Investigating Zero Waste programs

Where is the "away" in "throw away"?  Eighty percent of what we produce is thrown away within six months of its production.  Rather than focus solely on "end-of-pipe" solutions, we have to think about how to prevent the manufacture of products that quickly end up in the waste cycle.   Zero Waste programs, which seek to reform the systems of production, construction, and consumption in order to address the growing waste crisis, have been successful in encouraging communities to adopt zero-waste resolutions.

Research Zero Waste programs and encourage your city or town to adopt a resolution.

This is the fourth issue of the series of posts “365 Ways to Save the Earth. It is devoted to environment protection and energy saving. Read the previous post here Roll Off Dumpster Rentals Blog . This time we would like to share a few more tips and easy-to-do recommendations on how we can contribute to saving not-renewable resources and protect our environment and our communities for ourselves and future generations.

Use wood for heating.

America's forests cover 745 million acres, or 33% of the entire country. Of that total U.S. forested area, 495 million acres, or 67 %, are commercial forests that are used to produce timber for wood products.  

Canada's forests cover 397.3 million hectares (ha), other wooded land and other land with tree cover, which represent 53.8 percent of its total surface.  Canada is the home to 10% of world's forests.

As a source of energy, wood does not contribute to global warming.  Although burning it releases carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas, the amount given of is the same as the amount absorbed while the tree...

Pollution severely affects the world’s oceans, and three-quarters of the debris that pollutes the seas comes from the land. Every year, 14 billion pounds of garbage are released into our oceans world-wide. The flexible plastic loops that hold together six-packs of beverage cans are often dropped on beaches. They seem harmless, but they become deadly once they float out to sea, where sea birds, seals, and dolphins may trap their beaks, heads, or snouts in them – often with fatal results.

A study in Texas found that 70% of all the trash found on that state’s beaches was made of plastic. Plastic never biodegrades; instead it photo-degrades, a process in which it breaks into ever smaller pieces, which then may be consumed by fish and wildlife. Make sure your own rubbish does not reach the sea. Help reduce litter on the street or it will end up in storm drains, which eventually empty into the sea.

Composition of Phone Books

As with any recyclable, knowing exactly what phone books are of is important. The books’ composition can affect the end user selected, the collection methods, or even whether the books are recycled at all.

Needs of Paper Mills

The components a particular mill can handle will depend on the product into which the old telephone directories (OTD) is being made and upon that mill’s technology for handling inks, glues, etc. A basic understanding of the papermaking process is useful in matching the optimal end user to OTD from a specific community.

Most mills begin the recycling of OTD by shredding, or “hogging,” the books. This may have been done earlier, prior to baling, depending on the mill’s specifications and who processed the OTD for shipment to them. The baling strips are removed and the shredded books are processed with chemicals and water to remove ink, coatings, and glue. De-inking technologies very by mill, and are closely guarded trade secrets.

This cleaned fiber may be mixed with some virgin pulp fiber, depending on the recycled content of the end product. The wet paper mixture is thinned and passed into sheets, dried by hot air...

Computer Printout

Computer printout is the most valuable of the high-grade office paper. It may have colored bars and may be impact or nonimpact (laser) type. Many markets prefer to purchase colored-bar paper. Usually it is a green bar. Many markets prefer impact type or not to mix impact and laser. It is important in planning an office paper recycling program to determine precisely, what the market requires.

Computer printout is generally considered too valuable to mix with other high-grade papers and should be kept separate and free from contamination. Some manifold white ledger paper may appear to be similar to computer printout. Where there is not ablolute certainty, a market expert should be consulted.

White Ledger

White ledger should generally be considered any fine white writing, printing, typing, or copy paper containing no color other than black. The market must always be consulted for precise specifications. Certain qualities of book pages, completely separated from covers and bindings, might be allowed in this grade by certain markets.

Other Office Paper

Colored  ledger should generally be considered any fine...

The following due diligence steps should be performed as a minimum prior to selecting an electronic device recycler:

• Visit the facility where the processing is to be done. Inspect the general housekeeping to ensure that there is an orderly system for processing and accounting for your materials. If you require proprietary information to be removed from your equipment, ensure that this is plainly stated in any contracts you enter into. Confirm with your management information systems person that this will meet your requirements or plan to have this done in-house.
• Obtain a copy of all applicable permits, registrations, and licenses from the recycler. If permits are not required for the recycler’s operation, ensure that you receive documentation from the recycler that states that no permits are required.
•  Ensure that the recycler and its vendors have an environmentally sound method for handling printed circuit boards, CRTs, mercury-containing devices, and ni-cad batteries.
• Ask for a list of all vendors used by the recycler to outlet processed materials; this should include contact numbers and names. Contact these vendors in writing to ensure that they are in compliance with all applicable environmental laws and...

Roofing With Slates

Perhaps no other roofing material lasts as long as slate. Incredibly, come old churches and homes from America’s colonial period still have their original slate roofs. Slate is still in demand for updscale custom homes, churches, and country-club clubhouses, but most new instead, because they are so much cheaper.

Like asphalt shingles, slate comes in many colors, sizes, grades, and weights. Due to its weight – three times that of asphalt – roof rafters and roof sheathing need to be up to code to support slate’s heavy load. Slate can be placed over a layer of composition shingles only if the slope of the roof is 4-in-12 or more, and only if a structural engineer has confirmed that the roof framing can bear the weight of 7 pound per square foot.

Today, only handfuls of roofing companies specializing exclusively in slate are in business. Most roofing contractors will do occasional slate roofs. And because it is difficult to cut and apply, slate roofing is not an easy job for the do-it-yourselfers. If you do decide to do the work, expect to make a considerable investment in time and materials.

Installing Slate

Slate should be installed tilted slightly upward at the eaves,...

“…90 percent of success is showing up.”  Woody Allen.

Dumpster Rental Market Overview

The Dumpster Rentals sector of waste hauling industry is facing an increasingly diverse landscape and a fragmentation of the target market. Dumpster Rentals companies are more often finding that their traditional role as a "Waste Hauler & Waste Disposal contractor” is coming under threat from competitors such as cleaning companies, trash and rubbish removal businesses, waste trailer rentals, trucking companies that offer trash removal services, facilities management groups, recycling businesses, processing operators, logistics companies and Municipal Waste Management companies who offer dumpster rentals in many cities and towns. Add to this the developing legislative influence, local by-laws and local waste disposal regulations dictating how solid waste streams have to be collected, processed and pre treated before disposal and this has led to an imposing and complex market.

Amid this environment, businesses are now turning to marketing techniques and support to help establish their own presence and increase the exposure of their companies to the local market.

...

Creative people in Alaska came up with the idea of using dumpsters to convey messages that promote health and peace. Watch what they did :

“We worked with the ReCycle Center that had leftover paint people had turned in. They had the paint, and we had the dumpsters. So we coordinated a system with Public Works to use the dumpsters. Anybody could adopt a dumpster. Public Works would go out and pressure-wash them. Folks got paint from the ReCycle Center and went out and painted those things. Then we got three of our biggest vendors in town, our local stores (Alaska Commercial Company, Swansons and ANICA) to donate prizes. The first year, prizes were $400 for first place, $300 for second and $200 for third. We got people who worked in some form of the art field to be our judges, and off it went."

“Public Health Nursing, school groups and even individual youth have won. Kids have adopted dumpsters in their neighborhoods. They’ve painted fireweed and little kids pouring water on the flowers, and a big happy face with teeth. Some of the college students’ work was remarkable. This idea also went to the Western Regional 4-H Leaders Forum in Washington some years ago.
“In rural Alaska, dumpsters serve a huge purpose. The Cooperative Extension Service Bethel District is 55,000 sq. miles. You think of it as pristine Alaska. There’s little worse than coming...

FOUR SEASONS DISPOSAL INC., DUMPSTERS & DISPOSAL CONTAINERS

Our commitment is to provide the highest quality waste collection and recycling system in a environmentally responsible manner to many residential commercial/ industrial customers through out Toronto and surrounding areas.

We offer dumpsters from 14 to 40 cubic yards for removing waste, demolition and construction debris, earth/soil, concrete and asphalt from residential, industrial and commercial areas.

We provide excellent services with discounted rates compared to our competitors. We also have the best drivers in the business. Our regular and frequent maintenance of operating equipment enables us to maintain dependable customer service.

For worry free solutions to your unwanted waste problems please contact me at your convenience and we will gladly assist you!

Regards,
Sam Toti : Sales Representative

Option 1: Tonnage .....................Option 2: Flat Rate
Garbage Bin Prices .....................14yrd $300 up to 4400 lbs
14 cubic yard $150 ....................20yrd $400 up to 6600 lbs
20 cubic yard $175 .....................40yrd $500 up to 8800 lbs
40 cubic yard $220......................$85 per 2200 lbs over max.
Plus $85 per 2200 lbs

Concrete Or Asphalt = 14 Cubic yard $250
Clean Fill = 14 Cubic yard $380
Plus HST

Get Free No...