[greenyes] Goat Note | greenGoat Newsletter | Inaugural Issue

["Amy Bauman" <abauman@no.address>]

Goat Note | Inaugural Issue | Earth Day, 2005Sorry for duplicate messages to
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Amy B. (greenGoat)


             greenGoat Newsletter


              Saving more than money.
              Evolutionary construction practices.
              www.greengoat.org.
              Inaugural Issue | Earth Day, 2005 Send a note to The Goat
              From the Department of Flimsy Excuses ...
              All right ... Earth Day was two weeks ago. To reconcile
differences between our motivational goals and the *actual* calendar, we've
decided to extend Earth Day through the rest of Spring.
              Publishing deadlines notwithstanding, we are very proud of our
inaugural issue of Goat Note. As our focus is finding and developing markets
for construction scrap and demolition debris, our editorial theme is
lengthening the life of materials that might otherwise be landfilled. We
illuminate the potential savings of reuse and recycling. Resource Management
pays very well in New England, where greenGoat is based, although the
principles work even where tip fees are as low as $35/ton, say our friends
at Wilmot and Associates in Tennessee.

              Since our launch in 2001, we've mused a lot about the
commodity nature of the business. Steel prices generally have a larger
following than those of wallboard, but every material has a moving value.
Most project managers do not have the time or incentive to recognize the
value of the material that goes into the dumpster, and part of greenGoat's
mission is to educate people to substitute the word "resource" for the word
"waste".

              We'll see how we do. In the mean time, any and all comments
are appreciated.

              Best regards,
              Amy Bauman

              SHINGLE FEVER
              Call it spring-time folly, but greenGoat has been smitten.
With asphalt shingles. greenGoat posted it's waste stream survey of asphalt
shingles: volumes discarded in Massachusetts, potential markets, and the
issues surrounding recycling rates. As Massachusetts prepares to ban certain
building materials from landfills (shingles are not currently on the list),
DEP is considering other materials that may join the list in the future. An
estimated 210,334 tons of shingles are 'un-roofed' per year in Massachusetts
alone. About 24,000 tons are being recycled, which leaves ... a lot of room
for improvement.
              The single largest potential market, Mass Highway Department,
will send an envoy to the DEP task force, according to a Tom DiPaulo,
Assistant Chief Engineer, in a recent meeting greenGoat. Mass Highway
updated its specification to allow for post-industrial (pre-consumer) scrap
to be included in road base after a five year long process. Ironically, they
have yet to see any of the pavement contractors submit 'recipes' that
include post-industrial scrap, regardless of environmental pressures to do
more.
              Read more in MSW Management , March 25, 2005



              Projects in Progress
              greenGoat splits its time between point of generation and
market development. The market development projects below seek to resolve
constraints blocking post-consumer material from reuse or recycling. In
order to get a good cross-section of project types, we invite you to join
us! Let us know if one of your upcoming projects is appropriate for
consideration.
              Recycling The Pentagon
              The Pentagon Wedge 3 renovation begins in late May, and we
think we can 'up the ante' in salvage and recycling. Soon, the demolition
contractor will begin tossing out anything not tagged for relocation. It's
an astounding amount of stuff: furniture, kitchen equipment, and (of course)
building materials. The demolition contractor is more than willing to work
with greenGoat, but we need funding to make it happen. We estimate that we
could salvage over 2,000 tons of material prior to demolition (donating or
selling the material back to the community). But, again, the budget (here
and at the DOD) is tight, so we're asking for help to offset planning and
labor costs of recovering material.
              Asphalt Shingle Study, Phase II
              greenGoat is partnering with roofers, paving companies, and
municipalities to participate in an ongoing examination of the cost benefit
of partnering roofers with pavement manufacturers. Roofers save on disposal
cost; manufacturers save on feedstock but spend labor on additional quality
control. What is the bottom line?
              Regrading Structural Elements
              Architectural timbers are not appropriate for reuse ... or are
they? greenGoat works with demolition contractors, architects, and
inspectional services to see whether on-site regrading of architectural
timbers could keep these elements in use. Often, old growth timbers are
significantly stronger than their newer counterparts. What is the effect of
regrading on building code? On project time frames? On project purchasing?

              greenGoat is a non-profit
              Based in Somerville, MA, greenGoat finds and develops new
markets for demolition debris.
              We help architects and contractors evolve their business
practices to include resource management, modular design, supply chain
thinking, and a host of interrelated concepts. Email or call for more
information: thegoat@no.address; 617.666.5253
              greenGoat absolutely does not share lists, will promptly
unsubscribe anyone who asks nicely, and respects the sanctity of in boxes
everywhere by keeping emails to a minimum frequency.
             HOW TO BE A GOAT
              Join a gG Project
              If you would like to kick start sustainability in your
company, you can join a greenGoat project-in-progress (listed near the
bottom of this newsletter).
              Get a Goat Grant
              As a non-profit, we have access to broad selection of
environmental grants. If your project is chosen as a gG effort, we will
co-author grant applications, working with your project team.

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