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Stopping Pharmaceutical Waste Before It Starts
Is greener chemistry possible? James Mack, a University of Cincinnati associate professor recently made that assertion at the annual meeting of the American Chemical Society in New Orleans. Essentially, Mack is using a physical catalyst -- high speed ball-milling -- to force chemicals to come together to create the reaction now typically caused by solutions. When that method is used, it avoids altogether the solvents that would result in the use of solutions -- hence greener chemistry.
This "mechanochemistry" could revolutionize a process that has relied on solutions for thousands of years. Today, for every gram of pharmaceutical drug that is created, there are 15 to 20 kilograms of solvent waste generated. Mack's process not only eliminates the need for that, it also has the potential to recover the catalyst used -- not currently possible with solutions. And with the cost and challenge of dealing with solvents, this is potentially good news.
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Your Turn for Zero Landfill?
 Dreaming big has always been recommended as a way to achieve big goals, and when it comes to waste management, zero landfill seemed to be the impossible dream. But every day a new mega corporation is reporting in with total or near total success in achieving zero landfill for their waste. Whether they are recycling, re-purposing or incincerating for energy recovery, the breakthroughs are significant:
- Dupont Building Innovations announced that withing three years it has cut the amount of waste it sends annually to landfills from 81 million pounds to zero.
- Proctor & Gamble recently stated that 45 of their manufacturing plants now send zero waste to the landfill.
- PepsiCo's Frito-Lay facility in Arizona reports a "near net zero" result of waste to landfill
Good corporate citizenship aside, the financial incentives are considerable. Proctor & Gamble reported that their efforts have created over $1 billion in value for them. Companies that actively work to recycle, re-purpose or reuse waste not only save on the shipping and landfill fees, they can actually recapture assets. And if that isn't enough of a motivation, the public stamp of approval received for the efforts makes the board, stakeholders and public happier.
So even if you're not a mega corporation, now might be the time to consider creating or stepping up a zero landfill program. It involves upfront efforts and logistics, but it can really pay off. And who knows? Yours might just be the next American company to receive accolades for your sustainability efforts.
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California Reporting via CERS
Starting January 1st of this year, businesses regulated by the Certified Unified Program Agencies division of California, can no longer submit information to their local county agencies, but are required to report electronically utilizing the California Environmental Reporting System (CERS) Some of the reports include information related to:
Hazardous Waste
Remote Waste Consolidation
Recyclable Materials Reports
While it's meant to be more efficient in the long run, for everyone used to complete article
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Let Us Help Someone You Know
If you know of a fellow professional who has waste management needs or questions, please feel free to tell them about Ingenium and have them contact Heather at hdody@pureingenium.com.
Together we will create a more sustainable world!
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