4 posts tagged “epa”

The US’ National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) and several other food and agribusiness groups are opposing a drive by the ethanol industry to raise the percentage of ethanol that can legally be added to motor gasoline, a limit now set at 10% to protect engine performance and fuel mileage.

...the groups claim that the sharp increase in ethanol production since 2000 has contributed to volatile commodity prices and food price inflation. In addition, the groups argue that blends higher than E-10 should not be permitted until the EPA completes a lifecycle assessment of the effects of biofuels on climate change. They also call for further study on the effects of intermediate blends on engines.

...EPA is currently reviewing its 10% blend limit for gasoline used in conventional vehicles. It is considering whether to increase the limit to as much as 15% or 20%. Ethanol and corn interests argue that unless the blend percentage is increased, ethanol supply will outrun demand in the coming months...

CFLs or Compact fluorescent lights, you know the "curly bulbs" that are all the rage.  Legislation was passed that phases out all incandescent lighting by 2012.  The problem?  You can't just throw them away in some states and I'm sure other states will be passing laws that prohibit public disposal.  If so you will need to schedule a Non-Hazardous Waste pickup and a EPA Bill of Lading Manifest will need to be completed before the pickup.  Another option is transporting the waste to a local recycling center.  Also, did you know if one breaks you are supposed to evacuate the entire room for 15 minutes and close off any ventilation.  Wait that's not all... if you live in an apartment building you are supposed to call maintenance to turn off the air conditioning if you break one of those bulbs.  I would like to listen in on that phone call.  The EPA has dedicated a page to those wonderful new squiggly bulbs and thermometers; as a bonus they also list things you should never do when cleaning up a broken lightbulb.

I'm going to copy and paste from the EPA site their instructions for how to clean up and dispose of a CFL. I'm also posting the information on what never to do.  The link to the EPA webpage with the full information is at the bottom of the page and in the link above.  This is information that every American should be required to know.  If you have children or pets I wouldn't put one in any lamp that could accidently get knocked over.

Fluorescent light bulbs contain a very small amount of mercury sealed within the glass tubing. EPA recommends the following clean-up and disposal below.

Before Clean-up: Air Out the Room

• Have people and pets leave the room, and don't let anyone walk through the breakage area on their way out.
• Open a window and leave the room for 15 minutes or more.
• Shut off the central forced-air heating/air conditioning system, if you have one.

Clean-Up Steps for Hard Surfaces

• Carefully scoop up glass pieces and powder using stiff paper or cardboard and place them in a glass jar with metal lid (such as a canning jar) or in a sealed plastic bag.
• Use sticky tape, such as duct tape, to pick up any remaining small glass fragments and powder.
• Wipe the area clean with damp paper towels or disposable wet wipes. Place towels in the glass jar or plastic bag.
• Do not use a vacuum or broom to clean up the broken bulb on hard surfaces.

Clean-up Steps for Carpeting or Rug

• Carefully pick up glass fragments and place them in a glass jar with metal lid (such as a canning jar) or in a sealed plastic bag.
• Use sticky tape, such as duct tape, to pick up any remaining small glass fragments and powder.
• If vacuuming is needed after all visible materials are removed, vacuum (? see below what not to do) the area where the bulb was broken.
• Remove the vacuum bag (or empty and wipe the canister), and put the bag or vacuum debris in a sealed plastic bag.

Clean-up Steps for Clothing, Bedding and Other Soft Materials

• If clothing or bedding materials come in direct contact with broken glass or mercury-containing powder from inside the bulb that may stick to the fabric, the clothing or bedding should be thrown away. Do not wash such clothing or bedding because mercury fragments in the clothing may contaminate the machine and/or pollute sewage.
• You can, however, wash clothing or other materials that have been exposed to the mercury vapor from a broken CFL, such as the clothing you are wearing when you cleaned up the broken CFL, as long as that clothing has not come into direct contact with the materials from the broken bulb.
• If shoes come into direct contact with broken glass or mercury-containing powder from the bulb, wipe them off with damp paper towels or disposable wet wipes. Place the towels or wipes in a glass jar or plastic bag for disposal.

Disposal of Clean-up Materials

• Immediately place all clean-up materials outdoors in a trash container or protected area for the next normal trash pickup. (Unless you live in a state that prohibits public disposal)
  
• Wash your hands after disposing of the jars or plastic bags containing clean-up materials.
• Check with your local or state government about disposal requirements in your specific area. Some states do not allow such trash disposal. Instead, they require that broken and unbroken mercury-containing bulbs be taken to a local recycling center.

Future Cleaning of Carpeting or Rug: Air Out the Room During and After Vacuuming

• The next several times you vacuum, shut off the central forced-air heating/air conditioning system and open a window before vacuuming.
• Keep the central heating/air conditioning system shut off and the window open for at least 15 minutes after vacuuming is completed.

Now for the instructions on WHAT NOT TO DO.

What Never to Do with a Mercury Spill

• Never use a vacuum (? see what to do) cleaner to clean up mercury.  The vacuum will put mercury into the air and increase exposure.

• Never use a broom to clean up mercury. It will break the mercury into smaller droplets and spread them.

• Never pour mercury down a drain. It may lodge in the plumbing and cause future problems during plumbing repairs. If discharged, it can cause pollution of the septic tank or sewage treatment plant.

• Never wash clothing or other items that have come in direct contact with mercury in a washing machine, because mercury may contaminate the machine and/or pollute sewage. Clothing that has come into direct contact with mercury should be discarded. By "direct contact," we mean that mercury was (or has been) spilled directly on the clothing. For example:
  • if you broke a mercury thermometer and some of elemental mercury beads came in contact with your clothing, or
  • if you broke a compact fluorescent bulb (CFL) so that broken glass and other material from the bulb, including mercury-containing powder, came into contact with your clothing.

  You can, however, wash clothing or other materials that have been exposed to the mercury vapor from a broken CFL, like the clothing you happened to be wearing when you cleaned up the broken CFL, as long as that clothing has not come into direct contact with the materials from the broken bulb.

• Never walk around if your shoes might be contaminated with mercury. Contaminated clothing can also spread mercury around.

Here's the Link the full page on the EPA site:  Mercury spills, disposal and site cleanup.

Got all that? now go get green and think how lucky we are that Corporate America lobbyist are so environmentally friendly.

Now don't you feel better about what a great job the people in charge are doing about finding things to help us "folks" be green.  I hate the word folks, when used by politicians, we are people. (I also hate the word troops they are soldiers, a soldier dies not a troop... but that's another post for another day...

By 2012 everyone will be using these lighs.  One broken bulb or one burnt out bulb being disposed of improperly is no big deal but remember by 2012 all incandescent lignting is going to be phased out.  Millions of Americans will be disposing of these bulbs minus any kind of regulated control.  Think about it.

We have to find a better way.  Yea... this is receiving my "I'm Just Saying" tag.

Add it to the list.

White House in climate change "cover up"-Sen Boxer
Tue Jul 8, 2008 2:36pm EDT
By Richard Cowan

WASHINGTON, July 8 (Reuters) - A leading U.S. Senate Democrat accused the Bush administration on Tuesday of a "cover-up" aimed at stopping the Environmental Protection Agency from tackling greenhouse emissions.

"This cover-up is being directed from the White House and the office of the vice president," said Sen. Barbara Boxer, the California Democrat who chairs the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee.

At issue is a preliminary finding by the EPA last December that "greenhouse gases may reasonably be anticipated to endanger public welfare," according to Jason Burnett, the agency's former associate deputy administrator who appeared at a news conference with Boxer.

Such a finding would be an early step toward government regulation aimed at protecting public health.

Burnett, who resigned on June 9, told Boxer's committee the White House tried pressuring him to retract an e-mail om which he detailed the finding. Burnett said he refused.

Boxer said that unless EPA documents were released, it was likely that within the next two weeks her committee would try to subpoena the material. She did not know whether Republicans on the panel would block the effort...

Full Story Here