr

ole

um

base

d f

uel

Advantages: Growing plants absorb carbon

dioxide from the atmosphere

Biofuels reduce emissions by

50%-60% compared to fossil

fuelsDisadvantages: Still emits fossil fuels Less plants used for

food/nutrition = rising food

prices Reduced Biodiversity – Reduce

habitat for animals and wild

plants

Genera

l Exa

mple

: Ta

p

wate

r FO

R b

ott

led

wate

r

• Another example of resource substitution is the use of tap water rather than bottled water.

Pros

and C

ons

of

usi

ng t

ap w

ate

r ra

ther

than b

ott

led w

ate

r

Advantages:• Way, way cheaper. (Approx. 2000 times

cheaper)• Tap water is more regulated than

bottled water. While the Environmental

Protection Agency enforces water

quality standards for tap water, the FDA

makes no such demands for bottle

water. • Doesn’t produce as much waste. In the

US, people but half a billion bottles of

water every week.• In taste tests across the country,

people consistently choose tap over

bottled water.Disadvantages• Some sources of tap water might not be

that clean. (Especially in developing

countries)

Loca

l Case

Stu

dy:

C

leve

land’s

Tap

Wate

r

Fiji Water’s Ad Campaign.

In the city of Cleveland,

people didn’t want to

drink water from the city

water from the city tap.“The Label Says Fiji because it’s not bottled

in Cleveland.”MANUFACTURED DEMAND

Loca

l Case

Stu

dy:

C

leve

land’s

Tap

Wate

r

Cleveland’s public utilities

director Julius Ciaccia

decided to put the two

waters to the test: the results found 6.31

micrograms of arsenic per

liter in the Fiji bottle.

Cleveland tap water, on the

other hand, had no measurable arsenic

Cleveland’s NewsChannel5

held a blind taste test. The

result? Testers preferred

Cleveland water.

Loca

l Case

Stu

dy:

C

leve

land’s

Tap

Wate

r

Environmental Concern

People in the U.S. buy more than

half a billion bottles of water

every week. That’s enough to

circle the globe more than 5

times. Each year, making the plastic

water bottles used in the U.S.

takes enough oil and energy to

fuel a million cars What happens to all these

bottles when we’re done? 80%

percent end up in landfills,

where they will sit for thousands

of years

Nati

onal C

ase

Stu

dy

“McToxins”What Happened?

August 1st 1987 - Vermont’s

Organization for Cleanup

launched a campaign to ban the

use of foam food packaging in

Mcdonalds and replace it with

cardboard packaging. August 1st 1990- McDonalds

joined forces with the

Environmental Defense Fund

and banned the use of

Styrofoam to adopt cardboard

packaging.

Nati

onal C

ase

Stu

dy

“McToxins”Why?• Non-biodegradable – Takes 900

years to break down. (Paper takes

2-5 months to break down.)

• CCHW (The Community Center for

Health & Wellness – Mcdonalds

contributed to 1.3 billion

cubic feet of foam food packaging

annually. (US estimates only)

• Contaminates food - Styrene is a

cancer causing agent – linked

with leukemia

Nati

onal C

ase

Stu

dy

“McToxins”Results:• Provided a 70-90% reduction in

sandwich packaging volume –

reducing landfill space, energy used

and pollutant released.• 510 million kilowatt hours were

saved in 1999 • Eliminated over 300 million

pounds of packaging. Note: That’s

enough to keep Peoria, Illinois trash

free for 10 years• Recycled 1 million tons of

corrugated (card board) boxes.

Reducing restaurant waste by 30%.

Glo

bal C

ase

Stu

dy

A Virgin Atlantic jumbo jet has

flown between London's Heathrow

and Amsterdam using fuel derived

from a mixture of Brazilian

babassu nuts and coconuts. Virgin boss Sir Richard Branson

said the flight marked a "vital

breakthrough" for the entire airline

industry. Virgin's Boeing 747 had one of its

four engines connected to an

independent biofuel tank that it

said could provide 20% of the

engine's power. Could routinely be flying on plant

power within 10 years.

Glo

bal C

ase

Stu

dy:

D

isadva

nta

ges

“High-altitude greenwash”Less air travel is the

only answerBiofuels do very little

to reduce emissions Increase global food

pricesCould led to DEFORESTATION

TH

AN

K Y

OU

THANK YOU