the united states generated 6.3 metric tons of electronic waste in 2016, according to the latest installment of the global e-waste monitor. the amount of electronics we discard is second only to china.

electronic waste, or e-waste, is expected to be a growing problem as the rate of technological development continues to increase. e-waste includes discarded phones, computers, tablets, music players, printers, cds, tapes, wires, and other items that require electricity to function.

discarding electronics means discarding valuable metals such as aluminum, copper, silver, and even gold. according to the global e-waste monitor, global e-waste was valued at more than $60 billion. yet, only 20% of that waste is being disposed of properly, meaning most of that value is lost.

while e-waste constitutes a small portion of the waste that is ultimately found in landfills, it is responsible for the majority of hazardous waste. electronics such as television monitors and computers are often latent with mercury, lead, and other harmful substances.

“that tiny percentage makes up the vast majority of what is dangerous to the environment. that’s why it’s so important to eliminate as much e-waste from going to landfills as possible,” says nate mulliner, director of business development at e-asset solutions computer and electronics recycling.

e-asset solutions, based in the washington, d.c. suburb of falls church, virginia, is one of many businesses working to reduce e-waste by refurbishing discarded items and recycling parts.

if you have a tendency to hoard your old electronics in an untouched dresser drawer, mulliner recommends taking those items to be recycled before they become obsolete.

“first and foremost, stockpiling is a better option obviously than just getting rid of it,” mulliner says. “please do that. if you have one choice of either stockpiling it or throwing it away, stockpile it. but, you don’t want to do that for too long either.

“you don’t want to stockpile things until the best methods of recycling them go out of practice,” he says. “you go to recycle something that someone has a lot of practice recycling, that method is a lot faster, more streamlined, less invasive.”

mulliner recommends finding a local electronics recycler who is certified by one of two governing bodies within the industry: r2 or e-stewards. these certifications ensure that companies are using best practices for the planet, while also prioritizing one of the trickier elements of electronic recycling: data security.

“data security is paramount, for our actual legal liability and for your safety,” mulliner says. “especially in this day and age when things like digital identity can be stolen so easily, it’s extremely important to properly get that taken care of.”

in compliance with r2 certification, every hard drive, cell phone, cd or other data-containing device is wiped clean in the first step of processing at e-asset solutions. if you are uncertain about a recycler’s data destruction policy, there are ways to protect your information before handing it over.

“for a lot of things with a solid-state hard drive, like an iphone or an ipad, especially apple products, the factory reset is 99.99% effective,” mulliner says. “for anything with a hard drive, i would recommend some level of data destruction and you don’t have to go to an expert person to do that. there are wiping software programs you can download for free that are just as effective as something we would use.”

certification guidelines also prevent electronic recyclers from taking hazardous waste to landfills or exporting it overseas. this addresses an important issue. much of the world’s recycling waste was sent to china until the country started imposing bans on waste imports in 2018. unregulated and unsafe electronics recycling practices had previously caused staggering rates of cancer-causing toxins in certain areas of the country. while the chinese government attempts to control this humanitarian issue, southeast asia is at risk of taking on the world’s excess of hazardous material if waste is not handled responsibly.

the use of a dockless scooter is dependent on the use of the corresponding mobile application which allows you to unlock the scooter and perform other features. riders can use the apps to pay for a ride on a scooter, which often costs less than using public transit to go to the same destination. the apps also allow riders to locate the scooters available for use and to report any scooters which need maintenance.

since these escooters run on battery, they can only function for so long before needing a charge. that’s where people known as the chargers, or “juicers” in the case of lime scooters, come in. each night, they pick up the electric scooters, charge them at their own residences, and in the morning they “free the birds” and otherwise distribute the scooters to optimal locations for people to find and use them.

these scooters provide low-cost and sustainable transportation that can be shared among multiple riders per day. in highly congested urban areas, use of the scooters can relieve some car traffic and emissions. amazingly, it’s budget-friendly even for a city or campus to start a program in their area, with virtually no cost to the community to have one or more of the electric scooter companies.

the scooters can also have unexpected community benefits. lime is pioneering a new program that gives disadvantaged communities the opportunity to use electric scooters at a much more affordable rate. however, that is not the only social program lime pioneered in 2018. on nov. 6, election day, lime ingeniously partnered with vote.org and made all rides to polling stations free to ensure people were not prevented from voting due to lack of transportation.

some communities are beginning to regulate the use of scooters. arguments against the advent of the dockless electric city scooter are primarily those of the safety of the riders and pedestrians. sometimes people ride them on the sidewalks, which is not allowed. the scooters can interfere with pedestrians, blocking sidewalk access by being placed lying down — or falling over — or in clusters in random areas. although required in some places, riders often choose not to wear helmets.

but there are some safety features that are fundamentally built into the scooter programs and apps. some examples include the requirement of a rider scanning their driver’s license and in-app checks and reporting on erratic riding. the requirement to wear a helmet is supplemented by the scooter companies providing extensive supplies of free helmets at events.

electric scooters are transforming how people get around cities. they reduce the number of automobiles and the volume of traffic on the roads, as well as the congestion in public transit. they provide a less expensive yet environmentally friendly method of transit that reduces pollution output and improves city air quality. where public or affordable transit is less available, they provide residents with a reliable way to get around at a low pay-by-ride rate. while it remains to be seen whether scooter-share program deployment is a temporary trend or the beginning of a movement, scooter ridership continues to climb.

grid’s freight transportation infrastructure will decongest regional freeway traffic networks, improve freight delivery performance, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions at our ports, inland regions, and transpacific trade lanes. multi-year infrastructure construction will generate significant mid-term job creation in the region and long-term freight transportation cost competitiveness, while simultaneously improving quality of life for the region’s citizens and improved transportation for urban commuters.

http://www.gridinc.biz

year-after-year, the ford f-150 pickup truck tops the sales charts. the f150’s ubiquity (and utility!), combined with its fuel-thirsty nature makes ford’s popular pickup the most logical choice for aftermarket plug-in hybrid development. over the years, i’ve shot segments on three different efforts to electrify the f-150, with the latest being this piece from the 2011 sema show last month in las vegas.

xtreme power takes a completely different approach that uses lead-acid batteries, rather than lithium-ion batteries. xtreme power’s system uses a highly-innovative fully-submersible switched reluctance motor and is designed to be installed in two hours or under. the company claims a 60% improvement in city gas mileage, with an added 350 foot pounds of torque.

to demonstrate the rugged nature of their kit, xtreme power displayed a jeep wrangler with their plug-in hybrid kit installed, along with the f-150.

molten magma exists all over the world. it has never been used for anything. 3p corp holds the patents for its use and high-speed tunnel pipe (one of its best uses).

objects move through outer space with no resistance. objects move in evacuated inner space with little resistance. magma pipe sections, 16-feet diameter by 50-feet long with pressurized o-ring lap connections and maglev track on ledges carry the independent electric cars. no need to make up or break down trains of cars.

a car can go from san diego to bangor or or seattle to tampa by itself. the cargo transfers itself at the appropriate junctions to go the most economic route. stationary windmills supply the electric power to move the electric cars on the flat and uphill. the motors become generators on the downhill sections. of course the wind doesn’t blow all the time, but when it is strong, water could be pumped into high lakes to run electric generators when there is no wind. in other words: put big wind mills on the peaks and saddles, dig lakes in the peaks and let the wind pump the water into the reservoirs for future electric generation.

the yellowstone area has immeasurable magma. it has been thought for some time that the magma might erupt. vertical steel pipe forms will be erected in lines or clusters, utilizing the natural pressure to fill the molds with possible pump assist. hardened magma pipe will be laid over onto skeleton rail cars for transport to the assembly sites. continuous magma ledges 90 degrees apart support the rails and may be automatically adjusted to keep the cars running smoothly in line. the big plus, of course, is being able to use a very strong material in both compression and tension that is so widely available. there is no point in using expensive metals when magma in compression is available. plenty of testing will be done to obtain the best designed uses. it might be called the magma age as the earth is full of it even as it has never been used.

lou watson
3p corp.