Questions: Posts http://www.sustainability-ornl.org/issues/questions/Lists/Posts/AllPosts.aspx RSS feed for the Posts list. Fri, 10 Sep 2010 07:01:36 GMT Windows SharePoint Services V3 RSS Generator 60 Questions: Posts /issues/questions/_layouts/images/homepage.gif http://www.sustainability-ornl.org/issues/questions/Lists/Posts/AllPosts.aspx New recycling containers http://www.sustainability-ornl.org/issues/questions/Lists/Posts/ViewPost.aspx?ID=29 Body:
We just received our new recycling containers in 4500S and I'm very glad about that. However, they came with a separate "plastic & aluminum" sticker and no instructions about where that sticker goes. There's a spot for garbage, there's a spot for mixed paper, and there's a sticker for plastic and aluminum. Why no instructions?
Category: Recycling
Published: 8/27/2010 9:38 AM
]]> Strange, Ann R. Recycling Fri, 27 Aug 2010 13:40:40 GMT http://www.sustainability-ornl.org/issues/questions/Lists/Posts/ViewPost.aspx?ID=29 Plastics #1 - #7 http://www.sustainability-ornl.org/issues/questions/Lists/Posts/ViewPost.aspx?ID=28 Body:

What is Plastic #1?
What is Plastic #2?

Apparently plastic bags are not Plastic #1 -#7. What else isn't allowable. #1 -#7 does not mean anything to me.

ORNL's Pollution Prevention Coordinator, Susan Mchaud, responds:

The numbers associated with plastics tell you the chemical compound used to make the container (list below).

The shortest answer is that all rigid plastics can be placed in the recycling bins.  If plastic bags are placed in the bins, you have not broken a rule, but by the time they make it through the sorting process, they are no longer marketable and will be disposed of in the garbage.  Clean bags returned to the grocery store are recycled, so we would prefer you return them to the store.

This website has lots of information about plastics, including a good description of each number, and some articles about the safety of plastic compounds

#1 Plastics - PET or PETE (polyethylene terephthalate)
Found in: Soft drink, water and beer bottles; mouthwash bottles; peanut butter containers; salad dressing and vegetable oil containers; ovenable food trays.
Recycling: Picked up through most curbside recycling programs.
Recycled into: Polar fleece, fiber, tote bags, furniture, carpet, paneling, straps, (occasionally) new containers

PET plastic is the most common for single-use bottled beverages, because it is inexpensive, lightweight and easy to recycle. It poses low risk of leaching breakdown products. Recycling rates remain relatively low (around 20%), though the material is in high demand by remanufacturers.

#2 Plastics HDPE (high density polyethylene)
Found in: Milk jugs, juice bottles; bleach, detergent and household cleaner bottles; shampoo bottles; some trash and shopping bags; motor oil bottles; butter and yogurt tubs; cereal box liners
Recycling: Picked up through most curbside recycling programs, although some allow only those containers with necks.
Recycled into: Laundry detergent bottles, oil bottles, pens, recycling containers, floor tile, drainage pipe, lumber, benches, doghouses, picnic tables, fencing

HDPE is a versatile plastic with many uses, especially for packaging. It carries low risk of leaching and is readily recyclable into many goods.

#3 Plastics - polyvinyl chloride (PVC)

#4 Plastics - low density polyethylene (LDPE)

#5 Plastics - polypropylene (PP)

#6 Plastics - polystyrene (PS)

#7 Plastic - "other"
Can also be a combination of plastics

Please let me know if I can be of further assistance.

Category: Recycling
Published: 8/23/2010 7:28 AM
]]> Meyers, E. Steve Recycling Mon, 23 Aug 2010 11:30:33 GMT http://www.sustainability-ornl.org/issues/questions/Lists/Posts/ViewPost.aspx?ID=28 Make the Sustainability website findable for people who search ornl.gov http://www.sustainability-ornl.org/issues/questions/Lists/Posts/ViewPost.aspx?ID=31 Body:
This sustainability at ORNL website should be readily available to a person who goes to ornl.gov looking for information about ORNL's sustainability efforts. (It isn't available there right now.)

I wanted to point a non-ORNL person to some of the good information that I know is on this website -- and I know is publicly accessible. Foolishly, I tried to find it by going to the ORNL public home page and searching for "Sustainable Campus", but this entire website seems to be invisible to that search engine.

I successfully pulled up the link to sustainability-ornl.org by searching on Google -- it's the first hit for "sustainable campus ornl". (So why can't it be found on ornl.gov?)

After this experience, I also searched on the internal ORNL search engine. That didn't get me to this page directly, but it did pull up a couple of pages that linked here.

Fix this! Surely ORNL wants people to know about its sustainability efforts!
Published: 8/31/2010 10:07 PM
]]> Smith, Ellen D. Wed, 01 Sep 2010 02:17:13 GMT http://www.sustainability-ornl.org/issues/questions/Lists/Posts/ViewPost.aspx?ID=31 Smoke Detectors http://www.sustainability-ornl.org/issues/questions/Lists/Posts/ViewPost.aspx?ID=30 Body:
How should I dispose of old smoke detectors?  I recently changed out all the old smoke detectors in my home with new ones and now have (6) I need to dispose of.
Published: 8/30/2010 7:18 AM
]]> Hendricks, Tony C. Mon, 30 Aug 2010 11:22:34 GMT http://www.sustainability-ornl.org/issues/questions/Lists/Posts/ViewPost.aspx?ID=30 Conserving Resources http://www.sustainability-ornl.org/issues/questions/Lists/Posts/ViewPost.aspx?ID=27 Body:
Can you tell me why supplies are delivered with a single item per envelope/box?  it seems to me that a lot of unnecessary plastic and boxes are used to deliver AVID orders.  Yesterday I ordered 3 items and today they all showed up in individual packaging (they all would have easily fit into one box even smaller than the one used for the single item.  I would just like to have an explanation when we are trying to conserve resources. 
 
ORNL's Bill Pyle, Manager of the Commercial Support Group responds:
 
Most of our AVID suppliers are disctributers for a large array of different manufacturers. A single AVID order with many line items will likely result in multiple orders placed with manufactures who will ship direct to ORNL to avoid double handling. Those items that are first delivered to the AVID supplier and then delivered to ORNL remain in the same packaging that the manufacturer provided. If the AVID provider repackages items in order to consolidate, it actually increases waste.
 
Several members of our group are directly involved with the Sustainable Campus Initiative. We are working on several initiatives to help conserve energy including reducing the number of deliveries by suppliers, promoting environmentally preferable products through our on-line catalogs, and maximizing the use of electronic documentation rather than using printed paper.
Category: Saving energy at ORNL
Published: 8/18/2010 1:45 PM
]]> Kneiser, Jan L. Saving energy at ORNL Wed, 18 Aug 2010 17:50:23 GMT http://www.sustainability-ornl.org/issues/questions/Lists/Posts/ViewPost.aspx?ID=27