The Parliament has pushed through an amendment to the Packaging Regulations to prevent missing packaging recycling target for metals. The updated regulations will provide a greater sense of clarity for businesses while eliminating "unnecessary administrative burden" Some have expressed concerns about the amendment, saying that the changes might decrease overseas environmental standards while favouring the metal packaging sector. Before the amendment was passed in Parliament, Climate Change and Waste Minister Joan Ruddock spoke before the Twelfth Delegated Legislation Committee of the House of Commons saying that the update was nothing more than a mere "technical change" to the existing Packaging Regulations. "It would ... Full Story

URS Corporation has just announced the preferred bidder for the UK Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) "in the competition to secure a Parent Body Organization (PBO) for the Sellafield Nuclear Complex in West Cumbria, United Kingdom". Nuclear Management Partners, Ltd., which includes URS' Washington Division, AREVA and AMEC plc., would be assigned to manage a range of work not to exceed a maximum annual value of approximately GBP 1.3 billion, or $2.5 billion. The five-year contract will be presented with an option to extend the agreement for up to 17 years. The final decision on the award is scheduled to be announced ... Full Story

Many people are talking about the installation of the new beverage carton recycling scheme being offered by Wiltshire County Council, Hills Waste Solutions, Tetra Pak Ltd., and the Alliance for Beverage Cartons and the Environment. Still, little is known about carton recycling. Here are a few items to better explain. Beverage cartons are made up of three main materials: Paperboard (typically 70-90%); Low-density polyethylene (typically 10-25%); and Aluminium foil (about 5%, only in long life or aseptic packages). Baled cartons are dropped into a machine called a "pulper", which is filled with water. The cartons become "delaminate" and the whole of the ... Full Story

A new report titled "Introduction to Plastics Recycling, 2nd Edition" has been released by Research and Markets. As with the well received previous edition, this report offers valuable information regarding "environmental protection and waste management issues have come to the forefront of both public and political awareness". Except for those directly involved in certain niche industries, not much is known about plastics and their potential for being recycled. The 2nd edition provides pertinent information on plastics, including the options for recycling, particularly mechanical recycling. The easy to read information also addresses major issues associated with recovering and recycling plastics. The material ... Full Story

There are some rural Minnesota counties that continue to struggle with the ongoing issue of excess electronic waste. Scenic landscapes are often cluttered with used printers, computers, and other items that can be termed as e-waste. The issue is being looked into by several different agencies. Pope County environmental technician Ben Cogger is one who has been sent to check out an abandoned farm littered with an array of dead gadgetry. "Dot matrix printers, bubble jet printers, the insides of computer hard drives, mother boards," Cogger said. "Looks like (someone) cleaned out NASA or something here and piled it up in the ... Full Story

Mobile phones may not be of much use to a jaguar or panda, but the technology used in them is certainly a way to help our furry friends. One of the growing trends among conservationists is to use GSM technology and existing mobile networks to track a wide range of endangered species. There was a time when this technique wouldn't have even been possible considering that many endangered species are located in remote or underdeveloped areas. There are villages where people struggle for food and shelter, where mobile phones are the last thing on their minds. If you think that, you ... Full Story

More and more we seem to be at the mercy of our electronic gadgets. We no longer believe in waiting for anything. For this reason, HP has introduced The HP Photosmart A630 Compact Photo Printer. The Photosmart printer allows you to pick up and go, and to have the ability to print photos no matter if you are in the Big Apple or in a tropical rain forest. Unlike many color printers, the Photosmart helps reduce waste by individualising the ink cartridges. No more throwing out a color cartridge simply because one color has run out. The system is more cost ... Full Story

A new community recycling scheme has been introduced through a partnership between Wiltshire County Council, Hills Waste Solutions, Tetra Pak Ltd and the carton industry body ACE UK (Alliance for Beverage Cartons and the Environment). The programme is scheduled to begin this month. Residents will have more opportunities to recycle their cartons as well as other recyclable items by taking them to any of the ten household recycling centres (HRCs) throughout the county. Reports show that UK beverage carton manufacturers produce approximately 55,000 tonnes of paper based cartons, which equals approximately 2.3kg of cartons per household (based on 54 cartons per person, ... Full Story

Once again the RechargExpo was held in Singapore, with companies from all over the world attending the exposition of products and services by inkjet cartridge manufacturers, raw material producers, distributors, dealers, and buyers of compatible supplies. Representatives came from Australia, Europe, China, the Philippines, Indonesia, India, Korea, Japan, Malaysia, the Middle East, the United States, and more. It gives people an opportunity to network, share ideas and discuss perspectives on the imaging industry. Singapore is a considered to be an ideal destination for many reasons: It is a clean, safe location where residents speak both Chinese and English. Singapore is ... Full Story

Ontario has joined several other provinces that have instituted a mandatory fee to cover environmentally responsible disposal of computers and TV sets. Saskatchewan, British Columbia, Alberta, and Nova Scotia are also on the list Undoubtedly there will be many complaining about yet another tax, and there's also no doubt that the new Ontario fee will be funneled through manufacturers and sent right back to consumers. Some estimate that $10 will be added to the price of a TV, $2 to $13 to the price of a computer. This new levy goes into effect April 2009. Other items considered to be e-waste ... Full Story

The Norwich City Football Club has teamed up with the Broadland District Council to create a Yellow and Greener initiative by installing three mobile phone recycling banks across the district. The used phones will be delivered to Love2Recycle for reuse and recycling. The funds raised by the recycling efforts will go to the Academy Tactic Zone appeal. "This latest scheme represents just one of the new initiatives Broadland are rolling out to try and push their recycling rate above the 50pc mark," said Councillor John Fisher, Portfolio Holder for Environmental Policy Development. "Other schemes like the food waste trial, a waste wood ... Full Story

WRAP is urging East Devon residents to recycle used batteries to try to reduce waste sent to landfill. Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) has released a statement which estimates the number of batteries thrown into landfill annually is about 700 million, which would run almost 20,000 miles if laid end to end. That's almost equal to the distance to Australia and back. The thing is that most people have no idea how many batteries they use each year. In light of that research, WRAP has joined forces with the East Devon District Council with the hope that residents in East Devon ... Full Story