Abstract The paper explores the problem of recycling computers in business. The paper includes alternatives and a recommendation that they should be donated to charity. The paper also incorporates statistics on the scope of computerwaste and studies the global implications of the problem.
From the Paper "Trash is a problem that confronts everyone, whether in a personal or a commercial setting. Landfills are becoming filled and the media occasionally focuses on trash barges that are unable to find someplace to offload their cargo. For many companies the issue of trash is one that they have handled aggressively. Many companies recycle paper and other consumables and may even recycle office furniture. Computers pose their own set of problems when it comes to obsolescence, however."
Abstract This paper examines computerobsolescence, E-waste, and the effect on the Third World. The reality of the situation is that United States manufacturers and consumers are contributing to a significant health and environmental disaster in the Third World. An examination of this issue reveals the scope of the problem, the sheer amount of computers that are trashed every year as well as the inherent toxicity of E-waste. There are some viable solutions to the matter, but most require legislative action.
From the Paper "It's been estimated that in 2002 Americans alone threw out roughly ten million computers, about two-thirds of which were shipped to Asia for dismantling by rural villagers ("Activists" par. 1). Consider the sheer volume that ten million scrapped computers occupy. Consider that in the years before and since, many more millions of computers have joined them on the trash heap. When most of us think about the Information Revolution or the computer industry, we envision the Internet, blazing fast processors, and university student bobbing heads to barely concealed iPods."
Abstract This paper addresses how environmental liability impacts consumer technology companies such as Hewlett-Packard Company (HP) and what ethical steps a consumer technology company, like HP, should take to manage environmental liability as it relates to the disposal and recycling of consumer technology products, including personal computer, CRT monitors, printers and ink cartridges.
Outline
Background
Problem Statement
Problem Analysis
Literature Review
Possible Solutions
Recommended Solution and Implementation
Solution Justification
Bibliography
From the Paper "The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimated that 315 million computers would be obsolete by 2004, with a large percentage finding their way to landfills (15). The average personal computer, including the CRT monitor, contains fifteen pounds of glass, fourteen pounds of plastics, over twelve pounds of steel, over eight pounds of aluminum, four pounds of copper, almost four pounds of lead, over two pounds of nickel, tin, and zinc, plus traces of 24 other precious metals, rare earth, specialty minerals, and brominated chemicals (15). Personal computers and CRT monitors also contain arsenic, cadmium, and mercury and the EPA classifies these substances as "having hazardous waste characteristics" (4). "
Abstract The paper examines how hazardous waste is an acute problem throughout the world. The writer proposes that there is no single solution to this problem and that it is unlikely that our modern, industrialized society will become waste-free. This paper defines waste and hazardous waste. It looks at how hazardous waste is produced and how it can impact the environment as well as human health. The paper includes strategies for minimizing both the volume and impact of waste. The paper concludes that an approach that combines source reduction, reuse, recycling and burying in sanitary landfills is needed in order to properly manage both hazardous and non-hazardous waste.
Abstract This paper describes the daily operation process of the Miami facility of Cliff Berry Inc., hazardous waste disposal firm. The paper describes the facility, its waste disposal processes and also explains the firm's specialization in oil waste treatment and disposal. The paper also describes Cliff Berry's waste water management system and relates the challenges that they face, such as is the development of new technologies, the criticism of the hazardous waste disposal industry, the threat of new competition and regulatory issues on federal, state and county levels.
Outline:
Introduction
The Facility and Its Operations
Customers
Challenges
Major Regulatory Issues
Plans for the Future
References
From the Paper "The primary sources of waste at the Miami plant of Cliff Berry are the ships that ply the waters around South Florida. The area is home to two major cruise ship hubs at Miami and Fort Lauderdale, as well as two major container ports, the Port of Miami and Port Everglades. Oily bilge water from these ships is processed through this plant. They also service other major area hubs such as Tampa and Cape Canaveral. They work with all the major cruise lines that operate in South Florida."
Abstract The paper compares waste management practices and policies in the Canadian city of Toronto with the American city of New York. Government officials in major North American cities are increasingly concerned about reducing waste collection and transport costs, and are seeking to increase efficiency. While Toronto officials are aggressively promoting recycling in order to reduce the volume of solid waste that huge urban areas must haul to landfills for disposal, New York City officials are focusing more upon implementing more efficient and less expensive methods of waste collection and transportation.
From the Paper "Comparing waste management practices and policies in the Canadian city of Toronto with the American city of New York indicates that government officials in major North American cities are increasingly concerned about reducing waste collection and transport costs, and are seeking to increase efficiency. Subsequently, Toronto officials are aggressively promoting recycling in order to reduce the volume of solid waste that huge urban areas must haul to landfills for disposal, while New York City officials are focusing more upon implementing more efficient and less expensive methods of waste collection and transportation. In Toronto, Solid Waste Management Services is responsible for handling the transfer and disposal of garbage, "as well as the processing and sale of recyclable materials collected through the blue..."
Abstract 'Waste' can mean both a dry, infertile, inhospitable place, or the failure to make productive use of one's resources. This paper examines how T.S. Eliot's poem, "The Waste Land", embodies both of each seemingly diametrically opposed concepts to describe the social, cultural and spiritual dislocation in Europe following the First World War. Although modern life and culture may be seen to suffer from exile in a land of waste, such eras may be cyclical, and his brilliant use of fragmentary allusions suggests that the best of the past may foreshadow a brighter future.
From the Paper "By setting 'Waste' off as a separate word from 'Land', Eliot suggests to the reader that the various meanings of the term are key to an understanding of his message. Rather than referring to a wasteland (in the conventional sense of "desert"), the poem instead centers on the concept of a land both of desolation and of conspicuous, indiscriminate consumption, a land whose resources are not utilized but rather discarded on a purulent cultural garbage dump. The rich allusions within the poem both contrast and relate these seemingly opposed concepts. The first segment, 'Burial of the Dead', introduces the theme of the turning of the seasons, and more importantly, the theme of cyclical regeneration. In nature, waste is irrelevant. Although death occurs in all forms of life, the bodies of the dead furnish the hope of renewal to other living creatures. "
Abstract This paper reviews the waste management crisis in Toronto and suggests that a multi-pronged intervention is necessary if the matter is to be ameliorated. Chiefly, this paper suggests that a combination of cracking down on wasteful households in conjunction with an emphasis on diversifying energy sources for the downtown core using waste materials is the most effective means to assist everyone involved.
From the Paper "As a recently appointed consultant to assist the city of Toronto with its burgeoning waste problem, the writer believes in an intervention that could work - and at an affordable cost. This paper will de-emphasize statistics - to some extent - but it will emphasize the broad concepts at work (inasmuch as these concepts have caused a great deal of comment). As an additional point, it should be noted that the intervention in mind is really a multi-pronged one; as Toronto's waste management issue is a complex matter, it stands to reason that there is no simple solution that will make the matter go away over night."
Abstract This paper discusses the waste management issue in the communities of Toronto and New Castle Upon Tyne. The paper explains that, as the population of both cities increases, so do the problems surrounding waste management. In New Castle Upon Tyne the city council has determined that residents are currently creating more waste than any other city in the area. This situation creates an issue that is likely to become more dominant in society with continued growth.
Abstract The paper looks at how the not-in-my-backyard (NIMBY) syndrome affects how sites for waste disposal facilities are located. The paper then examines particular problems facing landfills and incinerators. The paper shows how current waste disposal strategies in Canada are ineffective due to undesirable by-products and strong resistance to these facilities. The paper concludes that the most obvious solution to these problems would appear to be to adopt waste diversion programs like the ones being developed in Toronto.
From the Paper "To begin this discussion it is necessary to look at the social phenomena known as NIMBY syndrome. NIMBY stands for Not In My Back Yard(Meredith 480). When discussing NIMBY syndrome in "Assessing Environmental Impacts in Canada" Thomas Meredith states,
"...A society collectively accepts the need for a project, say a landfill site, an airport, or a nuclear power plant, but no one wants it near them" (Meredith 480)."
"In this sense NIMBY syndrome can be seen as a way in which land can be made socially unavailable for facilities like incinerators or landfills. This can be seen as a major contradiction because two totally different social and environmental factors are being expressed at the same time. Everyone knows that these facilities are necessary for society to function and are largely unwilling to live without them. However, they are also unwilling to live near the facilities that they desire. Since these two desires can't both be fulfilled it is necessary to look for other options."
Abstract The paper focuses on medical waste management. The paper ties in the treatment of hemodialysis to demonstrate how one illness can affect the system. It further discusses the history of medical waste management, the issues surrounding it through history and then focuses on the current issues of incineration, disease, effects on the public and global warming. The paper discusses the politics involved, and the future concerns.
From the Paper "The issue of medical waste management has been relatively new to our culture in the United States. While we have always been aware that medical waste must be disposed of in the most efficient manner, it was not until the 1980s that concerns regarding the process gained public prominence and government intervention. In consideration of the fact that medical waste encompasses virtually every item, (to include human tissue and body parts), that are removed from a medical facility, it is understandable why public concern has been focused on this issue now for over 20 years."
Abstract This paper uses the second law of thermodynamics to explain why a properly designed source-separation recycling program takes less energy and produces less pollution than a centralized program that collects mixed waste over a large area and hauls it to a centralized facility where workers or machinery separates the waste for recycling.
From the Paper "Waste is an unavoidable consequence of our consumer oriented, highly industrialized society. In 2000, Canadians generated 1021 kg of non-hazardous waste per capita (Statistics Canada, 2002). 747kg of this waste were disposed of per capita (Statistics Canada, 2002), while the rest was recycled. Torontonians for example recycled 699 tonnes of household waste in 2001 (Ministry of Environment, 2004). Household waste generation was 353kg per capita in 2000 (Statistics Canada, 2002). The situation is similar in most developing countries although the levels of recycling vary. Growing concern for the environment, constant increase in the amounts of waste produced, economic, land and social costs involved in developing new landfill sites and public opinion have brought about the need to approach waste management in a broader context. "
Abstract In this essay the writer discusses that waste and its disposal are acute problems throughout the world. The writer notes that the disposal of waste provides a great environmental problem around the world. The writer looks at the use of recycling as a possible solution to the problem.
From the Paper "Waste disposal presents a big environmental problem that is universal to all nations of the world. Canada is no exception. Ontario for example has to export its waste across the border. There is no single solution to the problem and it is unlikely that our modern, industrialized society will in any near future become waste-free, as waste is an unavoidable consequence of our consumer oriented, highly industrialized society. In 2000, Canadians generated 1021 kg of non-hazardous waste per capita."
Abstract The paper discusses how the environment and the responsible use of resources has become more important to society over the course of the last thirty years. With the increases in the standard of living for Americans, the production of waste has also increased. Americans produce on average almost four pounds of garbage per person per day. Out of the millions of tons of waste generated each year, approximately 73 percent is land-filled, 14 percent is incinerated and only 13 percent is recovered for reuse.
Abstract This is an informational essay on the proposed toxic waste incinerator in LaFollette, Tennessee. It discusses the incinerator's potential impact on the surrounding environment and the health of the nearby community, citing the Oak Ridge and East Liverpool, OH incinerators as examples of how hazardous such a proposal is.
