May Campaign Status - What is Upcycling?

How are you doing with remembering to keep cork and bottle stoppers, batteries, denim, prescription glasses, ink cartridges and toner cartridges without return labels? I have only had one person bring me a unique item so far this week, a toner cartridge. Thanks, Karen!

Thanks also to Maxine for her idea that our Divisions purchase rechargeable batteries and battery chargers; and to Van for the idea of using a mulching mower blade on our lawns(http://www.allaboutlawns.com/lawn-mowing-mowers/should-i-bag-or-mulch-the-clippings.php; http://www.springcreekforest.com/mulching_versus_bagging.htm), and composting (http://www.composting101.com/; http://greenliving.about.com/od/thegreenyard/tp/compost.htm).

Have you thought about any items you can make with recyclables for our May campaign? This website might give you some ideas - Look at what the company Terracycle has done with upcycling everyday trash into cool products: http://www.terracycle.net/. (The video explains upcycling). Will you want to participate in any brigades for Terracycle, collecting specific items of trash for certain products: http://www.terracycle.net/brigades/joining? Do any of you know other companies who are successful in making new products from recyclable trash? Let me know your thoughts.

May Campaign - Recycling the Unique

For our May campaign, we will expand on our prior success with recycling. You might recall, we are already recycling paper, plastics and cardboard. We are collecting soda can tabs for the Ronald McDonald House and Coke bottle lids (Cook Rewards) for a charity of our choice. See http://www.mycokerewards.com/home.do for a list of charities we can pick from at the end of 2010.


This month, rather than throwing out the following items that you use at home, I would like you to bring them to the office: batteries, eye glasses, denim, cork or other bottle stoppers, PC ink cartridges, and PC toners (those that do not come with a return label). I can be the repository for these items; I will have a big box for them in my office - just contact me and let me know you are coming by. I will then take these items to those who have already agreed to help me deliver them to the appropriate recycling centers - thank you Maxine, Michele, Elaine, and Mia! The cork and bottle stoppers will actually be used for craft projects; the eye glasses will be donated to charity.


Drawing - Here is how you can qualify for this month's drawing:
1. Bring to me the above listed items throughout the month.
2. Send me your ideas of unique items that we can recycle. Please note, we do not want to collect any hazardous materials or anything that would take up a lot of room here at work.
3. Bring me crafts that you made with any recycled items. (You don't need to leave them with me; I will take a picture and let you have it back).

So start thinking. This could be really fun! Do you need a place to start? Look to these sites:

http://www.obviously.com/recycle/guides/shortest.html

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/03/10/proper-waste-disposal-pho_n_491672.html

April Energy Ideas

Thanks to Steve from DOPL for this article about how printer font might affect our costs: http://www.standard.net/topics/business/2010/04/06/heres-legal-way-print-money-change-font

Thanks to Al in DPU for information regarding the SEER rating of central air conditioners. Each central air conditioning unit is given a SEER (Seasonal Energy Efficiency Rating), which tells us how much cooling the unit gives for each watt of electricity. As of January 2006, an air conditioner must have a SEER of at least 13 to be sold in the United States. Higher efficiency models have a SEER of up to 21. Below are some links that explain the SEER rating and provide helpful information to consumers when selecting an air conditioning unit:

http://www.trane.com/Residential/Getting-Started/Efficiency-Savings
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seasonal_energy_efficiency_ratio

4/22/10 Free Electronics Recycling & A COOL LINK

E-WASTE RECYCLING

Thursday, April 22nd - 7:30 am to 1:00 pm

University of Utah - University Services Building parking lot (immediately west of the Huntsman Center - big basketball dome).

Free and open to the campus community and all Salt Lake City and County residents.

Accepted items include:

• Televisions (with digital TV conversion it's time to get rid of that old set!).
• Computer Monitors of all kinds
• Computers and Computer Peripherals
• Audio/Stereo Equipment
• VCRs, DVD players
• Video Cameras
• Telephones, Fax and Copying Machines
• Cellular Phones
• Wireless Devices
• Video Game Consoles.
  

All items will be responsibly recycled by Metech Recycling: http://www.metechrecycling.com/utah.htm

Check out this very cool site where you can search by items you want to recycle and it will give you locations in Utah where you can recycle the items: https://utahrecycles.org/recyclingguide.php.

April 20, 2010 - Green Fair Details

GREEN FAIR 2010
Sponsored by Utah Attorney General’s Office and Department of Commerce

TUESDAY, APRIL 20, 2010 - 11:30 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
Heber M. Wells Building - First Floor Conference Room


Experts on the entire gamut of energy and resource-conserving resources, green and healthy commuting, and environmentally sound landscaping—one-on-one Q & A
Compact-fluorescent-bulb-for-incandescent-bulb exchange—Cookies and prizes!

FEATURED ORGANIZATIONS

Rocky Mountain Power — Rebate programs, home energy analysis planning
Jordan Water Conservancy District — Water-wise landscaping, water auditing
Utah Transit Authority — Rideshare program, bicycle commuting partnerships
Energy Office (DFCM) — Personal office appliance energy assessment
Division of Fleet Services — Alternative vehicles, fuel efficient driving practices
Salt Lake City Bicycle Collective — Safe riding practices, public transport access
Division of Water Resources — Water resource supply and conservation
Questar Gas — Weatherization and appliance rebates
National Energy Foundation — Energy efficiency commitment

How To Reduce Your Carbon Footprint Video

Here's a link to some good tips: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u7zwrzEyzkA&feature=fvw. Just click on the black screen.

Carbon Footprint

Have you heard about carbon footprints? Have people asked you what your individual carbon footprint is?

Carbon is a significant contributor to global warming through the greenhouse effect. An individual’s carbon footprint is defined by looking at how much of what we do in our lives contributes even a small amount to global warming. It is the amount of carbon dioxide that we each create and use with all the things we do in our lives.

We have been reducing our individual carbon footprint through our recent awareness and efforts here at Commerce and at home - by using CFL lighting and energy efficient appliances, adding insulation, turning off lights and appliances when not in use, walking or biking rather than driving, all the things we have worked on through our monthly campaigns.

Carbon Calculator: There is a cool website where you can calculate your carbon footprint and measure it against the average person in the U.S. Go to http://www.employeegateway.utah.gov/, login with your regular LAN password, click on the “Energy” tab at the top right, scroll down to the “Energy Information and Resources” section on the right column, and click on the first bullet - the “carbon calculator”. Those who complete the calculation and send me and email with their calculations (and how they compare to others) from the page titled “Your Carbon Footprint Result” will have their name in the March drawing of prizes, and THE FIRST TEN people to do this will get a little BONUS.

46 Ways to Reduce Your Carbon Footprint - I found this great article from the Chicago Tribune, which lists a whole lot of things we can do in our daily routine. We already know a lot of it through our campaigns, but I found some really good ideas that I had not thought of, like did you know that using the microwave to cook and heat meals rather than the oven will reduce cooking energy by 80%? Did you know that heating the water for a washing machine uses up 90% of the energy needed to run the machine, while the other 10% goes to power the motor - so just switching to a cold wash saves more than $400 each year. Go to this site for the complete article: http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/fea/home/stories/DN-nhg_wire50greentips_0418liv.ART.State.Edition1.3442c4.html.

Recycling the Unique - thanks to Rick at DTS for giving me a link to this article: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/03/10/proper-waste-disposal-pho_n_491672.html. I think you will enjoy it. Make sure to scroll through the various pictures as each one has more ideas and links. Lots of information for the avid recycler, and we do seem to have some of those folks in our Dept!

Battery Recycling Here at Commerce - thanks to Maxine McBurnett at Corporations who has been the recycler of batteries for her group at Corporations. Maxine has a box in her cubicle for all who bring their dead batteries, and she takes them to a local recycler when the box is full. I started taking my batteries to her, and she is kind enough to agree to take yours too. Now that we know Maxine is collecting batteries, I am sure we will all think twice before throwing a battery in the trash.

Okay, get those carbon footprints done and send me a note - hope you are one of the first ten to send me an email and get the bonus. If you are not one of the first ten, no worries, you will still be eligible for our end of the month drawing.

Happy calculating!