Browsing by Subject "Waste"
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Item Open Access A Sustainability Plan for American Tobacco Campus(2011-04-29) Lareau, Courtney; Rankin, Kimberlee; Tucker, BunnyAmerican Tobacco Campus (ATC) Management has committed to understanding the environmental impact of their campus and making strategic improvements, while reducing operational costs. This Masters Project focused on determining ATC’s environmental impacts by collecting baseline data on the three key impact areas designated by ATC Management: energy use, water consumption, and waste generation. Initial reduction goals were then established and strategies were developed to achieve reductions that would help ATC Management make progress toward achieving these goals. Tenant and employee engagement were additional factors considered in strategic initiatives. This Sustainability Plan for American Tobacco Campus represents an initial assessment of ATC’s environmental performance.Item Open Access COST BENEFIT ANALYSIS OF ASEPTIC CARTON RECYCLING IN BANDUNG, INDONESIA(2009-04-24T01:45:46Z) Dunais, Marc-AntoineGrowing populations, rising incomes, and changing lifestyles contribute to severe waste management problems in many urban centers around the world. In low-income Asian countries, a majority of municipal solid waste is inadequately processed, leading to environmental problems that affect the health of humans and animals, and cause economic and welfare losses. However, in many countries there is neither infrastructure nor market incentives for managing household waste such as aseptic cartons usefully. This research explores the costs and benefits of recycling aseptic cartons at BBPK, a recycling facility in the Indonesian town of Bandung, and provides recommendations for improving the facility’s profitability. The results of the cost benefit analysis from a business perspective demonstrate that the costs of operating the recycling facility generally exceed revenue. The negative operational cash flow occurs despite funding provided by aseptic carton-maker Tetra Pak to support BBPK’s purchase of raw materials. However, the cost benefit analysis demonstrates that under certain market conditions, recycling activities could become profitable. The prospects for such a scenario will ultimately depend on the sustained availability of external funding in the short to medium term, and capital investments in the facility’s recycling operations in the long term. Hence, it is opportune for Tetra Pak to extend financial support to BBPK for the purchase of raw materials until market conditions for recycled pulp have stabilized. Working with BBPK, Tetra Pak could develop a roadmap that would envisage a gradual phasing-out of its funding subsidy. By demonstrating that BBPK can become financially viable by operating independently, Tetra Pak can demonstrate to other recycling facilities that aseptic carton recycling, despite its challenges, is worth considering in Indonesia.Item Open Access County Costs and Funding in North Carolina’s Electronic Recycling Program(2013-04-19) Leven, RachelSenate Bill 887, better known as the “Amend Electronics Recycling Law,” banished electronic waste from landfill disposal in 2010. It also set up a system of funding to ensure that manufacturers of electronics sold in the state dedicate resources to electronics recycling. Thanks in a large part to this system, county recycling programs expected to manage electronic material with little cost. However, in FY11/12 and 12/13 local counties reportedly spent large amounts of money to run their electronic recycling programs. Using survey data from 21 counties in the state, this paper seeks to describe the costs experienced by county electronic recycling programs. It also aims to determine if there is a fault in the funding system with large monetary consequences for counties, or if programs are reacting dramatically to smaller costs based on their original perception that counties should have zero costs to managing this material. Finally, it analyzes the factors in county demographics and program management that predict high costs. This paper finds that counties are experiencing high costs in the form of fees from their recycling vendors. Vendor fees were made necessary due to an unexpected drop in the value of CRTs and underfunding from the state’s producer responsibility system. Prior to FY12/13 many programs had a zero-cost–zero-revenue relationship with their vendors. Many were also saving the annual electronic management funds distributed by The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR). While this indicates a low investment in program infrastructure, the savings may have helped to soften the blow when vendor fees were put in place. It is unlikely that counties will be able to return to a cost free scenario such as existed prior to 2012. However, there are steps that programs can take to secure themselves against future spikes in cost. The level of capital investment counties made in their electronic programs appears to have positively affected their program’s vendor relationships. Programs can also make sure they are getting the best deal possible by shopping for more vendors and noting where else vendors may be collecting material as well as how much manufacturer funding they have received. The type of material counties collect will be a critical component to county costs in FY12/13 and will likely remain so going forward. Programs may be able to improve on the quality of material by increasing the number of customers served while staying aware of the potential for CRTs to increase with the adoption of schools. Programs can also invest in infrastructure and outreach to minimize the receipt of scavenged material. For its part, DENR should work to make sure that a market place for purchased TV tonnage is available. DENR can also consider the role that per capita income plays in the type of material county programs receive.Item Open Access Making the Business Case for Sustainability at the Duke Ambulatory Surgery Center(2011-04-29) Cheng, Joe; Fedors, Kara; Maltenfort, MeganHealth care facilities are extremely resource intensive operations due to the multitude of equipment, environmental control requirements, and the constant monitoring required for patient care. Since patient care is the top priority for health care facilities, sustainability and resource efficiency had traditionally not been considered in their construction and operation. This study assesses the cost-effectiveness of various resource reduction opportunities at the Duke Ambulatory Surgery Center (ASC), an outpatient facility in the Duke University Health system. A whole-systems approach was embraced and sustainability opportunities were assessed through five focus areas: energy use, water use, waste generation, opportunities for recycling, and green purchasing. Based on discussions with the client, background research, and various analyses, it was decided that the study would focus primarily on energy, water, and waste for measuring and improving sustainability at the ASC. Energy and water audits were conducted to establish baseline energy use data. A waste characterization was performed to identify the types of waste being generated and their volumes. In addition, a two month pilot recycling program for mixed beverage containers and mixed paper was implemented in order to assess the potential for a permanent recycling program. There are a number of viable opportunities to reduce resource consumption as well as costs in the areas of energy, water, and waste. This study demonstrates opportunities to reduce overall ASC resource usage. The detailed analysis shows that through technological and behavioral changes, significant cost savings can be realized. The cost reductions estimated from energy and water initiatives could be savings or applied to offset other environmental improvements, such as the recycling program which would cost the Center $2,465 per year but also offers many intangible benefits. The ASC can expect a total annual savings of $8,582 based on our recommendations. In addition, these initiatives could be expanded to find additional opportunities for savings at the ASC and throughout Duke University.