Greenlist(tm) Bulletin 07/20/2007
This is the weekly bulletin of the TURI Library, reporting a selection of recently published titles we have acquired. Our pledge is to keep the bulletin relevant to your work and brief -- no more than 10 titles. You are welcome to send a message to jan@turi.org if you would like more information on any of the articles listed here.
Titles here, abstracts below:
- The greening of Wal-Mart’s supply chain
- Persistent organic pollutants: more chemicals may have to be flagged as risky
- Sun Chemical develops alternatives to solvent flexo printing
- Environmental contamination: Department of Defense activities related to trichloroethylene, perchlorate, and other emerging contaminants
- Premature births may be linked to seasonal levels of pesticides and nitrates in surface water
- Evidence of recycling of lead battery waste into highly leaded jewelry
- Reduced quantum dot toxicity through ‘jelly dots’
1. The greening of Wal-Mart’s supply chain
Author: Plambeck, Erica L.
Source: Supply Chain Management, July 1, 2007
Abstract: In October 2005, Wal-Mart CEO Lee Scott committed the company to three ambitious goals: To be supplied 100 percent by renewable energy; to create zero waste; and to sell products that sustain Wal-Mart's resources and the environment. This is the story of Wal-Mart's progress toward those goals and the array of innovative practices that Wal-Mart is implementing to “green” its supply chain.
Link: http://www.scmr.com/article/CA6457969.html
2. Persistent organic pollutants: more chemicals may have to be flagged as risky
Author: Arnaud, Celia
Source: Chemical & Engineering News, July 16, 2007
Abstract: Some persistent organic pollutants (POPs) can reach high concentrations in humans and other air-breathing animals even though they don't bioaccumulate in fish, according to a study by Canadian researchers (Science 2007, 317, 236). The observation suggests that the regulatory criteria now used to flag potential POPs may need revision. Bioaccumulative compounds are usually assumed to be hydrophobic and fat-soluble if they have an octanol-water partition coefficient (KOW) greater than 100,000. Screening of commercial chemicals to identify potentially bioaccumulative compounds is usually based on the KOW or laboratory tests with fish. But research by environmental chemist Frank A. P. C. Gobas, grad student Barry C. Kelly, and coworkers at Simon Fraser University, in Burnaby, British Columbia, shows that such an approach may overlook a significant fraction of pollutants that pose health risks to air-breathing animals.
Link: http://www.sfu.ca/sfunews/Stories/sfunews07120720.shtml
3. Sun Chemical develops alternatives to solvent flexo printing
Source: Sun Chemical Europe
Abstract: Sun Chemical announced an innovation in water-based ink technology for flexographic printing on polythene (PE) film. The company's new approach offers a viable and cost-effective alternative to solvent-based inks, and allows printers to comply with pending European legislation that will affect the industry while printing up to 600 metres per minute.
From October 2007, the Solvent Emissions Directive states that every printing firm that uses more than 15 tonnes of solvents per year must either invest in incineration units or find alternatives for 75% of its solvent-based print colours. In addition, the Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control Directive legislates that printing firms using more than 200 tonnes of solvents per year must be in possession of a specific environmental certificate and must strictly apply procedures according to "best practice techniques".
Sun Chemical uses modified amine soluble resins, which crosslink after they transfer from the press to the substrate, making the inks fully water resistant when dry. Each of the inks - known as Barracuda, Piranha and Beluga - has been designed for specific applications.
Link: http://www.sunchemical.com/europe/en-uk/whats_new/
WN-Detail-20070629-152834.en-uk.html
4. Environmental contamination: Department of Defense activities related to trichloroethylene, perchlorate, and other emerging contaminants
Source: United States Government Accountability Office (GAO), July 12, 2007
Abstract: DOD defines emerging contaminants as chemicals or materials with (1) perceived or real threat to health or the environment and (2) lack of published standards or a standard that is evolving or being reevaluated. Two emerging contaminants—trichloroethylene (TCE) and perchlorate—are of particular concern to DOD because they have significant potential to impact people or DOD’s mission.
TCE, a degreasing agent in metal cleaning which has been used widely in DOD industrial and maintenance processes, has been documented at low exposure levels to cause headaches and difficulty concentrating. High-level exposure may cause dizziness, headaches, nausea, unconsciousness, cancer, and possibly death. Similarly, perchlorate has been used by DOD, NASA, and others in making, testing, and firing missiles and rockets. It has been widely found in groundwater, surface water, and soil across the United States, Perchlorate health studies have documented particular risks to fetuses of pregnant women.
GAO was asked for testimony to summarize its past work on perchlorate-, TCE-, and defense-activities related to (1) the state of knowledge about the emerging contaminants TCE and perchlorate, (2) DOD responsibilities for managing TCE and perchlorate contamination at its facilities, and (3) DOD activities to address TCE and perchlorate contamination.
Link: www.gao.gov/new.items/d071042t.pdf
5. Premature Births May be Linked to Seasonal Levels of Pesticides and Nitrates in Surface Water
Source: Indiana University School of Medicine, May 7, 2007
Abstract: The growing premature birth rate in the United States appears to be strongly associated with increased use of pesticides and nitrates, according to work conducted by Paul Winchester, M.D., professor of clinical pediatrics at the Indiana University School of Medicine. Dr. Winchester and colleagues found that preterm birth rates peaked when pesticides and nitrates measurements in surface water were highest (April-July) and were lowest when nitrates and pesticides were lowest (Aug.-Sept.).
More than 27 million U.S. live births were studied from 1996-2002. Preterm births varied from a high of 12.03% in June to a low of 10.44% in September. The highest rate of prematurity occurred in May-June (11.91%) and the lowest for Aug-Sept (10.79%) regardless of maternal age, race, education, marital status, alcohol or cigarette use, or whether the mother was an urban, suburban or rural resident. Pesticide and nitrate levels in surface water were also highest in May-June and lowest in August –September, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
Link: http://www.medicine.indiana.edu/news_releases/viewRelease.php4?art=685
6. Evidence of recycling of lead battery waste into highly leaded jewelry
Authors: Weidenhamer, Jeffrey D.; Clement, Michael L.
Source: Chemosphere, Article-in-press, online July 12, 2007
Abstract: Inexpensive highly leaded jewelry, much of it imported from China, remains widely available in the United States. The source materials for these items are unknown. Due to the low cost of much of this trinket jewelry, it seems likely that scrap materials may be used in their manufacture. Thirty-nine jewelry items previously determined to contain 90% or more lead by weight were analyzed for antimony content. The average antimony content of these thirty-nine items was 3.0%. The range of antimony content in the samples was from 0.3%
to 6.2% antimony by weight, with twenty-seven of the samples in the range of 2–4% antimony by weight. By comparison, battery lead standard reference material obtained from the US National Institute of Standards and Technology contains 2.95% antimony by weight. While the evidence is circumstantial, the similarity in composition of these samples to battery lead is striking and supports the hypothesis that some battery lead is being recycled into highly leaded jewelry items. These results suggest that the recycling of this waste in China needs to be investigated, as the use of lead battery waste as a source material for children’s jewelry poses a clear threat to children’s health.
7. Reduced quantum dot toxicity through ‘jelly dots’
Source: Nanowerk, July 13, 2007
Abstract: A quantum dot (QD), also called a nanocrystal, is a semiconductor nanostructure that can be as small as 2 to 10 nm. The usefulness of quantum dots comes from their peak emission frequency's extreme sensitivity - quantum mechanical in nature - to both the dot's size and composition. QDs have been touted as possible replacements for organic dyes in the imaging of biological systems, due to their excellent fluorescent properties, good chemical stability, broad excitation ranges and high photobleaching thresholds. However, the main drawback of QDs is their toxicity and therefore their application is problematic. If this toxicity problem could be addressed, QDs may one day be safely utilized in many areas. For instance, cadmium telluride (CdTe - which is toxic) QD based nanocomposites can be used as fluorescent probes for biological imaging, they can also be utilized to monitor targeted drug delivery and for controlled modification of structural and functional properties of intracellular components. Scientists in Ireland have been using gelatin during the production of CdTe QDs thereby reducing the toxicity of the particles. Their approach could be useful for the development of other nanoparticle composites with low toxicity as well.
Link: http://www.nanowerk.com/spotlight/spotid=2220.php
You are welcome to send a message to jan@turi.org if you would like more information on any of these resources. Also, please tell us what topics you are particularly interested in monitoring, and who else should see GREENLIST. An online search of the TURI Library catalog can be done at http://slk060.liberty3.net/turi/ for greater topic coverage.
This page updated Friday July 20 2007