Waste and recycling

New York City plans to restrict the use of dirty heating fuels, use its capped landfills for solar farms, and issue loans for green and energy efficiency upgrades to home owners.

New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced the latest initiatives for PlaNYC, the city's sustainability plan, on Thursday at a press conference in Harlem.

It's part of the lead up to Earth Day, which is Friday, April 22, and also happens to be the anniversary of when PlaNYC was first announced, in 2007.

Over 132 initiatives grew out of "48 public meetings with 220 groups, yielding almost … Read more

When a lithium ion battery reaches the point at which it can no longer be used in an electric car, it still has the potential to be used in other applications. But exactly what are the best uses for them?

The U.S. government is backing a comprehensive study to determine just that, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) announced Tuesday.

"To date, no one has comprehensively studied the feasibility, durability, and value of Li-ion batteries for second-use applications," NREL said in a statement.

The California Center for Sustainable Energy (CCSE) will lead the research project which will … Read more

LAGUNA NIGUEL, Calif.-- Waste Management wants your waste for more reasons that you might think.

The company, which hauls garbage from 22 million customers, is in the midst of a strategy to invest in technology start-ups in an effort to get electricity, chemicals, or liquid fuels from municipal solid waste. Already, the company generates two to three times more energy than the entire solar industry.

"We took the venture capital route. We make lots of small investments because you don't know what technology will ultimately will win. We need to spread out bets," Waste Management CEO … Read more

You've heard of turning recycled plastic bottles into floor carpeting or clothing. How about back into oil?

Tigard, Oregon-based Agilyx said that it has raised $22 million in a series B round to further develop a process for converting plastics into a synthetic oil, which can be refined for transportation fuel or used to make plastic or other oil-based goods. The round was led by Kleiner, Perkins, Caufield & Byers which joined venture capital firm Chrystalix and corporate investors Waste Management and Total Energy Ventures International.

The company has developed a multi-step process which it says can convert about … Read more

Harvest Power, which converts organic waste into energy and soil fertilizer, today said it raised $51.7 million in a funding led by an investment company co-founded by Al Gore.

Generation Investment Management, started by Gore and David Blood as a firm focused on sustainability, will be the lead investor in Harvest Power's series B round. Also participating are existing investors Kleiner, Perkins, Caufield & Byers, Waste Management, Munich Venture Partners, and TriplePoint Capital.

Three-year-old Harvest Power specializes in extracting valuable products from organic waste, such as food scraps and yard clippings. It uses different techniques either to generate … Read more

I find certainty a little dubious.

Somehow, nothing has ever seemed that certain on this earth, so when people--especially scientists or green activists--claim they know everything, my skeptical muscle goes all Cirque du Soleil.

So please raise an eyebrow with me to a stimulating article in the Independent newspaper. It reveals the existence of a report, commissioned by the U.K. government, that concludes that plastic bags are actually less harmful to the environment than either paper or cotton versions.

I know that doesn't sound right, does it? I live the merest gust of wind away from San Francisco, … Read more

Where most people see a pile of leftovers or yard waste, Paul Sellew sees a revenue stream, delivering energy and valuable nutrients.

Sellew is the CEO of 3-year-old Harvest Power, a company formed to take recycling to the next level. Paper, metals, and plastics account for about 60 percent of municipal solid waste. The next hill to climb is waste that originally came from the ground: wood, yard trimmings, and now food scraps, which altogether are more than 30 percent of that waste stream.

"We look at it as next-generation solar," said Sellew. "We're capturing sunlight … Read more

Waste Management seems to be on a quest to see what else it can do with all that trash and recycling it collects.

The garbage collection giant signed an agreement with biotech start-up Genomatica to develop technology that would turn syngas into commercial chemical products, both companies announced last week.

Syngas, consisting mostly of carbon monoxide and hydrogen, is what gets produced when waste materials are broken down by exposure to high heat, pressure, and bacteria.

Though the particular chemicals in mind were not mentioned, it's easy to suss out what Genomatica might develop. The company already has developed … Read more

Following a financing deal for ecoATM, you may be able to clear out the digital skeletons in your closet on a trip to the mall.

San Diego-based ecoATM, which makes a kiosk for taking back used electronics, today said it raised $14.4 million in equity and debt to launch its product in more places. One of the investors is Coinstar, which makes automated retail products, including coin collection machines for supermarkets and other stores.

ecoATM was started about two years ago by former wireless industry executives to build an automatic system for trading in electronic gadgets no longer in use, … Read more