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Meanwhile, it provides the latest market information for scrap metal, plastic scrap and waste paper every day; and updates on supply and demand including daily waste rubber, waste electronic/electric equipment, waste glass and waste leather.

There have been major strides in producing everything from sandals to military hardware in more eco-friendly ways. Likewise, the reduction of waste has also been improved, through both new technology and behavioral changes. But perhaps the most intriguing sector of the "sustainability industry" is the one populated by companies and organizations capturing waste and converting it into useful, carbon-neutral resources.

Energy efficiency is low hanging fruit in the clean energy movement. Low-grade waste heat may not have the allure of shiny solar panels or a row of wind turbines, but it presents an opportunity that is too good for Michael Newell, CEO of Ener-G-Rotors to pass up. The company is developing a product that generates electricity from low-grade waste heat.

The BioEnergy Center will generate eight million gallons of third-generation bioethanol each year from renewable biomass including yard, wood, agricultural and vegetative wastes. The Center will also generate six megawatts of renewable electricity. The facility will be the first to use INEOS Bio's advanced BioEnergy technology, the world's leading feedstock flexible technology for advanced biofuels. The technology breaks the link between food crops and ethanol production. At the heart of the INEOS Bio technology is a patented anaerobic fermentation step, through which naturally occurring bacteria convert gases derived directly from biomass into bioethanol.

Aneel's College Board of Directors has authorized Copel (Paraná \nElectric Energy Company) to implement the pilot-project which determines the \nselling of exceeding energy, derived from animal waste, produced in small rural \nproprieties in Paraná. The project, named Distributed Generation with \nEnvironmental Sanitation Project, will allow the elimination of organic matter \nresulting from the hog creation, which will stop being released over rivers and \ndeposits such as Itaipu's. Such residue will be transformed, via biodigesters, \nin biogas, a fuel used in the generation of electric energy.

Geothermal resources have been successfully utilized in many locations worldwide with significant economic rewards, but geothermal energy for electrical power is currently an untapped, power source in the Canadian energy market and specifically in Canadian oilfield operations. At present, this hot water resource is readily available through the existence of numerous deep, end-of-life oil and gas wells in the Canadian Foothills and the use of the hot water resource for electricity production has the potential to increase energy efficiency and offer carbon offsets for the oil and gas companies.

Rather than use a working fluid to capture and transfer the waste heat, GE has developed a new evaporator to transfer it. The new design means that ORCs can be used to convert relatively low-temperature heat (under 500 degrees Celsius) into electricity on a wide range of power sources, including the equipment in coal power plants and small gas turbines, said Thomas Fry, a researcher in GE's Munich offices.

"The weaknesses of federal regulatory agencies have been exposed by recent high-profile accidents. Guest columnist Tom Carpenter fears the Department of Energy will reduce its oversight of cleanup at the nation's nuclear waste sites. By Tom Carpenter Special to The Times PREV of NEXT Related Millions of gallons of oil gush continue to rush unabated from BP's mile-deep well in the Gulf of Mexico, and 11 workers are dead from the massive explosion that caused the biggest oil spill in decades. Weeks before this event, the news was dominated by the preventable explosion that killed 29 West Virginia coal miners. In both cases, the not-so surprising news was that the mine and the oil rig had abysmal records of safety violations before the explosions yet were still allowed to operate by the captive regulatory agencies. Where is the government accountability? It is the government's job to assure that ultra-hazardous industries operate safely and responsibly. Is nuclear next? The Department of Energy sits on the nation's biggest nuclear nightmare. Its inventories of highly radioactive and toxic wastes defy comprehension. Washingtonians are familiar with the DOE's No. 1 accomplishment, the Hanford nuclear site, which holds the lion's share of the nation's radioactive detritus. Suffice it to say that the escape of even a small fraction of such material into the environment would constitute a Chernobyl-sized catastrophe."

Domestic energy is getting expensive, but what does that mean compared to the situation in our parents' or grandparents' days? Should we grumble?

It is true that electricity prices in the UK are now similar, measured in terms loaves of bread, to what they were in 1960. What is different is our attitude to waste. Then, lights were functional, not decorative, electric heating was used only when really needed, never casually. And left over bread was made into toast, bread pudding or whatever. These days we seem to accept huge waste of two resources that we are becoming short of - food and energy.

Sure, regenerative braking - the process that converts the energy typically wasted as heat when slowing down and storing it as electrical power in batteries - is a terrific energy saving solution. Many hybrid cars, such as the Prius, use regenerative braking and it's starting to appear aboard hybrid diesel/electric trains as well. But more efficient still is to maintain your momentum and dispense with a train's need to make stops

the Invisible Streetlight is a solar powered street light that imitates leaves and can be hidden among natural plants on the sides of streets.

Are you wasting energy? The average American releases about 50,000 pounds of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere each year - and most of this waste comes from our homes. There are easy steps you can take to alter your lifestyle and reduce your carbon footprint.

Nuclear waste may no longer be a "problem" in a few years...