The Board of Directors of the Environmental Research and Education Foundation (EREF) is pleased to announce the award of the first Carl J. Apicella scholar as well as five EREF scholarships. The five candidates awarded the EREF scholarship are Ross Taggart, Duke University, Troy Hottle, Arizona State University, Oral Saulters, Indiana University, Stephanos Koullias, University of Massachusetts and Justin Roessler, University of Florida. The Carl J. Apicella scholarship was awarded to Tristanne Davis, Yale University. The scholarship is named in honor of Carl Apicella of American Environmental Group, LLC, who is a strong supporter of EREF, having been involved with the EREF Fall Classic & Networking Event and Annual Charitable Auction for more than 8 years. “EREF is the one organization that really focuses on giving back to the environmental industry,” Carl expressed during his announcement of the scholarship during the EREF Annual Charitable Auction, held on April 30 during WasteExpo 2014. “I’ve been blessed to have worked with a lot of really great people and companies over the last 25 years and I just wanted to give back to the industry, and supporting EREF seemed like the perfect way to do that.”
Ross Taggart Duke University, Ph.D. Recovering Strategic Metals from Fly Ash Ross is researching the recovery of valuable and strategic rare earth elements (REEs) from coal combustion fly ash. REEs are critical to many modern technologies including guidance systems, hybrid/electric vehicles, catalytic converters, LEDs, hard drives, flat panel displays, portable electronics, batteries, permanent magnets and petroleum cracking catalysts. At present, 86% of the world’s REEs are mined in China, which also controls about half of known reserves. Given the monopoly on the supply and rising demand, it is crucial to locate additional and alternative REE sources. One potential source is fly ash, the primary waste generated by coal combustion. Fly ash disposal is a major economic and environmental burden due to elevated concentrations of toxic metals such as arsenic and selenium. The United States alone generates 100 million metric tons of fly ash annually. Most is landfilled or impounded in ponds where it may leach toxic metals into groundwater and adjacent surface waters. Worse, catastrophic failure of these impoundments may result in massive ash spills. Fly ash is an ideal candidate for REE recovery because it is abundant, has a relatively high REE concentration, and occurs as a fine powder ready for chemical processing. At several hundred ppmw, the total REE content in certain fly ash rivals that of ores. A major advantage of using fly ash is the elimination of the costly excavation, beneficiation, and milling steps required by traditional mining. In addition to extracting valuable and strategic metals, ash “mining” would also remove toxic metals, reducing the environmental hazard posed by fly ash. The research has three main objectives: determining the rare earth content of regional fly ashes, projecting the economic feasibility of REE recovery, and adapting current extraction methods to fly ash. A native of Greensboro, North Carolina, Ross attended Duke University on the Trinity Scholarship where he graduated with a B.S.E. in Civil and Environmental Engineering in 2012. As an undergraduate, he was a staff member in Project WILD, an experiential education organization that leads a two-week backpacking trip for incoming freshmen in Pisgah National Forest. His love of the wilderness and exposure to “Leave No Trace” principles in Boy Scouts sparked his interest in sustainable waste management. Ross is now a third-year Ph.D. student in Environmental Engineering at Duke University, where he researches the recovery of valuable strategic metals from wastes such as coal fly ash. After earning his doctorate, he plans to pursue a career in either the mining or petroleum industry and work to streamline processes by reducing and reclaiming waste.
Troy A. Hottle Fulton Schools of Engineering at Arizona State University, Ph.D. Optimizing Disposal Options for Plastic Biopolymers Troy Hottle is a Ph.D. candidate at the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering at Arizona State University. His research focuses on optimizing the end of life treatment of biopolymer wastes from an environmental and economic perspective as well as developing various methodologies for evaluating environmental impacts. Using life cycle assessment, material flow analysis, and dynamic modeling, Troy is quantifying the environmental end of life profile for biopolymers and contributing to the fundamental understanding of compostable biopolymers in real disposal systems. Additionally he is investigating the possibility of enhancing degradation rates of biopolymers in industrial composting systems. Only with a comprehensive knowledge of the impacts from cradle to grave of biopolymers will it be possible to make informed decisions related to appropriate selection of polymer types for specific applications and development of infrastructure for optimal disposal. Troy grew up in Granville, Ohio and attended Hiram College. While at college as an undergraduate he helped create and staff a biodiesel analytics lab for 2 years. Troy assessed bio-based lubricants in small engines. Through his studies at Hiram he had the opportunity to study in over 10 different countries throughout the world. Troy began his professional life as the project manager and technical expert at Steel City Biofuels which quickly became a part of Penn State through Extension Services. As a Program Associate for Penn State he wrote grants focused on the development and implementation of biofuel infrastructure in the region. Troy then took a job at GTECH Strategies where he served as the Reclamation Projects Manager. While at GTECH he led several projects of note including researching the possible application of man-made soils using residual industrial products, neighborhood-based environmental assessments for vacant land, and developing standard procedures for the evaluation of potential project sites for the organization. Additionally, Troy is Permaculture Design Certified and was a Penn State Master Gardener. He lectured at Phipps Conservatory on composting and garden design. Troy moved to Tempe, Arizona at the beginning of 2012 to pursue an advanced degree in Sustainable Engineering.
Tristanne Davis Yale University, MS Evolving Role of Business in Solid Waste Management Consumer product companies are increasingly active players in solid waste management (SWM), as global consumer products become gradually more complex and challenge the solid waste industry to explore new ways to accommodate growing consumer pressure. Through innovative product design and recycling campaigns, business is changing the way they manage consumer products so that there is a growing focus on waste management in addition to production and consumption. It is important to investigate the evolving role of business in SWM, as this trend enables the producer, rather than the consumer, to be responsible for product disassembly and recycling, and has implications for environmentally sustainable decision-making. What drives companies to eliminate and/or make innovative uses of waste? What evidence is available on the economic benefits from SWM by business? Tristanne’s research will address these questions and evaluate how businesses can play an enhanced role in product disposal and waste management. The objectives of the research are to: 1) Identify business case studies that represent pioneers in the field of waste reduction and reuse for consumer products and research their incentives for implementing these SWM strategies; 2) Investigate how these innovative waste management strategies have impacted the amount of waste these companies have released to the environment through use of life cycle assessments of the consumer product in question; and 3) Evaluate implications for the consumer products business community and the greater SWM industry. By making use of Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) to research selected business case studies, this research will identify the environmental impacts of select consumer products and give credit to pioneer companies who have spearheaded SWM as a business development strategy. This research will consider the implications for the business and SWM industry and enable a culture of shared information between innovative businesses and their partners in the SWM industry. Tristanne attended Skidmore College as an undergraduate and graduated with a double major in Economics and International Affairs and developed an interest in environmental economics. While at Skidmore, she participated in a yearlong study abroad program to Tanzania, India, New Zealand and Mexico that introduced her to issues at the intersection of policy, business and sustainability, which helped to set her on a path towards a career in the environmental field. After graduating from Skidmore, Tristanne moved to Washington, D.C., where she worked with a small consulting firm on energy and IT infrastructure development projects in developing countries for the World Bank. She then got a job as an Associate Analyst at Abt Associates, a larger government-contracting firm, in their Environment and Natural Resources Division. Here she worked as a consultant for the US Environmental Protection Agency, Army Corps of Engineers, InterAmerican Development Bank, USAID and other government clients. She participated in the launch of the company’s first-ever Environmental Sustainability Program and worked closely with corporate management to improve the company’s practices in waste management, carbon footprint reduction, and sustainability-oriented company culture. She launched a company-wide electronic waste recycling program, started a company Community Supported Agriculture Program (CSA) and annual Bike to Work Day and Earth day celebrations. Tristanne is pursuing a Master’s of Environmental Management (MEM) at Yale University’s School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, where she will focus on sustainability management strategies for business.
Oral Saulters Indiana University School of Environmental and Public Affairs, Ph.D. Sustainable Waste Management in Tribal Communities: Improving Environmental Quality Through Research and Awareness Many tribal communities across the United States are grappling with chronic challenges involving solid and hazardous waste. While there is significant diversity between tribes, there are some common environmental management issues that persist relating to jurisdictional authorities, consistent funding, and administrative capacity. According to EPA, the number of reported open dump sites on tribal lands has increased significantly from 600 in 1994 to over 4000 in 2010. Risks associated with these sites include safety hazards; contamination of air, soil, surface and groundwater resources; disease spread via vectors; increased risk of fire; and other adverse environmental impacts; all of which present serious public health concerns. Assessing and cleaning up the sites can be complicated and expensive for tribal governments resulting in disparate outcomes. Sustainable approaches are needed which address local conditions. With a lack of information on baseline and causal conditions, applied research is critical to support better characterization of the interdependent social ecological systems. This is important for planning and implementing integrated solutions based on tribally-defined needs. The overarching goal of my research is to apply advanced understandings of tribal environmental programs and sustainable waste management innovations in the Pacific Southwest to best management practices incorporating sound knowledge of social ecological systems. Specific objectives include:
- Investigate the influence of institutional arrangements, capacity, and networks on waste management.
- Measure the effectiveness of environmental programs with integrated planning and implementation.
- Assess social ecological systems and local knowledge with respect to environmental quality.
- Design a sustainable waste decision framework and outreach program with cultural considerations.
Oral is pursuing a PhD at the Indiana University School of Environmental and Public Affairs, where his studies focus on environmental policy, public management, and Native American and Indigenous Studies. He is completing a graduate fellowship with US EPA Region 9 addressing tribal waste management systems. A licensed professional engineer, Oral earned his bachelor’s degree at Kansas State University, and a master’s degree from the University of Oklahoma. His experience includes supporting the Technical Assistance to Brownfields program for community redevelopment and environmental justice with the Center for Hazardous Substance Research; green design of non-lethal technologies for the US DoD Joint Non Lethal Weapons Directorate; NEPA and CERCLA evaluations for the US Army; RCRA permitting work with the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality; and investigations of the effectiveness of hydrothermal oxidation for destroying chemical wastes with the National Institute of Standards and Technology. He is a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers National Committee on Sustainability and Environment and an Associate Editor for the Journal of Science Policy & Governance.
Stephanos Koullias University of Massachusetts-Amherst, MS Path-Dependent Nature of Waste Management and Environmental Justice Impacts Stephanos’ research will address inadequacies of a system that has historically enabled and perpetuated waste, by addressing urban residents’ core beliefs in order to affect their daily practices, and creating compatible systems to assist and affirm their responsible choices. To this end, he feels that there should be both individualist as well as structural approaches to managing waste. The premise of his master thesis assumes that uncontaminated material handling is both attainable and desirable, that there is lots of room for improvement in source-separation to reduce recyclables and compostables from being landfilled, and that large urban metropolises have the capacity and responsibility to optimize best practices. The implications of his research will brief public administrators, operations managers, planners, policy analysts and academics on the implications of disaggregation of centralized operations in favor of management at the community level, in order to better determine where the strengths and weaknesses of this approach lie, and how to best address opportunities and threats to the piloting, implementation, and incorporation of these organizational structures. Stephanos was born in Brooklyn in 1979 and raised in Staten Island and, later, in Greece. As a child, he contemplated the relative affluence experienced in the west, especially contrasted with media portrayals of suffering in unindustrialized parts of the globe. He has been preoccupied by issues of social, economic, and environmental inequities ever since. Though having born witness to several acquaintances and family members whose health was compromised by close proximity to the largest landfill (and human made structure) in history, and while initially being involved with food and agriculture, he made a connection between the and chose to focus on the intersection of food and waste. His most notable contributions in this arena include the establishment of an organics diversion program in NYC, which served as a precursor to city-wide farmer’s market composting programs and foundation to municipal efforts to pilot similar programs. This endeavor was devised with the intention of increasing municipal diversion rates while simultaneously augmenting the city’s burgeoning urban agriculture sector. He is currently a graduate student of City and Regional Planning at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, and a proud EREF Scholar.
Justin Roessler University of Florida, Ph.D. Exploring Opportunities For The Beneficial Use of Waste to Energy Ash Beneficial use of waste materials can be defined as the use of a waste as an ingredient in a product or process. Large volume waste materials such as coal ash, water treatment sludge, and biosolids have all been reused in applications within the United States. The use of these wastes not only provides a benefit to the environment by creating a reduction in landfilling, but also through the elimination of the footprint associated with the manufacture of the otherwise used material. The combustion of waste for energy recovery, or waste to energy (WTE) is a proven method for the generation of electricity and the volume reduction of municipal solid waste (MSW). 29 million tons of MSW were combusted at 86 facilities throughout the United States in 2011, producing approximately 5 million tons of ash.1 In the United States the two generated residuals, WTE fly and bottom ash are mixed and disposed of in secure landfills. However, beneficial use of WTE bottom ash is common practice in a number of European and Asian countries. Reuse of WTE ash in the United States has been limited by a number of factors including incomplete scientific data on the chemical behavior of WTE ash in beneficial use applications, and the lack of innovative research focused on methods to improve performance of WTE bottom ash in these scenarios. The focus of Justin’s research is to examine the potential for the use of WTE bottom ash in road construction applications. This research is ongoing through a partnership between the University of Florida and the Pasco County Solid Waste Department. Justin’s research focuses on the construction of a series of roadway test strips using WTE bottom ash as an ingredient in the roadway; as well as civil and environmental testing on the ash and ash amended products to assess leaching characteristics and strength properties. Additionally further and groundwater, leachate, and roadway stress monitoring at the site will be conducted. This research will provide interested parties with essential information on the possibilities of using WTE ash in road construction. Originally from Columbus, Ohio Justin graduated cum laude from the University of Florida with his Bachelor of Science in Environmental Engineering in 2012. While an undergraduate, Justin worked internationally in the Caribbean designing and operating desalinization systems. Following graduation he began his Ph.D. at the University of Florida in the Solid and Hazardous Waste Management research group under the direction of Dr. Timothy Townsend. Justin has worked on a number of projects related to the beneficial use of waste materials with members of the industry, local municipalities, and state regulatory agencies.
For more information, www.erefdn.org