Green of the Week: 7th Edition

                           

           The U-M Recycling "Green of the Week" is back again for the 7th edition of our weekly blog segment!  If this is your first time on our blog, be sure to take a look at some of our previous posts, and as always let us know what you think on Facebook, Twitter, or via email at recycle@umich.edu.  

           This week's "green" news is related to a previous post (http://mrecycle.blogspot.com/2012/07/green-of-week-4th-edition.html), which followed an international NGO, Caritas Switzerland, and its business in the conversion of mass amounts of cooking oil into biodiesel fuel.  This week's focus is very similar, but domestically located on the East coast, in NJ.  The company, Grease Lightning, based in Newark, NJ, buys used cooking oil at as much as 50 cents per gallon, and takes in about 7 million gallons per year.  The benefits?  Biodiesel has its use in automobiles and Greg Reinert, a spokesman for the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities, says that biodiesel may be part of the state's Energy Master Plan in the future.  While the previous article, in its international perspective, focused on the issues with dumping used cooking oil, including potential health and environmental risks, the focus on the NJ company seems to be more garnered toward the potential energy benefits and the future conjunction between eateries and fuel companies.  The article jokingly added that, "as long as there’s a mass appetite for doughnuts and fries, grease is a renewable energy source that’s in constant supply".

                                 

                                     ^The grease in its untreated state and then filtered fuel state

           With fossil fuels being a constant hot topic in the environmental world, it is refreshing to see the research and execution of alternative fuel methods that reduce our dependence on fossil fuels.  Recycling also means reducing and reusing, so this company is definitely worthy of a Green of the Week spotlight in our book.  

To read the article and interview in its full detail, please follow the link below:

http://www.nj.com/homegarden/index.ssf/2012/08/company_helps_restaurants_recy.html

Also, check out our annual e-newsletter, Recycling Matters, which came out last week!

http://www.recycle.umich.edu/grounds/recycle/recycling_matters_newsletter/2012_summer.pdf

Remember to follow us on Twitter @UmichRecycling!

And our Facebook page, click "Like" if you like us!: http://www.facebook.com/UMRecycling

Recycling Matters e-Newsletter

**If the text is too small for you to see on your browser through the blog post, please visit the following link to view and/or save as a PDF file: 

          http://www.recycle.umich.edu/grounds/recycle/recycling_matters_newsletter/2012_summer.pdf

Green of the Week: 6th Edition

         U-M Recycling's Green of the Week is here again!  Our news this week comes from The Washington Times "Communities" section, in an interview between Joseph Cotto and Dr. Patrick Moore, one of the original co-founders of the environmental activist organization, Greenpeace.  The article, while following the personal answers and opinions of Dr. Moore, is particularly enlightening on how environmental activism works in our contemporary world.  Many a time, we have skewed conceptions of the environmentalist movement - from both the pro- and con- side.  The interview serves to better inform not only about Greenpeace and its mission, but the extent to which being "green" is really beneficial to our world.

         Dr. Patrick Moore is a credible source to be talking about Greenpeace, with even more incredible academic credentials.  Along with being named President of the Greenpeace Foundation in 1977, Dr. Moore 's accolades include an "Honors BSc in biology and forest biology, a PhD in ecology during which [he] was the recipient of a Ford Foundation Fellowship, an honorary doctorate of science from North Carolina State, the Einstein Society's Award for Nuclear Science and History, along with over 40 years experience in all aspects of the environmental movement".  So, Moore is no stranger to the environmental movement both in academia and in its societal applications and organizations.  The article explores his leaving of Greenpeace after less than ten years as its head, and he explains the nuances of their goals as lacking real academic backing for the most part - something he could not stand by.  

         On a lighter note, Dr. Moore details his inspiration for involvement with environmental movements and his dedication to building sustainable environments.  If you want some insight on environmentalism from a successful and credible source, definitely check out Dr. Patrick Moore and this interview. 

To read the article and interview in its full detail, please follow the link below:
http://communities.washingtontimes.com/neighborhood/conscience-realist/2012/aug/10/patrick-moore-how-stop-worrying-and-love-mother-na/

Keep an eye out in the upcoming weeks for for our annual e-newsletter, Recycling Matters!

Remember to follow us on Twitter @UmichRecycling!
And check out our Facebook page, click "Like" if you like us!: http://www.facebook.com/UMRecycling

Green of the Week: 5th Edition

            Just getting a bit off schedule (but earlier!), U-M Recycling's Green of the Week is reporting back on a Thursday this week.  With our focus last week specifically on recycling news from abroad, this edition of Green of the Week will take an international perspective on an important environmental concern that is sure to make an impact in our futures.
            Our focus comes from Yale's "Environment 360" news blog this week, with an article bringing to attention the consequences of an air-conditioned world.  With scorching summers as of recent, most Americans know just how comforting it is to flip a switch in their home or office to beat the heat and enjoy an artificial ice box.  In fact, Americans have partitioned more energy for air conditioning use than any other nation over time.  However, the article's author, Stan Cox, warns that this convenience is on the path to increased air conditioning use globally - posing a threat to not only the environment, but society and human interaction as well.
           Other nations are beginning to artificially cool their buildings more and more, and the U.S is definitely not a model of restraint.  Because in most countries air conditioners run on electricity generated from fossil fuels, this poses a threat to the environment with increased carbon emissions that will influence global climate change.  Likewise, the phenomenon of air conditioning is a social one that holds consequences in the ability to "live with" higher temperatures, the amount of time spent indoors, and the amount of time removed from the community as a whole because of proclivity for the cooler indoors.  Air conditioning, which once was a luxury and a haven from extremely hot temperatures, has transformed into something that Americans have come to take for granted; and the rest of the world might be on the same track.

To read the article in more detail, please follow this link:
http://e360.yale.edu/feature/cooling_a_warming_planet_a_global_air_conditioning_surge/2550/


Keep an eye out in the upcoming weeks for for our annual e-newsletter, Recycling Matters!

Remember to follow us on Twitter @UmichRecycling!
And check out our Facebook page, click "Like" if you like us!: http://www.facebook.com/UMRecycling