A recent study ^[1] carried out by the Environment Agency (EA) has demonstrated that the major greenhouse gas emissions associated with the supply-use-treatment cycle of water use in the domestic sector are during the ‘use’ phase of water with 89% of emissions attributable to water use in the home. With this in mind, it is important that we ensure to take a more efficient approach to the water using activities within the home and also the wider built environment in order to, ultimately, combat the uncertainties of climate change by reducing the amounts of CO² emissions released into the atmosphere. An easy way to get you or your family considering their water consumption is to buy a shower timer.

One example of a water using activity within the home and also the wider environment is the flushing of toilets and urinals. It is suggested that toilets and urinals account for approximately 30-40% of domestic water use and up to 90% for offices and public conveniences. This article will take a closer look at water saving technology relating to the specific water using activity of flushing toilets and urinals.

Technology

Variflush

Variflush technology works by interrupting the operation of a typical toilet cistern siphon simply by introducing air to it. A small drill hole is made in the top of the siphon and a pipe is connected to it, so that air can be fed from the variable flush device into the top of the siphon to interrupt its operation. The Variflush system allows the user to set the quantity of water used in each flush and to use the system couldn’t be easier, the user simply sets the system to their desired setting (Minimum, Medium, Maximum – quantity of water used each flush) and flushes the toilet. By fitting Variflush technology to your toilet cistern you will be able to significantly reduce the amounts of excess water that is wasted in over-flushing.

Hippo Water Saving Cistern Bags

The typical modern toilet cistern uses in the region of around 7 to 8 litres of water every flush which is far more than what is actually required to flush a toilet effectively. The Hippo water saving cistern bag technology works by placing a robust polythene bag (Hippo bag) inside of a toilets cistern. Each time the toilet is flushed, around 3 litres of clean water is saved within the Hippo bag preventing it from being flushed into and down the toilet. A small hole is present at the base of the bag in order to prevent the water becoming stagnant.

Water Efficient Toilet Cisterns

Water efficient toilet cisterns are more fundamental in their approach to saving water when flushing a toilet compared to the previously mentioned water saving technologies. Water efficient toilet cisterns save water by simply being available in smaller water volume sizes, which in effect, minimises the amount of water a toilet has available to use in order to flush. If you are interested in more ways to save water within your home then why not have a look at Energy Saving Warehouse’s range of water saving products?

References

[1] Environment Agency (2008a). Greenhouse gas emissions of water supply and demand management options. Science Report

The EU Landfill Directive demands that before waste can be sent to landfill it must be pre-treated. Firstly, this is to reduce the environmental impact of the waste that does get sent to landfill, and secondly, to further increase the amounts of materials recycled.

Autoclaving is a waste treatment process that uses a combination of heat, steam and pressure, along with the mechanical action of rotation to treat residual waste (waste that has not been collected for recycling or composting and has been placed in wheelie bins/black bags). Ultimately, the aim of waste autoclave process is to reduce the impacts residual waste has on the environment when sent to landfill. This article will take a closer look at what the waste autoclave process involves, the outputs of the process, as well as taking into consideration the process’ potential advantages and disadvantages.

The Autoclave Process

The waste autoclave process begins with the preparation of residual waste. Such preparation involves the removal of any large, bulky items of waste in order to make it more suitable to be placed in an autoclave. In some cases it is also possible that residual waste undergoes further mechanical waste preparation techniques such as shredding in order to facilitate the autoclave process. The main purpose of shredding waste as a preparation technique for autoclaving is to split open refuse bags in order to release the waste within them.

Following waste preparation, the remaining unsorted residual waste is then placed and sealed in an autoclave, a large, enclosed vessel similar to that of a fuel tanker that uses mechanical rotation to agitate and mix the waste (FOE). Pressured steam is then pumped into the autoclave vessel which ‘cooks’ the waste at temperatures of around 160° for approximately 45 minutes. The process results in the biodegradable/organic fraction of residual waste (green waste, food waste, paper/card waste) being broken down into a sanitised recyclable fibre known as ‘floc’, and the inorganic fraction being steam cleaned to produce sanitised recyclates (glass, plastics, metals) and residual waste for final disposal.

After the autoclave process, the fully sanitised waste is released from the autoclave vessel and further processed by mechanical separation techniques. This separation batches together the different material types (metals, plastics) ready to be sent for recycling. There are a number of different techniques that can be used to separate the sanitised waste, all of which can be used in combination to achieve specific end use requirements for the different materials. Trommel screens, magnetic separation, eddy current separation, and air classification are all types of different waste separation techniques used. Such techniques utilize the different properties of the waste materials, properties such as shape, magnetism, electric conductivity and weight, in order to separate them.

Outputs of Autoclaving

The main output of the waste autoclave process is ‘floc’. ‘Floc’ is a fibre like material created from the breakdown of the biodegradable fraction of residual waste during the autoclave process. This is the main output of the waste autoclave process as biodegradable waste makes up the largest proportion of residual waste (FOE). If however floc was to be sent to landfill for disposal, it would still biodegrade (breakdown and release the harmful greenhouse gas methane into the atmosphere). This means that further treatment of floc is necessary before it can be sent to landfill.

Floc can be biologically processed using either aerobic composting or anaerobic digestion. Floc treated with anaerobic digestion will produce biogas which can either be used as a natural gas substitute, or more commonly, to fuel generators in combined heat and power (CHP) applications to generate electricity, as well as heat (DEFRA). Floc treated with aerobic composting will produce a compost-like output (CLO), a residue similar to normal compost that can be used to spread on previously developed land, or as landfill cover. This compost-like output is not suitable for using as compost on agricultural land or for horticulture as it is not compliant with the UK specification for compost, BSi PAS 100. This is because the compost-like output is not as clean as normal compost as it may have, for example, high concentrations of some heavy metals due to metal materials being present in the autoclave process (FOE).

Potential Advantages

• Autoclaving reduces the volume of residual waste by ~60%, reducing the amount of waste requiring final treatment and disposal. This reduction in the volume of waste results in lower waste disposal costs for local authorities.
• Poor levels of waste management, particularly recycling, can see recyclable materials become part of the composition of residual waste. Such recyclable materials within residual waste can be captured by the waste autoclave process and sent for reprocessing.
• Autoclaving enhances the quality of recyclable materials by fully sanitising them, in turn increasing their market value.
• Autoclave plants can be built in large numbers on a small scale, reducing the need to bring waste in from wide areas. This supports the proximity principle which suggest waste should be disposed of as near as possible to its place of generation.

Potential Disadvantages

• The market for the main output of the autoclave process, ‘floc’, either as refused derived fuel or a secondary material is underdeveloped in the UK.
• The compost-like output (CLO) produced from the aerobic composting/digestion of ‘floc’ is not compliant with BSi PAS 100.
• Autoclaving is energy intensive which questions its environmental and economic feasibility.
• Autoclaving does not reduce the biodegradable content of residual waste; instead, the biodegradable content is broken down into a biodegradable fibre like material (floc) that requires additional processing or disposal in landfill.

The EU Landfill Directive stipulates that: before waste can be sent to landfill it must be pre-treated; and, that the amount of biodegradable waste (green waste, food waste, paper/card waste) sent to landfill is reduced. The directive demands such actions in order to reduce the environmental impact of wastes that do get sent to landfill, and also to further increase the amounts of materials recycled.

Mechanical Biological Treatment (MBT) is a waste treatment process that involves both mechanical and biological treatment processes. MBT is used to treat residual waste (waste that has not been collected for recycling or composting and has been placed in wheelie bins/black bags), as well as reducing its biodegradable content. Ultimately, the aim of MBT is to reduce the impacts residual waste has on the environment when sent to landfill. This article will take a closer look at both the mechanical and biological elements of MBT, as well as taking into consideration its potential advantages and disadvantages.

The Mechanical Stage of MBT

In the mechanical stage, the first stage of MBT, residual waste undergoes preparation and separation in order to make it more suitable for biological treatment. Primary waste preparation involves the removal of large, bulky items of waste. This is followed by further mechanical waste preparation techniques used to prepare the materials for subsequent separation stages (DEFRA). The main purpose of such techniques is to either split open refuse bags in order to release the waste within them, or to shred waste into smaller particles sizes suitable for separation or further biological treatment (DEFRA). Shredders and rotating drums are most commonly used to further mechanically prepare residual waste. Following waste preparation, the remaining materials of the residual waste are then separated appropriately in accordance to their different end uses, for example, material recycling and biological treatment. There are a number of different techniques that can be used to separate the remaining materials, and most MBT facilities use a series of several different techniques in combination to achieve specific end use requirements for different materials (DEFRA). Trommel screens, magnetic separation, eddy current separation, and air classification are all types of waste separation techniques which utilize the different properties of the waste, properties such as shape, magnetism, electric conductivity and weight, in order to separate it.

The Biological Stage of MBT

In the biological stage of MBT, the biodegradable fraction of residual waste (green waste, food waste, paper/card waste) is biologically treated. Aerobic digestion/composting and anaerobic digestion are the two most common processes used to biologically treat the waste.

Aerobic digestion/composting is the process whereby organic material is decomposed into carbon dioxide (CO₂), water (H₂O), and heat through microbial respiration in the presence of oxygen leaving a stabilised residual solid material, compost (DEFRA).

This biological treatment of waste is known as aerobic composting and usually takes place in specifically designed vessels such as tunnels.

Anaerobic digestion is a naturally occurring process whereby anaerobic bacteria breakdown organic material, in the absence of oxygen to produce biogas and digestate.

Biogas produced from anaerobic digestion can either be used as a natural gas substitute, or more commonly, it is used to fuel boilers to produce heat (hot water and steam), or to fuel generators in combined heat and power (CHP) applications to generate electricity, as well as heat (DEFRA).

Advantages of MBT

• MBT is proven in Europe as a waste treatment technology used for treating large amounts of residual waste.
• MBT reduces both the volume and biodegradable content of residual waste, therefore, reducing the amount of landfill space taken and the production of landfill gases (methane) when the waste is sent to landfill. The reduced volume of waste also results in lower waste disposal costs for local authorities.
• Poor levels of waste management, particularly recycling, can see recyclable materials become part of the composition of residual waste. Such recyclable materials within residual waste can be captured by MBT and sent for reprocessing.
• Household items/materials that become residual waste due to there being no recycling systems in place for them, e.g. steel coat hangers, can be captured by MBT and sent for reprocessing.

Disadvantages of MBT

• MBT reduces the quality of recyclable material compared to that collected by kerbside collection schemes, in turn, lowering its market value.
• MBT plants bring in large volumes of waste from wide areas. This contradicts the proximity principle which suggest waste should be disposed of as near as possible to its place of generation.
• MBT plants that have long term contracts with local authorities and demand a fixed tonnage of waste from them could potentially undermine recycling and waste minimisation.
• It is possible that some local authorities will see MBT as a way to meet recycling rates without the need for separate kerbside collections of recyclable materials.

The EU Waste Framework Directive (2008/98/EC) defines waste as any substance or object which the holder discards, intends to, or is required to discard. It is estimated that each year the UK produces around 100 million tonnes of waste from households, commerce, and industry (DEFRA).

Why We Should Minimise Our Waste

For many years, landfill has been opted as the main method in which we dispose of our waste, encouraging us to simply ‘throw it away’. However, it has been widely recognised that the need to divert waste away from landfill by minimising and managing our waste more effectively is an absolute necessity.

From a financial point of view, this is because the management of waste is expensive, and is going to become even more so with the increase of taxes and waste disposal costs (CIWM). This means that by minimising the amounts of waste produced initially, businesses and local councils throughout the UK will not only be able to reduce their overall carbon footprint, but will be able to reduce their overall waste management costs and reap the financial benefits.

From an environmental point of view, this is because the landfilling of waste is having a negative effect on our environment. This is because the biodegradable portion of waste (green waste, food waste, paper/card waste) sent to landfill is broken down by bacteria and releases methane into the atmosphere, a powerful greenhouse gas known to contribute to climate change. It also has a negative effect on our environment as we are unnecessarily throwing away and wasting our valuable existing materials and resources, forcing us to extract and process new raw materials in order to produce virgin material products. By minimising the amounts of waste we produce to start with, and by managing the waste that we do produce effectively by reusing products, recycling materials, and recovering energy from materials which cannot be either reused or recycled, we are able to reduce pollution and conserve our limited natural resources, proactively bringing about environmental benefits.

The Waste Hierarchy

The waste hierarchy is a useful tool which sets out an order of the way in which waste should be managed in order to bring about as little damage to environment as possible. The hierarchy indicates that we must do our best to ensure that first of all waste is prevented and minimised, followed by the re-use of materials and products, the recycling of materials, the recovery of energy from materials, and then finally as a last resource, the landfilling of waste.

Prevention and Minimisation

Waste prevention, also known as waste minimisation and source reduction, is the procedure of reducing the amount of waste produced by a person, or a business organisation.

Household individuals can prevent and minimise their waste by using waste minimisation techniques such as: buying the appropriate amounts and sizes of products when shopping (e.g. don’t buy too much food for a small family that will only go off and go to waste); buy products in bulk so that packaging waste is reduced (e.g. buy economy size washing powder boxes – more washing powder, less packaging); buy products loose where possible (e.g. buy a loose bunch of bananas that can be carried without a bag); avoid buying disposable products where possible (e.g. buy reusable instead of disposable razors); use reusable boxes to store food rather than cling film or foil; buy fewer products that will last longer to reduce packaging waste.

A business organisation can prevent and minimise their waste by reviewing and analysing the manufacturing processes of their products. By reviewing and analysing these processes and making more efficient use of raw materials, packaging, fuel, electricity, water and gas, not only can waste be reduced, but financial savings can be achieved.

Re-use

This is the procedure of re-using products or materials that would otherwise become a waste. Household individuals are able to reduce the amounts of waste they produce by re-using the products they buy. Some examples of this include: taking re-usable carrier bags to the supermarket; using recharchable batteries in order to reduce waste packaging from a new pack of batteries; donating unwanted clothes to charities to be re-used; re-using plastic drinking bottles; refilling printer ink cartridges at local printing shops.

A business organisation can reduce the amounts of waste they produce by re-using scrap material that would otherwise become a waste. If one part of a businesses operational process involves receiving raw materials as packaging (e.g. cardboard boxes), instead of throwing away these raw materials as waste, the business could make use of the material in another area of operation. An example of this would be for a distribution company to shred the cardboard boxes, in which it receives goods, into small, shredded pieces of cardboard, in order to re-use as packaging filler for the packages it sends to its customers. There are also opportunities for the reuse of items or materials outside of the business that exist. There are a number of national charities and organisations that are willing to collect items or materials from businesses in order to be re-used elsewhere.

Recycling

Recycling is the process of taking waste materials and putting them through a process so that they can be used again.

Household individuals can reduce the amounts of waste they produce by recycling used materials within their home that would otherwise be thrown out as waste. Each local authority within the UK offers a kerbside collection service for households collecting a number of different recyclable materials such as paper/card, metals (e.g. tin cans), plastics (e.g. water bottles, milk bottles), and glass. Households can use this service offered to them by segregating their different types of waste materials into specific containers provided by their local authority (e.g. plastics together in one container, paper and card together in another container etc…). Another way of recycling household materials is by taking them to local ‘bring sites’. These sites have a number of different containers, each of which are designed to accept different waste materials. An example of a basic bring site would be a bottle bank. Households are also able to reduce the amounts of food waste they produce by recycling the waste in a home composter. A home composter can be kept in a back garden and is able to convert waste food into readily usable compost.

A business organisation operating within a busy office environment can recycle waste materials by segregating them into their different waste streams in bins within their office. (e.g. waste paper and card together in one container, waste plastics (drinking bottles brought into the office) etc…). A business organisation that manufactures products and uses materials can recycle any waste materials that are produced during manufacture. An example of this would be a paper manufacturing company producing industrial size paper rolls that generate large amounts of paper waste from off cuts and damaged rolls. This waste paper can be recycled by being put back through a pulping process (process used to recycle paper) to produce new paper rolls. Business organisations can also establish markets where they can send waste material to be recycled, in turn generating revenue. Waste exchange schemes can also be established between local businesses where one businesses waste could be of great use to another business, and vice versa.

Energy Recovery

Energy recovery from waste is the process in which energy is recovered from the incineration, pyrolysis, or gasification of waste and used to provide electricity and/or heat. Energy recovery from waste is considered to be the least preffered waste minimisation option in environmental terms (CIWM).

Disposal

Disposal, the last step of the waste hierarchy, is the process in which wastes that cannot, or have not been minimised are sent to be disposed of. Due to legislation, before waste can be sent to landfill it must be pre-treated. Firstly, this is to reduce the environmental impact of the waste that does get sent to landfill, and secondly, to further increase the amounts of materials recycled. The treatment of waste must meet the criteria of ‘the three point test’ in order for the waste to be deemed as being pre-treated; (1) It must be a physical, thermal, chemical or biological process (including sorting); (2) It must change the characteristics of the waste; (3) It must do so in order to: (a) reduce its volume, or; (b) reduce its hazardous nature, or; (c) facilitate its handling, or; (d) enhance its recovery (DEFRA).

1.0 Introduction

There’s no doubt that in the present business climate having a strategy to reduce carbon emissions is not just good for the environment but makes business sense. There are many varying reasons why organisations are trying to reduce their carbon emissions. These range from an attempt to prevent dangerous climate change, to securing the trust and loyalty of customers. Some leading businesses feel they have a moral responsibility to lead in environmental issues; while others just see carbon reduction as another tool to penetrate the market with; and yet others see it as a way to cut costs. Whatever the reasons are, carbon reduction is very much a topical issue these days.

Reduction techniques fall into three basic categories:

• Reduce: through conservation measures (e.g. good practices such as turning off a light bulb) and efficiency measures (e.g. using more efficient technology)
• Switch: changing the type of energy in use to low or zero carbon alternatives.
• Offset: funding a project that absorbs carbon or emits very low level of carbon into the atmosphere.

2.0 Carbon Offsetting

With this strategy an organisation or a person funds a project that prevents or reduces an amount of carbon entering the atmosphere, or absorbs CO₂ from the atmosphere. The project types suitable to generate carbon offset include renewable energy generation, methane abatement, energy efficiency, reforestation and land management which sequesters GHG, fuel switching etc. Often it is used for organisations to meet greenhouse targets when the cost of internal reduction is too high.

It is important to establish that the EU’s Emissions Trading Scheme is beyond the scope of this paper. It focuses on the voluntary carbon offset market. A commonly used approach at the moment is forestry[1]. Trees use up CO₂ during the process of photosynthesis in their food manufacture. The more trees there are, the more carbon will be absorbed from the atmosphere, and hence dangerous climate change can be prevented.

Toshiba’s carbon zero laptops[2] is a good example of the tree planting approach. The idea is that customers donate £1.28; the money goes towards new dedicated woodland in Devon. The native broad-leafed trees can apparently absorb up to a tonne of carbon in their lifetime. There are a few issues here: At an average life-span of 5 years over 20 laptops will be used during the life-span of one of the 13,000 trees. There are presumably far more than 13,000 Toshiba laptop users in the UK. Can the woodlands absorb all the emissions associated with the supply chain, production, transport, storage, use and disposal of all these laptops and their parts such as spare batteries? How is the carbon value calculated?

Here are some arguments which weaken the strategy of offsetting as a whole, namely,

• Project failures. The Coldplay mango plantation[3] in southern India is a classic example of a failed offset scheme. There are many reasons why projects fail. And due to lack of ownership and ineffective monitoring and implementation, offset projects have a high risk of failure.
• The concept of ‘Additionality’ is contentious and unclear. For a project to pass as an offset project it has to be proven that it yields additional carbon reduction compared to ‘business as usual’. It is not clear whether giving a high energy efficient stove to poorer communities in Africa (as done by CO2balance.uk.com) will lead to carbon reductions compared to when they didn’t have any stoves at all.
• The problem of calculating carbon saving or reduction. There is no standard approach of calculating quantities or pricing structures. Therefore it is not clear what carbon is being offset by a particular project.
• There is no standard verification body in the voluntary market. Some emissions reduction is verified by independent parties while others are not, this means that the emissions reduction claimed by some credits are uncertain.

Although the above arguments cast a lot of doubt over the extent to which offsetting actually reduces CO₂, this strategy has some positives:

• Raises public awareness about climate change through the publications and adverts of offset companies.
• Carbon offsetting can provide the much needed funds to develop low carbon technologies in the developing world.
• Offsetting supports projects in areas, such as Africa, where there are very few projects from the compliance offset market.
• It can act as a testing ground for new projects wanting to enter the compliance market
• It could reduce beyond the standard set by Kyoto, even though marginal

Although these may cut down carbon in the atmosphere, there are many parties involved that need to work together for any success to be achieved. If an organisation is serious about climate change and wants to take responsibility for their emissions, offsetting would not be the way to go. However offset projects could be useful when the organisation has reduced its total carbon footprint to a point where it is not sensible[4] (economically, socially or otherwise) to go any further but feel they want to do more.

The following statement from the World Development Movement sums it up adequately, “It is nonsensical to suggest that climate change can be tackled by cutting emissions from poor people, whilst allowing activities of the rich… to continue unabated. Yet this is the basis on which offsetting projects in developing countries are supposed to work.[5]”

The carbon footprint is a measurement of all greenhouse gases we individually produce and has units of tonnes (or kg) of carbon dioxide equivalent.

The pie chart above shows the main elements which
make up the total of an typical person’s carbon footprint in the developed world.

A carbon footprint is made up of the sum of two parts, the primary footprint (shown by the green slices of the pie chart) and the secondary footprint (shown as the yellow slices).

1. The primary footprint is a measure of our direct emissions of CO2 from the burning of fossil fuels including domestic energy consumption and transportation (e.g. car and plane). We have direct control of these.

2. The secondary footprint is a measure of the indirect CO2 emissions from the whole lifecycle of products we use – those associated with their manufacture and eventual breakdown. To put it very simply – the more we buy the more emissions will be caused on our behalf.

If you are interested in ways to reduce your carbon footprint then take a look at our tool.

Resource efficiency geberally covers the following main objectives:

• to minimise resource inputs to products and processes
• to minimise waste and emission outputs from products and services
• to ensure that resources are used to their fullest capacity

This means that resource efficiency should not stop at the factory gate but should be considered over the full life cycles of goods and services, from raw material acquisition, through production and use to end-of-life management ^[1].

Why is Resource Efficiency Important?

The UK has large reserves of minerals, but many of those which are readily accessible are becoming limited or are declining due to environmental and land use policies as well as technological limitations in accessing mineral and fossil fuel deposits ^[2]. The extraction of resources has significant environmental and social impacts. For example, many metals and construction minerals are extracted using energy-intensive mining technologies. This can result in large quantities of mining waste, contamination of soil and the destruction of landscapes. Furthermore, raw material extraction contributes to climate change through the use of carbon-intensive production processes. For example, aluminium production consumes large amounts of energy and makes a significant contribution to overall greenhouse gas emissions. Similarly, waste disposal, in particular biodegradable waste which is landfilled, contributes significantly to climate change through the emission of methane, a powerful greenhouse gas. Therefore, by avoiding the need for new extraction and landfill, waste reduction and the use of waste as a secondary raw material offer significant climate change benefits for the UK.

All products sold in our online store are as resource efficient as possible so you can buy with confidence.

References:

[1] EEF, 2009. Resource efficiency – Business benefits from sustainable resource management. Available online at: http://www.barclayscorporate.com/inperspective/downloads/eef-resource-efficiency.pdf

[2] Department for Trade and Industry, 2006. A strategy for materials.

Types of Household Batteries You Can Recycle

Within households throughout the country there are large numbers of items that require power from batteries. Here are some examples of items whose batteries can be recycled:

• Mobile phone
• Laptop
• Electric shaver
• Remote controls
• Alarm clocks
• Cordless power tools

Where Can I recycle Batteries?

The majority of the supermarkets and shops that sell batteries have collection bins for used batteries to be collected for recycling. Collection points are also set up in some but not all town halls, libraries and schools. Collection points can be located by keeping your eye out for the ‘be positive – recycle your batteries here’ sign in shops and supermarkets.

A small majority of councils throughout the UK provide doorstep battery collections. Those that dont will more than likely provide battery recycling bins at a local recycling centre. To find out more information about recycling in your area please visit:

http://local.direct.gov.uk

Why Should We Recycle Batteries?

Some of the batteries we use within our homes conatain harmful chemicals such as lead, cadmium or mercury. If we dont recycle our used household batteries, they will more than likely be taken to landfill in order to be disposed of. When buried in a landfill site, batteries will begin to break down and release the harmful chemicals that can be found within them. These chemicals can leak into the soil and potentially cause soil and water pollution, which may be a health risk to humans.

Recycling our batteries can reduce this negative environmental impact. By recycling the material properties of a battery, we can also reduce our reliance on extracting new raw materials in order to generate virgin material batteries. This in turn reduces the amounts of CO² emissions released into the atmosphere and helps to combat the uncertainties climate change.

To find out more information about recycling batteries, please visit the following DEFRA website: http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/waste/producer/batteries/

The development is particularly important given that the UK Government is now consulting on the ‘grandfathering’ of ROC support of bio energy projects and has indicated that it is minded to grandfather anaerobic digestion plants. Without grandfathering there is a risk that the level of support for a project can be changed midway through the project, so it is crucial to unlock funding to the sector.

The developer of the Carr Farm project, Farmgen, is planning to roll out the concept to further projects around the UK. Keith Patterson, head of projects at Brodies LLP and a member of its renewable energy group, said: “The development of the market has been hampered by the unpredictability of fuel supply arrangements and the unavailability of finance. However, the combination of grandfathering and the completion of the first project financed scheme could prove the spur the sector needs to start to follow through on the sector’s potential. The sector has some advantages over wind as generation is not subject to the vagaries of the weather, and can therefore provide baseload power.”

For many years, and what is likely to be many more years to come, mankind has relied heavily on the burning of fossil fuels such as coal, oil and gas in order to produce energy. This well established, worldwide energy production process of burning fossil fuels does however release significant amounts of CO₂ emissions that are released into the atmosphere. These are known as anthropogenic (man-made) carbon emissions which increase the levels of CO₂ in the atmosphere and absorb more of the infrared radiation reflected back to space, which in turn traps more heat in the atmosphere and contributes to climate change. This is known as the man-made greenhouse effect.

Figure 1 The Greenhouse Effect.

Carbon Dioxide Emissions

In order to grow, trees are biologically required to take in CO₂ from the air. However, when trees/wood dies, the CO₂ is then released back into the air. Deforestation of our rainforests results in CO₂ being released back into the air, and also means that there are fewer trees on the planet to absorb the increasing level of CO₂ we are emittiting into the atmosphere.

The burning of coal, oil and other fossil fuels in order to generate energy emitts the majority of all anthropogenic carbon emissions emitted into the atmosphere annually. Televisions, lights, computers and all other home electrical products use electricity that is created mainly from burning coal. Cars globally are also major sources of CO₂. The concentration of CO₂ has increased 25% since the industrial revolution, half of this rise has been in the last 30 years and it is expected to double within decades.

How Does the Greenhouse Effect Impact Us and the Environment?

With more heat being trapped in the atmosphere, the planet will ultimately become much warmer and alter the Earth’s weather globally. Due to this:

• We will see a rise in sea levels worldwide due to the melting of ice sheets and glaciers. Ultimately this could displace millions of people from their homes through mass flooding in lowland coastal areas.
• The frequancy and severity of killer storms such as hurricaines and tornadoes are expected to increase.
• Severe drought and flooding will occur as weather patterns become more extreme. With the world’s economic and agricultural systems relying on existing patterns of weather, as these patterns of weather change due to global warming, our ability to produce food will decline.
• Many plants and animal may become extinct. This is because eco-systems in different regions of our planet are finely balanced. An example of this is that in the polar regions of the Earth, plants and animal are adapted to living in extreme cold, with little sunlight and vitually no rainfall. As global warming takes place this could mean that the polar regions may become too warm for plants and animals to live. If climate change is a gradual process, plants and animals may have time to adapt; however, as climate change is proving to be a relatively rapid process, plants and animal may not be able to adapt quick enough and may become extinct.
• There may be more heat-related illnesses in hotter summers, and increased breathing problems as higher temperatures increase air pollution in cities and reduce air quality.
• Oceans will become more acidic and will destroy coral reefs and their associated eco-systems.

If this information has concerned you into considering your carbon emissions, why not take a look around the ESW website for lots of ways to reduce them?

References:

Figure 1: Available [online] at: http://nirantaradrusti.wordpress.com/2010/01/15/greenhouse-effect/