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September 2008 Recycling Used Electronics Is Easy Beat the E-Waste Blues Many Americans continue to put their old, unwanted cell phones, computers, printers, fax machines, batteries and so on into the regular garbage, not realizing there are a growing number of better alternatives for recycling. That's a shame, because this so-called "e-waste" (for electronics waste) contains toxic -- and valuable -- materials. Only a handful of states currently have e-waste recycling laws, and even some of those that do aren't necessarily well equipped to enforce them. Therefore, it's not surprising that surveys show only 21% of consumers recycle electronics. According to Greenpeace, 20 to 50 million tons of e-waste is discarded around the planet every year. If you loaded all that used product into train cars it would stretch around the entire planet! E-waste is the fastest growing component of the municipal solid waste stream, and makes up five percent of all municipal solid waste. This is a concern, because electronics can contain toxic lead and other heavy metals (cadmium, manganese, nickel, lithium and sometimes even mercury), as well as bromates, pthalates and PVC. E-waste can break down into a toxic witches' brew, which can leak into ground and surface waters if the material ends up as litter or in improperly lined landfills. Plus, much of the components of e-waste are readily reusable. That means less energy (and carbon emissions) will be needed for manufacturing, mining and processing. Steven Sams, vice president of IBM's Site and Facilities Services, explains that his company takes back 40,000 pieces of equipment from customers every week. "We refurbish 80% of that for reuse around the world, and break down and recycle all but about 1% of the rest," says Sams. There's likely to be an even greater need for e-waste recycling in coming months, as the pace of consumer technology development continues to accelerate, more people get cell phones (which only last an average of 18 months), gaming systems continue their rise in popularity, and the February 2009 switch to all-digital TV signals encourages people to purchase new sets. So, how do consumers get on the electronics recycling bandwagon? It's much easier than you might think! Simply go to Earth 911 and type in your zip code or city and state and what you want to recycle, and you should get a handy list of drop-off locations, with links to learn more. Earth 911 also is a good place to find general info on recycling trends and how-to’s. Other good resources include E-cycling Central and eRecycle.org. You can also check out this article on how to recycle used electronics by brand. For example, red-hot Apple now offers a free U.S. recycling program for old computers and monitors -- with the purchase of a new Mac. Visit any Apple retail store and turn in an old iPod for free recycling – you even get 10% off a new purchase. Dell is also leading the sector with some innovative take-back programs. Donate any working computer equipment to Dell's partners at the National Cristina Foundation, and it will find worthy reuse for those in need (you can get a tax deduction, too). Recycle any Dell products with the company for free at any time, and get free recycling of any other brands when you buy new Dell stuff. Other companies have similar programs now, from HP to Gateway and more. Visit your local Best Buy if you need to drop off inkjet cartridges, cell phones and batteries for recycling. It's free and easy! You can also ask about periodic recycling drives the company sponsors for larger equipment, as well as the store's home pick-up service for up to two old appliances (that costs $100).

A Green Fund for Economic Recovery September 15, 2008 Reporting by Roddy Scheer With the right investment, the green economy will create four times the number of jobs as the fossil fuel industries. © www.apolloalliance.org A new report released last week by the nonprofit Center for American Progress (CAP) shows that the U.S. can create 2 million jobs over two years by investing in a rapid green economic recovery program. The report, entitled “Green Recovery: A Program to Create Good Jobs and Start Building a Low-Carbon Economy,” shows how an investment of $100 billion in green technologies and industries would create nearly four times more jobs than spending the same amount of money within the oil industry, and would simultaneously reduce national unemployment from today’s 5.7% level to 4.4% over just two years. The icing on the cake, of course, would be a marked reduction in greenhouse gas emissions as greener, non-fossil fuel alternatives become more widely implemented. According to the report, half of the money proposed for the green fund, some $50 billion, would fund tax credits that would assist private businesses and homeowners to finance both commercial and residential building retrofits as well as investments in renewable energy systems. Another $46 billion would be earmarked for direct government spending on public building retrofits, the expansion of mass transit, freight rail and smart electrical grid systems, and new investments in renewable energy. The remaining $4 billion would be held for federal loan guarantees to underwrite private credit extended to finance building retrofits and renewable energy investments. Bracken Hendricks of CAP told reporters that the $100 billion investment suggested by the report represents a “down payment” on a larger proposed 10-year policy program designed to get the economy out of the doldrums by ushering in a new era of green energy. Another key aspect of the larger program would be the immediate implementation of a cap-and-trade program to drive private investments into clean energy and raise public revenue—which could pay for the proposed $100 billion fund entirely—through carbon permit auctions. While such a plan may seem “pie-in-the-sky” under the Bush administration, it (or something similar) just could see the light of day under a new president committed to a greener future. Both Obama and McCain have repeatedly talked the talk on the campaign trail about reducing greenhouse gas emissions and facilitating a transition to a greener economy.

COMMENTARY: Green Behind the Scenes Aveda Gets Active During NYC’s Fashion Week By Brita Belli Aveda’s Sigg bottles encourage those backstage at Fashion Week to switch to tap, and keep plastic out of the oceans. © Aveda Talk about awkward. Aveda is backstage at New York Fashion week handing out refillable blue Sigg bottles proudly filled with New York tap water, while cases of Evian bottled water sit in little domed coolers throughout the event. You know, those tiny bottles of water—the ones containing about three sips wrapped in lots of excess plastic. While Aveda was directing the hair, makeup and organic catering at the Phillip Lim show in Bryant Park on Wednesday, September 10, Evian was sponsoring the event—hence the mixed message. But in some ways, those tiny bottles made as clear a point as any slogan. A Sigg bottle holds a serious amount of water—33 ounces—that stays cool in its stainless steel case, and tastes cleaner than its plastic counterpart. Those little bottles seem wasteful and silly in comparison. Evan Miller, Aveda’s director of new and environmental media, met me backstage where stagehands and models and stylists squeezed past one another in a constant frenzy of activity. Except for Evian’s presence here, he said, “we’ve eliminated bottled water at all our shows.” The maker of plant-based hair care, skin care and other products has been doing fashion week for the past five years and this year worked with Rodarte, Preen and Alexander Wang in addition to Lim. Also, in honor of Aveda’s 30th anniversary, they used fashion week to kick off their Caps Recycling Program, which highlights the issue of plastic in the ocean. Aveda stylists work on a model backstage at the Phillip Lim show. The company’s products are all plant-based. © Brita Belli The amount of plastic particles in the oceans has tripled since the 1960s, plastic outnumbers algae in ocean waters 6:1, and it’s responsible for the deaths of over a million seabirds and 100,000 mammals and sea turtles each year. As of June 2008, according to the press release, Aveda has collected more than 50,000 pounds of plastic and returned it to use. Keeping bottled water out of the hands of models and designers might seem a small part of that global effort, but the effect is noticeable. “The models say that at other backstages, there are hundreds of water bottles laying around,” says Miller. No one remembers which bottle belongs to them, so they keep opening new ones. Labels with spaces to write names on the Aveda Sigg bottles solve the “Whose bottle is it?” dilemma. The organic food Aveda provides has appeal among the models as well. “If they are eating,” says Miller, “they want to eat healthy.” It’s all in keeping with their grander green mission—which includes natural hair and skin products that don’t strip the hair or irritate the skin, especially important to models going through some eight shows a day at the height of fashion week. Even Aveda’s hairspray contains no alcohol, and although the aerosol might be a contentious point in terms of emissions, the company offsets them by buying carbon credits. “We want our products to be useful for professionals, but we’re still concerned about offsetting,” Miller says. Aveda provided models, designers and other VIPs with emission-free pedicab trips between fashion shows. © Aveda Designers are taking notice, and approaching Aveda about coming to their shows. Top of that list was Lim, a mid-thirties designer who won the Council of Fashion Designers of America award for best emerging designer in 2007, and whose dresses have become ubiquitous on Hollywood starlets, including Rihanna, Diane Kruger and Lauren Conrad. His 3.1 collection was on display under Fashion Week’s most distinguished tent, before an audience that included actress Juliette Lewis, and it was a play of muted colors and ruffles, belts tied into bows and dresses that drape, all done under low lighting and set to thumping beats. But it’s Lim’s Go Green Go collection that’s got the real green cred. Available at Bergdorf’s and Barney’s, it’s got all of Lim’s signature drapes, gathers and details done in organic cotton and free of dyes. He even created his own tote bag for the show. “Phillip is extremely green,” says Miller, “others designers are really just into the natural or organic materials.” Aveda made its presence and mission known throughout the week by offering free pedicab rides for the models, designers and other VIPs, taking them from show to show as a fun, emission-free way to travel. BRITA BELLI is editor of E.

Troubled Waters “Ocean Deserts” are Expanding, Disrupting Habitats and Suffocating Marine Life By Jessica A. Knoblauch Low oxygen areas have been found in the Pacific, Atlantic and Northern Indian Oceans. © Getty Images The world’s oceans are heating up. And like a bottle of pop left out in the sun, they’re going flat. Except instead of carbon dioxide, they’re losing oxygen. As with most liquids, water’s ability to dissolve oxygen largely depends on temperature. The warmer the water, the less oxygen it can hold. Though oxygen-starved or hypoxic zones have always existed, warmer waters may be causing these zones to expand, according to new research published in the journal Science. The study, led by Lothar Stramma at the University of Kiel in Germany, addressed changes in different regions of the oceans, and found that oxygen levels in tropical oceans hundreds of feet below the surface have declined over the past 50 years. These low oxygen areas are generally found in the Pacific, Atlantic and Northern Indian Ocean, according to coauthor Gregory C. Johnson, an oceanographer with the federal Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory in Seattle. Though located deep within the ocean, these oxygen-minimum zones have the ability to affect coastal areas. “Along California, there are undercurrents that carry these low oxygen waters forward,” Johnson says. “These oxygen-depleted zones are spilling onto the continental shelf off the coast of California and are starting to [expand] near the coast of Peru.” The low oxygen levels suffocate some species while driving out others. “As these areas expand, certain species’ habitats become more and more limited,” Johnson says. More significantly, surface warming increases stratification, creating a barrier between the lighter warm water and denser cold water in the ocean. It’s like putting maple syrup at the bottom of a container and lighter fluid at the top, explains Jack Sobel, a scientist at the nonprofit Ocean Conservancy. The two can’t mix. “There’s a stronger contrast in density between warm waters above and cool waters below,” Johnson says. Warmer water means less oxygen and serious threat to ocean species. The Hawaiian monk seal is in danger of starvation. © U.S. Fish & Wildlife This cap keeps oxygen-enriched surface waters from mixing with the colder water below and also decreases the likelihood of nutrient-rich, colder water making its way to the surface. The process, known as upwelling, is crucial to the productivity of marine life. “The mixing of nutrients and oxygen is what drives an ocean’s productivity,” Sobel says. “Without this process, it’s difficult for ocean wildlife to survive.” The Northwest Hawaiian Islands are being heavily impacted by changing ocean conditions. Already faced with threats from over-fishing and human disturbance, the Hawaiian monk seal may now face possible starvation due to a lack of productivity in these areas of increased stratification. “For the monk seals, this may be the last nail in the coffin,” Stobel says. According to researchers at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the University of Hawaii, these biologically unproductive areas––often referred to as “ocean deserts”––are expanding much faster than predicted. The study addresses areas in the subtropical gyres––large-scale ocean currents in the middle of the ocean. The researchers, who published the study in Geophysical Research Letters this March, found that between 1998 and 2007, these expanses of saltwater with low surface plant life in the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans grew by 15%, encompassing a size larger than all of Asia. “We’re seeing an increase in the low surface productivity areas in the world’s oceans,” says coauthor Evan Howell, a research oceanographer at NOAA. “Though it’s difficult to say what will happen to marine life in these areas, what’s certain is that these zones represent a large change in habitat.” Between 1998 and 2007, ocean deserts grew by 15%, encompassing a size larger than all of Asia. © Michel Detay Other oxygen measurement studies across the globe have found similar results. Steven J. Bograd, an oceanographer with NOAA in Pacific Grove, California, recently conducted research on dropping oxygen levels near California. The results of the study, which have been accepted for publication in Geophysical Research Letters, are consistent with those of Stramma. Bograd used historical data from a long-term sampling program called CalCOFI (California Cooperative Oceanic and Fisheries Investigations) from 1984 to 2006, and found significant declining trends in dissolved oxygen throughout the region. “There was a trend of declining oxygen pretty much everywhere,” said Bograd. “The results were pretty significant.” He also found that over the 23-year time period there was an expansion of continental shelf area off of California exposed to low oxygen conditions. Like previous studies, Bograd emphasized that an expansion of oxygen-minimum zones has important ecosystem implications. As the low-oxygen areas increase, habitats get smaller, until species suffocate, move to another region or adapt. “Most marine species have minimum oxygen thresholds that they need for survival,” Bograd says. “As oxygen decreases, these animals will suffer and/or be compelled to move to other areas.” Though the overall outlook is grim, there is good news for certain ocean species. The jumbo squid (or Humboldt squid) can handle low-oxygen waters better than most of its competitors. William Gilly, who coauthored Bograd’s report, has observed a broad expansion of jumbo squid in the eastern Pacific, including the first recorded observations of this species in Alaskan waters. This expansion could be deadly for other species, as jumbo squid are voracious predators. Says Bograd, “Although many fish and invertebrate species will be negatively affected by an expanding oxygen-minimum zone, the one thing that you can say for sure is that we would expect there to be a change in the community structure of local ecosystems.” On what’s causing the expansion of these hypoxic areas, researchers have yet to reach a consensus. One obvious culprit is global warming, which has caused the ocean’s temperature to increase about .1 degrees Celsius to date, according to Sobel. “This number sounds small,” he says, “but it is significant given an ocean’s massive size and enormous heat capacity.” Though all three studies’ findings match up with global warming models, which predict an overall decline in dissolved oxygen concentration and an expansion of oxygen-minimum zones, head researcher Lothar Stramma and others are hesitant to rule out other causes just yet. Says Stramma, “For me, it is too early to blame the expanding oxygen-minimum zones on global warming,” he says, “but we have to find out soon.”

A Hammock in the Palms Tropical, Secluded and Committed to Green: Bangaram Island Resort By Jenny Fowler Bangaram Island © Photos by Charles Stirling The heat of the white sand hit my bare feet as I stepped off the little blue raft that carried guests from boat to beach. Just a few steps brought us to a palm-thatched bar. The shade was welcome, as was the drink from a freshly opened coconut while we checked in. Bangaram Island is a model tropical island: white sand, turquoise lagoon, green coconut palm trees, coral reefs and thatched-roof cottages. Less than a square mile in area, it’s part of the Lakshadweep group of islands in the Arabian Sea, about 200 miles west of the state of Kerala in southern India. Bangaram Island Resort is run by CGH Earth Hotels, a group that aims to provide high-quality vacations with minimal environmental impact. Hammocks hang between the coco-nut palms and cottages line a beach that’s ideal for swimming or snorkeling, often with sea turtles. A wellness center offers massage, meditation and traditional Indian Ayurvedic treatments. Evening meals are served beneath the stars. There are locally inspired dishes laid out buffet-style over small heaters fueled by coconut husk, or one can combine salad with succulent prawns or meat from a barbecue. The coral reef beckoned my partner and me, so we headed to the well-appointed dive center. Equipment loaded, the boat motored across the lagoon and outside of the fringing reef. We kitted up and back-rolled off the boat, descending to swim over the coral, cameras in hand. Elegant black-and-yellow bannerfish picked algae from among the coral polyps. Giant clams opened, revealing fantastical colors and patterns. Large groupers and sweetlips hung motionless over cleaning stations of small neon-blue wrasse and transparent shrimps. A hawksbill turtle appeared, undisturbed by our presence. Returning to our hut, we were pleased to find a reliable supply of solar-generated electricity to feed the laptop while we downloaded pictures. As the sun set, we joined fellow divers for a drink back at the small beach bar. (Alcohol is allowed on Bangaram as a concession to visitors, but prohibition is in force on the other islands.) An Island’s Commitments Bangaram Island Resort has drawn a green line in the sand. The cottages are built from local, mainly biodegradable materials. Spacious and comfortable, they are equipped with ceiling fans but no air conditioners. Water for the resort is harvested during the monsoon. Rain runs off the roofs into a collection and filtration system and is stored in concrete tanks. All the lighting uses low-energy bulbs and solar power provides electricity for 18 hours a day. With a hardworking staff, human power often replaces machinery. Baggage is lifted off the boat and rolled to the cottages on a handcart: There are no motor vehicles on the island. Paths and beaches are swept and tidied by hand. Use of plastic is kept to an absolute minimum. Another environmental issue is the impact of tourism on local people. In fact, Bangaram Island was uninhabited when the resort was developed, but the land belongs to people on the larger nearby island of Agatti. They lease the land to the resort owner, and continue to visit to collect firewood and coconuts from the island’s trees, and to fish off its shores. JENNY FOWLER is a travel and environment writer based in the U.K. Did you enjoy this article? Subscribe to E/The Environmental Magazine!