Great Lakes Echo (http://greatlakesecho.org/tag/recycling/page/3/)
Coal ash could be used in concrete, lime ash could be used for farming and copper sand could be made into shingles under legislation that would allow certain industries to sell byproducts that they now throw away.
A recent study by the Natural Resources Defense Council reports that 1.86 million mercury thermostats are still being used in the state of Illinois. The state continues to set collection goals to help reduce this number.
Old tires could create pothole resistant Michigan roads.
If it works, it may help address a disposal headache.
Mr. Great Lakes (Jeff Kart) reports from Bay City, Michigan’s Delta College Q-90.1 FM.
Feb. 7, 2014 – Mr. Great Lakes (Jeff Kart) – The Environment Report, Q 90.1 FM by jeffkart
This week, Kart discusses a collegiate recycling tournament, research on the consumption of Asian carp and an “almost foolproof” barrier for carp. Text at Mr. Great Lakes
A football stadium may have green grass but does it have green habits? Each week, Great Lakes Echo highlights a Big Ten football stadium’s attempts to do the most to impact the environment the least. All schools have information on the stadium’s diversion rate – the amount of waste recycled instead of put in a landfill. Stadium: Spartan Stadium
School: Michigan State University
Built: 1923
Capacity: 75,005
2012 diversion rate: 56.3 percent
Scouting report: Michigan State University has 80 recycling containers inside Spartan Stadium during games. Staff handpicks recyclables from the grounds outside stadium gates and on Sunday mornings from tailgating lots.
Michigan’s recycling rate is lowest in Great Lakes region by Great Lakes Echo
At 20 percent, Michigan’s recycling rate is 10 percent lower than the regional average. Many people around the state are hoping to change that. In 2012, Governor Rick Snyder identified increasing Michigan’s recycling rates as a priority for his administration. Michigan Recycling Coalition executive director Kerrin O’Brien discusses what a comprehensive recycling plan might include. Also this past March, the Keep Michigan Wolves Protected coalition submitted some 255,000 signatures in a bid to overturn the law passed by the Michigan legislature that put wolves on the list of game species. The Senate
soon passed another law that essentially circumvented the petition. Now, the group is trying again with a second referendum drive. This time, the president of the Human Society of the United States was in Michigan earlier this week to lend his support. We spoke with HSUS president Wayne Pacelle about the issue. This environmental segment of Current State is supported by Michigan State University’s Knight Center for Environmental Journalism. For more news of the Great Lakes environment, you can check out GreatLakesEcho.org
Electronics or e-waste makes up nearly 70% of toxic waste found in landfills.
Jim Grandholm, founder of Michigan-based Green Earth Electronics Recycling, discusses how e-waste can be safely disposed of or donated.
Echo asks elementary school kids about the importance of recycling.
Recycling experts add their perspective.
The Globe Elevator is a piece of Great Lakes history and a source of old growth Eastern white pine. Wisconsin Woodchuck hopes to preserve both, claiming that destroying the elevator would have environmental consequences.
Mercury, a hazardous material found in many common household items, can be safely recycled by local health departments, according to this public service announcement from the Michigan Department of Community Health. “Mercury that is recycled will be purified so that it can be used for industrial and laboratory applications,” said department toxicologist Christina Bush, “There are some instances where mercury is the best or only option to use. But mercury-containing items in homes, schools, and medical settings can be replaced with safer alternatives.” Additional information on the safe disposal of mercury, as well as the health risks the substance presents, can be found at the health department’s mercury website. The full series of health department mercury PSAs can be found here.