A comparison of repaired, remanufactured and new compressors used in Western Australian small- and medium-sized enterprises in terms of global warming

Repaired compressors are compared with remanufactured and new compressors in terms of economic andenvironmental benefits. A detailed life cycle assessment has been carried out for compressors under threemanufacturing strategies: repaired, remanufactured and new equipment. The life cycle assessment of the globalwarming potential of repaired compressors varies from 4.38 to 119 kg carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2-e),depending on the type of components replaced. While greenhouse gas emissions from the remanufacturedcompressors (110 to 168 kg CO2-e) are relatively higher than those from the repaired ones (4.4 to 119 kg CO2-e), anew compressor has been found to produce a larger amount of greenhouse gas emissions (1,590 kg CO2-e)compared to both repaired and remanufactured compressors. Repairing failed compressors has been found to offerend users both dollar and carbon savings in contrast to remanufactured and new compressors. The research alsofound that extended lifetime is more important than the manufacturing processes in terms of greenhouse gasemissions. Since a remanufactured compressor offers a longer life than a repaired compressor, the replacement ofthe latter with the former can avoid 33% to 66% of the greenhouse gas emissions associated with a newcompressor production with a lifetime of 15 to 25 years

SF Box - A tool for evaluating the effects on soil functions in remediation projects

Although remediation is usually aimed at reducing the risks posed by contaminants to human health and the environment, it is also desirable that the remediated soil within future green spaces is capable of providing relevant ecological functions, e.g. basis for primary production. While addressing a contamination problem by reducing contaminant concentration/amounts in the soil, the remedial action itself can lead to soil structure disturbances, decline in organic matter and nutrient deficiencies, and in turn affect a soil's capacity to carry out its ecological soil functions. This paper presents the SF Box (Soil Function Box) tool that is aimed to facilitate integration of information from suggested soil quality indicators (SQIs) into a management process in remediation using a scoring method. The scored SQIs are integrated into a soil quality index corresponding to one of five classes. SF Box is applied on two cases from Sweden (Kvillebäcken and Hexion), explicitly taking into consideration uncertainties in the results by means of Monte Carlo simulations. At both sites the generated soil quality indices corresponded to a medium soil performance (soil class 3) with a high certainty. The main soil constraints at both Kvillebäcken and Hexion were associated with biological activity in the soil, as soil organisms were unable to supply plant-available nitrogen. At the Kvillebäcken site the top layer had a content of coarse fragment (ø > 2mm) higher than 35%, indicating plant rooting limitations. At the Hexion site, the soil had limited amount of organic matter, thus poor aggregate stability and nutrient cycling potential. In contrast, the soil at Kvillebäcken was rich in organic matter. The soils at both sites were capable to store a sufficient amount of water for soil organisms between precipitations

Effect of good hygiene practices intervention on food safety in senior secondary schools in Ghana

Eleven schools in three different hygiene categories were given hygiene training as an intervention to reported low hygiene standards. Staff hygiene knowledge scores, food temperature, food service time and microbiological quality of jollof rice (cooked rice in tomato sauce and fish) were measured before and after the intervention. Descriptive statistics and Wilcoxon’s Signed- Rank Test for repeated measures on SPSS were used to evaluate the effect of GHP intervention. Staff hygiene knowledge and practice scores, food temperature, aerobic colony count (ACC) and Staphylococcus aureus load in ready to eat (RTE) meal improved significantly (p≤0.05). Food hygiene training remains an essential legal and industrial requirement

Strengths-Weaknesses-Opportunities-Threats analysis of carbon footprint indicator and derived recommendations

ABSTRACT: Demand for a low carbon footprint may be a key factor in stimulating innovation, while prompting politicians to promote sustainable consumption. However, the variety of methodological approaches and techniques used to quantify life-cycle emissions prevents their successful and widespread implementation. This study aims to offer recommendations for researchers, policymakers and practitioners seeking to achieve a more consistent approach for carbon footprint analysis. This assessment is made on the basis of a comprehensive Strengths-Weaknesses-Opportunities-Threats or SWOT Analysis of the carbon footprint indicator. It is carried out bringing together the collective experience from the Carbonfeel Project following the Delphi technique principles. The results include the detailed SWOT Analysis from which specific recommendations to cope with the threats and the weaknesses are identified. In particular, results highlight the importance of the integrated approach to combine organizational and product carbon footprinting in order to achieve a more standardized and consistent approach. These recommendations can therefore serve to pave the way for the development of new, specific and highly-detailed guidelines