Environment and Sustainability

Prof. Wilmer Arellano

e-waste

• Electronic waste, – "e-waste" or "Waste Electrical and Electronic

Equipment" ("WEEE") is a waste type consisting of any broken or unwanted electrical or electronic appliance. It is a point of concern considering that many components of such equipment are considered toxic and are not biodegradable.

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E-waste

e-waste

• It is estimated that e-waste contains over 1000 different substances.

• When these items are disposed of, they often leak toxic chemicals into the ground, air and water.

• Worldwide, as much as 4,000 tons of e-waste are discarded every hour!

• In 2004, China discarded approximately 4 million refrigerators, 5 million TV sets and 5 million washing machines, and these figures are on the rise!

• China is receiving e-waste from other countries. It is estimated that between 50 and 80% of e-waste collected for recycling in the United States is shipped to Asia. China is the destination for around 90% of that material

Humanity, Nature, and Technology: The Hannover Principles

WEEE directive

• Article 4• Product design• Member States shall encourage the design and

production of electrical and electronic equipment which take into account and facilitate dismantling and recovery, in particular the reuse and recycling of WEEE, their components and materials. In this context, Member States shall take appropriate measures so that producers do not prevent, through specific design features or manufacturing processes, WEEE from being reused, unless such specific design features or manufacturing processes present overriding advantages, for example, with regard to the protection of the environment and/or safety requirements.

WEEE directive

• Article 5• Separate collection1. Member States shall adopt appropriate measures in

order to minimize the disposal of WEEE as unsorted municipal waste and to achieve a high level of separate collection of WEEE.

2. For WEEE from private households, Member States shall ensure that by the 13 August 2005:(a) systems are set up allowing final holders and distributors to

return such waste at least free of charge. Member States shall ensure the availability and accessibility of the necessary collection facilities, taking into account in particular the population density;

(b) Continues …

The Restriction of Hazardous Substances Directive (RoHS)

• The Restriction of Hazardous Substances Directive (RoHS) 2002/95/EC [1] was adopted in February 2003 by the European Union.

• The RoHS directive took effect on July 1, 2006, but is not a law; it is simply a directive.

• This directive restricts the use of six hazardous materials in the manufacture of various types of electronic and electrical equipment.

• It is closely linked with the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive (WEEE) 2002/96/EC which sets collection, recycling and recovery targets for electrical goods and is part of a legislative initiative to solve the problem of huge amounts of toxic e-waste.

• In North America, it is often pronounced "ROHS", "Rosh", or "Row Haws". In Europe, it is pronounced "Rose".

RoHS Directive• Each European Union member state will adopt its own enforcement

and implementation policies using the directive as a guide. Therefore, there could be as many different versions of the law as there are states in the EU.

• RoHS is often referred to as the "lead-free" directive, but it restricts the use of the following 6 substances:– Lead – Mercury – Cadmium – Hexavalent chromium (Chromium VI or Cr6+) – Polybrominated biphenyls (PBB) – PBDE (polybrominated diphenyl ether) – PBB and PBDE are flame retardants used in some plastics.

• The maximum concentrations are 0.1% or 1000ppm (except for Cadmium which is limited to 0.01% or 100ppm) by weight of homogeneous material.

RoHS Directive

• Cadmium, which in municipal waste mostly comes from nickel-cadmium (NiCd) batteries, can cause:– Birth defects – Cancer– Kidney and liver damage– Anemia– Flu-like symptoms– Loss of smell

RoHS Directive

• Lead, in municipal waste mainly found in the form of leaded glass in cathode ray tubes (CRTs) of computer monitors and televisions, can cause:– Birth defects– Poisoning– Brain, kidney and nerve damage– Loss of memory– Decreased fertility in both females and males– Mood and personality changes– Irritation of the eyes, nose, and lung– Headaches– Disturbed sleep

RoHS Directive

• Mercury, of which some electronics (Fluorescent Lights, IR detectors) contain recoverable amounts,, can cause:– Poisoning– Kidney damage – Spontaneous abortion– Irritation of skin and lungs

RoHS Directive

• Hexavalent chromium, (Surface Coating)– Hexavalent chromium compounds are

carcinogens– Hexavalent chromium is genotoxic

RoHS Directive

• Polybrominated biphenyls (Flame Retardant), – It is not known for certain if PBBs could cause cancer

in human beings, but it has been observed that they can lead to cancer in lab mice exposed to very high concentrations of PBBs. Based on such animal tests, the United States Department of Health and Human Services has determined that PBBs may reasonably be anticipated to be carcinogens.

– The International Agency for Research on Cancer also suggests that PBBs are possibly carcinogenic to humans.

RoHS Directive

• PBDE (polybrominated diphenyl ether) (Flame Retardant), There is growing evidence that indicates these chemicals may possess:– Liver toxicity– Thyroid toxicity, and – Neurodevelopmental toxicity

USA and e-waste• As part of its implementation of the Electronic Waste Recycling Act,

DTSC has tested certain types of electronic devices to determine which would be hazardous waste when discarded; only video display devices that DTSC "determines are presumed to be, when discarded, a hazardous waste" are potentially covered by the Act. Currently, these devices include:– Cathode ray tube (CRT) devices (including televisions and computer

monitors);– LCD desktop monitors;– laptop computers with LCD displays;– LCD televisions; and– plasma televisions.– These devices are "covered" only if their viewable screen size is greater

than four inches, measured diagonally. (Note: the electronic waste recycling fee will not be charged on LCD televisions or plasma televisions until July 1, 2005.)

• Department of Toxic Substances Control

California RoHS

• What Hazardous Substances will be restricted from use in electronic devices sold in California? The EWRA will restrict the use of:

• Lead,

• Mercury,

• Cadmium, and

• Hexavalent chromium

Design for Sustainability:• In short, it began with a basic philosophical mistake which, derived

from the western Judeo/Christian belief that man was separate from nature.

• A result of the misinterpretation of the first book of the Old Testament in which God entrusted the earth to Adam and Eve.

• This was interpreted to emphasize man's divine right to subjugate and exploit nature.

• When combined with the industrial revolution and the discovery of fossil fuels, this created a recipe for ecological disaster.

• http://www.myflorida.com/fdi/edesign/news/9607/thesis/thesis.htm#1.1– Guidelines and Principles for Sustainable Community Design– A study of sustainable design and planning strategies in North America

from an urban design perspective

Humanity, Nature, and Technology: The Hannover Principles

• The City of Hannover, Germany, was designated as the site of the world exposition in the year 2000.

• Hosting the world’s fair on the eve of the next millennium was both a great challenge and a great responsibility.

• By choosing “Humanity, Nature, and Technology” as the theme for EXPO 2000,

• the city decided to directly address the difficult issue of imagining and encouraging a sustainable future.

THE HANNOVER PRINCIPLES1. Insist on rights of humanity and nature to co-exist in a healthy,

supportive, diverse and sustainable condition.2. Recognize interdependence. The elements of human design

interact with and depend upon the natural world, with broad and diverse implications at every scale. Expand design considerations to recognizing even distant effects.

3. Respect relationships between spirit and matter. Consider all aspects of human settlement including community, dwelling, industry and trade in terms of existing and evolving connections between spiritual and material consciousness.

4. Accept responsibility for the consequences of design decisions upon human well-being, the viability of natural systems and their right to co-exist.

5. Create safe objects of long-term value. Do not burden future generations with requirements for maintenance or vigilant administration of potential danger due to the careless creation of products, processes or standards.

THE HANNOVER PRINCIPLES6. Eliminate the concept of waste. Evaluate and optimize the full life-

cycle of products and processes, to approach the state of natural systems. in which there is no waste.

7. Rely on natural energy flows. Human designs should, like the living world, derive their creative forces from perpetual solar income. Incorporate this energy efficiently and safely for responsible use.

8. Understand the limitations of design. No human creation lasts forever and design does not solve all problems. Those who create and plan should practice humility in the face of nature. Treat nature as a model and mentor, not as an inconvenience to be evaded or controlled.

9. Seek constant improvement by the sharing of knowledge. Encourage direct and open communication between colleagues, patrons, manufacturers and users to link long term sustainable considerations with ethical responsibility, and re-establish the integral relationship between natural processes and human activity.

Senior II Proposal and Environment

• Explain how you will:– Use RoHS components whenever they are available

• Also related to health– Design for easy disassembly– At least make a component selection based on LCIA– Adhere to some of the Hannover principles i.e.

6. Eliminate the concept of waste. Evaluate and optimize the full life-cycle of products and processes, to approach the state of natural systems. in which there is no waste.

7. Rely on natural energy flows. Human designs should, like the living world, derive their creative forces from perpetual solar income. Incorporate this energy efficiently and safely for responsible use.

• http://www.pre.nl/simapro/download_simapro.htm

Senior II Proposal and Sustainability

• Explain how you will:– Design objects of long-term value– Design your products keeping in mind the idea of a

sustainable future– Adhere to some of the Hannover principles i.e.

5. Create safe objects of long-term value. Do not burden future generations with requirements for maintenance or vigilant administration of potential danger due to the careless creation of products, processes or standards.

Life Cycle Assessment (LCA)

• Specifically, LCA is a technique to assess the environmental aspects and potential impacts associated with a product, process, or service, by:– Compiling an inventory of relevant energy and

material inputs and environmental releases– Evaluating the potential environmental impacts

associated with identified inputs and releases– Interpreting the results to help decision-makers make

a more informed decision.

Life Cycle Inventory (LCI)

• A Life Cycle Inventory is a process of quantifying energy and raw material requirements, atmospheric emissions, waterborne emissions, solid wastes, and other releases for the entire life cycle of a product, process, or activity.

Life Cycle Impact Assessment (LCIA)

• The Life Cycle Impact Assessment (LCIA) phase of an LCA is the evaluation of potential human health and environmental impacts of the environmental resources and releases identified during the LCI.

• Impact assessment should address ecological and human health effects;

• it should also address resource depletion. • A life cycle impact assessment attempts to establish a linkage

between the product or process and its potential environmental impacts.

• For example, what are the impacts of 9,000 tons of carbon dioxide or 5,000 tons of methane emissions released into the atmosphere? Which is worse? What are their potential impacts on smog? On global warming?

Life Cycle Impact Assessment (LCIA)

• Two problems exist in impact assessment:– There are not sufficient data to calculate the

damage to ecosystems by an impact.– There is no generally accepted way of

assessing the value of the damage to ecosystems if this damage can be calculated.

Characterization

• In the comparison between paper and polyethylene (LDPE) the calculated effect scores can be displayed as a graph. The highest calculated effect score is scaled to 100%. This means the materials can only be compared per effect.

Eutrophication is caused by the increase in an ecosystem of chemical nutrients

Normalization

• In order to gain a better understanding of the relative size of an effect, a normalization step is required. Each effect calculated for the life cycle of a product is benchmarked against the the known total effect for this class. For example, the Eco-indicator method normalizes with effects caused by the average European during a year. Of course it is possible to choose another basis for normalization.

Evaluation or weighting

• After weighting the relative importance of the normalized effect scores is added. After weighting, ecotoxicity has clearly gained in significance (fictional example).

Project Case Material Selection

Assembly and Life Cycle

Work with the Assembly

Project Title

Units to be used or built

Add Materials

Select Metal Box

Select Aluminum

Enter Weight

Add a Process

Surface Treatment

Type of Coating

Surface Dimension

No more Processes

Waste Scenario

Type of Landfill• BIOBUG® DM (B250) contains a specially-formulated range of adapted, high-

performance microorganisms for use in biological wastewater treatment of dairy wastes

Hide the window in order to use the data

Compare two materials and select the one with lesser impact