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The circular economy could create an enormous jobs boom
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Microsoft Embraces Sustainable Practices as Buildings Come Down on Redmond Campus
January 15, 2019 by Jennifer Hermes
Artist rendering of the Redmond campus modernization project
Microsoft has begun the demolition of 13 buildings on its 500-acre Redmond, Washington, campus; the company says it will be embracing sustainable practices as it removes the buildings to make way for 18 new ones. When the project is complete, the new campus will provide a more modern workplace and “create greater collaboration and community,” the company says.
During the demolition process, Microsoft is “putting a lot of effort” into finding innovative ways to reduce its impact and to optimize resource usage, says Michael Ford, Microsoft general manager of global real estate and security.
The company’s goal with this project is to divert a majority of building materials from the landfill. This means focusing on reusing, donating and recycling. Most of the materials in the old spaces, including everything from concrete and steel framing to carpets and ceiling tiles to electronics and networking gear, will find a new life.
The company is also exploring how and where deconstruction materials will be processed: Microsoft’s construction team is engaging with local waste processing and recycling companies to study and prioritize the hauling distances to further shrink the project’s construction carbon footprint.
Ford says the company has made corporate and environmental responsibility as important as budget and schedule for the project.
At a time when space is at a premium and many companies are looking for room to grow, Microsoft considers its Redmond campus a unique asset. Sustainable design features of campus renovation project include:
New pedestrian- and cyclist-only bridge over Washington State Route 520 that will connect the center of
East and West Redmond campuses;
Multi-use outdoor spaces including running/walking trails, sports facilities and green space;
An underground smart parking facility;
“Energy-Smart Buildings” that use Azure for building system monitoring and optimization of energy usage.
In 2016, Microsoft became the first technology company in the US to be certified Zero Waste for diverting at least 90% of its waste from landfill. The campus project will be adhering to the principals embodied in its Zero Waste program.
The campus modernization project will take five to seven years to complete, with the first new building available for occupancy in five years, Microsoft says.
Global E-waste To Hit 49.8M Tons By 2018 -- Here's What Japan Is Doing To Combat It
Sharon Lam , FORBES STAFF
(Photo by Tomohiro Ohsumi/Getty Images)
Every four years, the host country of the Olympic games revels in the global spotlight for sixteen days. While few countries are able to create a lasting imprint once the games are over, Japan has a unique plan to change this: at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, winning medallists will quite literally own a piece of Japanese… trash.
Japan has pledged to recover up to eight tons of metals from obsolete smartphones and other electronic gadgets, which will be converted into 5,000 gold, silver, and bronze medals ahead of the games, according to a press release on the Olympic Games website.
This initiative -- known as the Tokyo 2020 Medal Project -- is in part a response to the global “e-waste” crisis. Although only a tenth of the population, Japan is second to China when it comes to generating e-waste, according to UN University’s Regional E-Waste Monitor. In 2011 alone, 36.39 million mobile phones were made in Japan and only 7.62 million units -- or 20.9% -- were collected under the Mobile Recycling Network -- a network of 9,000 retail outlets that collect mobile parts.
It’s a problem across Asia, with the volume of e-waste increasing by 63% in the five years ending in 2015. Asia is also the largest manufacturer and market for EEE -- a term used to describe electrical and electronic equipment not intended for re-use. This amounted to 12.3 million tonnes in 2015 -- a weight akin to 2.4 times that of the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt. Globally, the amount of e-waste is projected to grow to 49.8 million tons by 2018, with an annual growth rate of 4-5%. China alone increased its waste to 6.7 million tons -- up 107% from 2010 to 2015. Meanwhile, Hong Kong (21.7 kg) and Singapore (19.95 kg) had the highest average e-waste generation per capita in the region in 2015.
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“A majority of used mobile phones are exported to other countries, including Hong Kong, for second-hand markets and/or refurbishment,” says Shunichi Honda, Programme Officer at UN Environment in Japan. The rest are tossed into drawers, destined to end up at landfill sites, or -- and this is the most pernicious case of all -- exported to countries, where those eager to strip e-waste of its raw materials may engage in “backyard burning.”
“Many of manual dismantling and recycling processes in some Asian and African countries are toxic to human health and the environment, such as open burning, incineration without any protective measures, open dumping, etc.,” says Honda.
(Photo credit: MANJUNATH KIRAN/AFP/Getty Images)
There’s little doubt that discarded tablets, mobile phones, and laptops represent a treasure trove of precious materials. An EPA report reveals that “the metric ton of circuit boards can contain 40 to 800 times the amount of gold, and 30 to 40 times the amount of copper mined from one metric ton of ore in the United States.”
And this is exactly what Tokyo’s 2020 Medal Project is attempting to salvage. Out of the eight tons it has pledged to recycle, it aims to collect 40 kg of gold, 4,920 kg of silver, and 2,944 kg of bronze. And so far, the project has been a measured success. At the end of August this year, telecom giant NTT Docomo -- a partner in the project -- collected approximately 1,300,000 used mobile phones.
Today I am reminded of my Dad and his service to our country.
He shared with us that when he came back from the Pacific in WWII, he was waiting for a train at Grand Central Station when the song “Sentimental Journey Home” played on the speaker system. He and several other of these tough Army veterans stood there crying openly in front of everyone. He would tear up every time he heard that song for the rest of his life. So many never got home to hear it. Thanks Dad and all Veterans for your sacrifice and service!
Yesterday we received a PO and today a wire for 4,800 new keyboards, 2,500 used keyboards 2,000 used mice and 52 Dell computers. All going to flood victims in Houston area! Not a charitable venture but it's nice to see a good use for extending the life of used electronics.
