December 10, 2002

Environmental Watch: Marlys Palumbo joins Van Ness Feldman

SEATTLE -- Marlys Palumbo, who most recently was senior vice president for law with Philip Services Corp., joined Van Ness Feldman, a Washington, D.C.-based law firm. She will work out of the firm's Seattle office, and her practice will focus primarily on matters arising under state and federal environmental statutes.

She will represent clients before regulatory authorities and defend them in administrative and judicial enforcement actions. She also will advise clients on compliance activities and strategies, as well as current regulatory developments, and assist them in conducting environmental investigations.

"The addition of Marlys to our environment practice will greatly complement and enhance our ability to serve clients facing a wide range of hazardous waste and corporate matters," said Bill Van Ness, head of Van Ness Feldman's Seattle office.

Recycler 'wheels' out a new idea

SEATTLE -- If Recycled Plastic Products has its way, thousands of broken trash cans and recycling bins in the Puget Sound area will be recycled to make heavy-duty trash can wheels.

RPP is the most recent partner in King County's LinkUp program, which encourages businesses to use more recycled materials in the products they make.

RPP collects trash cans and recycling bins that are broken and no longer in use. After metal parts are removed, the cans are prepared for grinding, which is done at the company's facility in Bluffdale, Utah.

Because RPP uses a thermo-kinetic manufacturing process, it can use waste plastic without first cleaning it. After the plastic is ground, it's compressed, routed and drilled. The result: trash can wheels that are solid and made of 100 percent recycled plastic.

RPP is working to introduce recycled plastic wheels to trash haulers, solid waste utilities and waste bin manufacturers in the Northwest. Its long-term goal is to open a processing plant in the Puget Sound region.

Seven named Founders of a New Northwest

PORTLAND -- Seven groups and businesses in Washington state are among the 23 recipients of this year's Founders of a New Northwest award, which Sustainable Northwest presents.

Washington winners are A-1 Builders of Bellingham, Environmental Home Center of Seattle, Fort Lewis, Lopez Community Land Trust and Island Grown Farmers' Cooperative of Lopez Island, Mike and Jean's Berry Farm of Mount Vernon, Procession of the Species Celebration in Olympia and the Quillisascut Cheese Co. of Rice in Stevens County.

The Portland-based Sustainable Northwest promotes environmentally compatible economic development in the Pacific Northwest. The group created the award in 1997 and so far has recognized 140 Founders.

The Environmental Home Center and Procession of the Species will be profiled along with this year's other founders in a book that Sustainable Northwest will publish in May.

Sims honors plant salvage volunteers

REDMOND -- King County Executive Ron Sims honored five Native Plant Salvage Program volunteers Saturday as Earth Heroes.

Janka Hobbs, Val Moore, Rick Thompson, Richard Tinsley, and Janet Wall -- leaders of the plant program -- were honored at the Redmond Ridge planned community as part of the 10-year anniversary of the salvage program at an all-day salvage event.

Operated by the county's Department of Natural Resources and Parks, the program recovers native plants from development sites, maintains the plants at a holding facility and supplies salvaged plants to environmental restoration and enhancement projects. The program also educates volunteers and the public about watershed health and the use of native plants in revegetation efforts.

Since its inception, the program has worked to protect and conserve the environment, with 4,270 volunteers contributing more than 20,350 hours to this program. County officials estimate 40,000 plants have been salvaged, close to 80,000 native plants have been replanted, and the county has saved more than $450,000.

Undergrounding Portland reservoirs opposed

PORTLAND -- A group of neighborhood residents has banded together to try to block a construction project that would replace three open water reservoirs in Mount Tabor Park with underground water tanks, the Portland Tribune reports.

The $65 million project is scheduled to begin next fall. Almost 70 percent of Portland’s drinking water passes through the open Mount Tabor reservoirs, flowing untreated to the tap. The city has been considering covering the reservoirs for more than 30 years.

Water bureau spokeswoman Ross Walker said Portland is the only city in the nation with drinking water reservoirs that are both exposed and easily accessible to the public -- and terrorists. "That’s like being the only airport in the nation without security checks," she said.

But members of the new citizens group Friends of the Reservoirs question whether the project is a necessary investment for the cash-strapped water bureau. They wonder whether the reservoirs can be saved, for less money, without sacrificing water quality.

The City Council officially approved the reservoir plan during budget sessions last spring, voting to boost water rates $1 per month to raise the necessary money.

HP backs computer recycling legislation

PALO ALTO, Calif. (AP) -- Computing giant Hewlett-Packard Co. is backing state legislation that would require it and other PC manufacturers to cover the costs of recycling old computers, which environmentalists say would keep tons of toxic waste out of landfills and scrap shops in the developing world.

HP had lobbied against the bill and was instrumental in persuading Gov. Gray Davis to veto the measure earlier in the year. But the company said it reversed course after press reports detailed how toxin-laden computers, cast off in favor of faster equipment, are haphazardly disposed, often in southern China.

Now with HP's support, the bill's sponsor, state Sen. Byron Sher, has resubmitted the recycling legislation. Its supporters say the measure could spur federal regulations on computer recycling.

Dry cleaning solvent banned in California

DIAMOND BAR, Calif. (AP) -- Southern California air quality officials have voted to impose the nation's first ban of the most commonly used dry cleaning solvent because of health concerns.

Dry cleaning businesses would have to stop using perchloroethylene, known as perc, by 2020. The South Coast Air Quality Management District also approved $2 million in grants to help dry cleaners switch to other chemicals.

A study done by the board staff showed about 50 percent of the perc used by dry cleaners finds its way into the air. Previous studies put that number at only 15 percent.

The board said the chemical is among six major airborne toxic substances in the region.

Scientists estimate the cancer risk posed by long-term exposure to perc is between 20 and 140 in 1 million. Studies have linked the compound to cancers of the lung, cervix, esophagus and bladder in dry cleaning workers.

Energy expert to speak in Seattle tomorrow

SEATTLE -- Volker Hartkopf, a nationally renowned expert on energy effectiveness, sustainable building design and human productivity from Pittsburgh's Carnegie Mellon University, will speak at 11 a.m. tomorrow at Seattle's Lighting Design Lab in Suite 100 at 400 E. Pine St. The event, sponsored by BetterBricks, is the lab's annual open house. Hartkopf's speech, "Global implications of energy use in buildings and the role of the United States of America," will outline how to make buildings more productive, more efficient and smarter, how to make workers more productive and about how to export expertise. The event is free. For more information, telephone the design lab at (206) 325-9711, Ext. 0.