Investigation 10 Green Energy According to the 2012 Statistics, Americans generated about 251 million tons of trash. (Center for Sustainability, 2011) Due to the large amounts of trash Americans generate, it is important that we use sustainable efforts to make waste useful. One of the many companies that make waste useful is the owners of Waste Management. “Waste Management, based in Houston, Texas, is the leading provider of comprehensive waste management services in North America. They are the largest residential recycler and also a leading developer, operator and owner of waste-to-energy and landfill-gas-to-energy facilities in the United States.” (Waste Management, 2013) “Harnessing the power of landfill gas to create a green, clean energy source is a hallmark of the Altamont Landfill. It was one of the nation’s first landfills to install turbines to convert landfill gas to electricity in 1987. Today, it generates enough electricity to power the equivalent of 8,000 homes annually as well the daily operation of its acclaimed landfill gas to liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant. Use of this near-zero carbon fuel eliminates nearly 30,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually. According to the California Air Resources Board, it is the lowest carbon density fuel available today. Landfill gas is comprised of half methane gas and half carbon dioxide. It is a naturally occurring greenhouse gas created by the decay of organic materials in a landfill. The Altamont features a state-of-the-art vacuum extraction system and network of wells to capture the gas, convert it to green power, and flare any residue to prevent it from entering the atmosphere.” (Waste Management, 2014) Furthermore, the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) LEED, which stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, is a green building certification program that recognizes best-in-class building strategies and practices. The manufacturing of Green buildings are supported by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) who runs the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification program. There are five categories that encompass all LEED products, these products are: (a) sustainable sites; (b) water efficiency; (c) energy and atmosphere; and (d) indoor environmental quality (IEQ). These buildings significantly reduce waste by reusing materials that such as woods and metals that were once apart of another house of buildings. In addition, one way Americans manage waste on a daily basis is through recycling. Many houses and public facilities have or are provided with recycling bins for citizens to recycle bottles, plastic, metals, and Styrofoam. According to the Center for Sustainability, Americans recycled and composted almost 27 million tons of this material equivalent to a 34.5 percent recycling rate. On average, we recycled and composted 1.51 pounds of our individual waste generation of 4.38 pounds per person per day. (Center for Sustainability, 2011) People recycle through having clothing drives that donates clothes to places like Goodwill and Plato’s Closet. People also recycle electronics, planting seeds from various fruits, and using re-chargeable batteries. Seven of these bans took effect this year, and two more will take effect soon. Electronics can contain lead, mercury, cadmium and other potentially harmful chemicals, but only 25% of discarded devices (by weight) was recycled in 2009, the most recent year for which the Environmental Protection Agency has final data. In conclusion, The benefits of global warming include, it decreased the amount of waste in landfill. It decreases global warming by reducing greenhouse gasses. Municipal solid waste landfills are the second- largest source of human related methane emissions in the United States, accounting for approximately 22 percent of these emissions in 2008 (EPA, 2011) It created more jobs. The recycling and reuse industry consists of approximately 56,000 establishments that employ over 1.1 million people, generate an annual payroll of nearly $37 billion, and gross over $236 billion in annual revenues. Work Cited Page Bronja H, Bronja H. (2014). A multi-criteria approach to selecting a landfill site with the aim of protecting the environment. Polish Journal Of Environmental Studies, 23 (5), 1499-1505. Retrieved from: eds.a.ebscohost.ezproxy.lib.usf.edu/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=41402c36-ba25-43f4-85f2-adc861da23df%40sessionmgr4002&vid=2&hid=4105 Oregon Department of Environmental Quality. Illegal dumping. Retrieved from: deq.state.or.us/lq/sw/disposal/illegaldumping.htm Kotch W. (2011). More states ban disposal of electronics in landfills. USA Today. Retrieved from: usatoday30.usatoday/tech/news/story/2011-12-18/electronics-recycling/52055158/1 Waste Management (2013) Waste management to build renewable gas facility. Retrieved from: wm/about/press-room/2013/20131017_Milam_Renewable.jsp Waste Management (2014). Green Energy. Retrieved from: altamontlandfill.wm/green-energy/index.jsp
Posted on: Fri, 21 Nov 2014 19:59:14 +0000
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