SOURCE: IBM

  

Mar 23, 2009 00:01 ET

Ricoh and Taisei Join Eco-Patent Commons

DuPont Contributes Additional Eco-Friendly Patents

GENEVA--(Marketwire - March 23, 2009) - Ricoh Company, Ltd., a global leader in office solutions, and Taisei Corporation, a leading engineering construction company, have joined the Eco-Patent Commons, a first-of-a-kind business effort coordinated by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) to help the environment by pledging environmentally beneficial patents to the public domain.

The environmentally friendly patents being pledged by Ricoh and Taisei include:

• A technology developed by Ricoh that focuses on the recycling of removable cartridges; 
  
• A unique construction technology developed by Taisei to improve water quality.
  

In addition to the patents contributed by the newest members of the Eco-Patent Commons,DuPont, who joined the initiative and pledged four patents last fall, has pledged seven more patents for refrigerant materials that could reduce ozone depletion to preserve the environment.

"The World Business Council for Sustainable Development is delighted that more companies have decided to join this initiative," said Björn Stigson, president of the WBCSD. "By making their patents available in this way, companies are helping in areas such as energy efficiency and conservation, waste reduction and recycling. These latest pledges show that, even in financially difficult times, business has a strong commitment to contributing to a sustainable world."

Eco-Patent Commons, launched by IBM (NYSE: IBM), Nokia, Pitney Bowes and Sony in partnership with the WBCSD, was founded on the commitment that anyone who wants to bring environmental benefits to market can use these patents to protect the environment and enable collaboration between businesses that foster new innovations.

Since the launch of the Eco-Patent Commons in January 2008, almost a hundred eco-friendly patents have been pledged by nine companies representing a variety of industries worldwide: Bosch, DuPont, IBM, Nokia, Pitney Bowes, Ricoh, Sony, Taisei and Xerox. Many of them have been directly contacted about their patents. For example, Yale University has used one of the pledged patents by IBM to substitute a toxic developer with an environmentally preferable solvent mixture of alcohol and water for their quantum computing device research.

Pledged patent by Ricoh

Ricoh pledged a patent that effectively reduces waste of image device cartridges. These removable cartridges are widely used in various imaging devices, such as copy machines, printers and fax machines. The technology allows cartridges to be recycled safely by counting the number of times of use and alerting a user if a cartridge exceeds its duration limit.

Pledged patents by Taisei

Taisei has pledged two patents, one of which provides an environmentally friendly green space construction method solution to improve water quality. Taisei's technology offers a low cost solution to improve water quality by using porous concrete blocks to construct a green space surrounded by water. By using porous water-permeable concrete blocks to build an outer frame for a green space, environmental pollutants are degraded by the microorganisms that live in the porous blocks to improve water quality. The other patent involves a shallow water purification method that can purify shallow water regions of lakes and reservoirs by pumping air through tubes to create water circulation in shallow water regions to help maximize water purification effect.

Pledged patents by DuPont

DuPont pledged seven patents which provide environmentally superior refrigerants for use in refrigeration and air conditioning. These fluorocarbon alternative solutions are useful in products employing a centrifugal compressor, such as automobile air conditioners or other cooling systems. These materials reduce or eliminate the potential for ozone depletion and global warming as compared to current refrigerants.

Patents pledged to the Eco-Patent Commons may involve innovations directly related to environmental solutions or may be innovations in manufacturing or business processes where the solution also provides an environment benefit, such as pollution prevention or the more efficient use of materials or energy.

Membership in the Eco-Patent Commons is open to all individuals and companies willing to pledge their patents. The selection and submission of each organization's patents for pledging is at the organization's discretion. The pledged portfolio and the instructions on how to become a member are available on a dedicated, public Web site hosted by the WBCSD athttp://www.wbcsd.org/web/epc.

Member companies and the WBCSD invite other interested companies to become members of the Eco-Patent Commons and participate in this initiative promoting innovation and collaboration to help protect the planet.

About Ricoh

A global leader in digital office solutions, Ricoh creates new value at the interface of people and information, offering a broad range of digital, networked products, including MFPs, printers, fax machines, semiconductor related products and digital cameras. Ricoh is also one of the world's leading environmentalist companies, committed to sustainable business everywhere. For more information, please visit http://www.ricoh.com/.

About Taisei Corporation

Taisei Corporation is one of the oldest and largest engineering construction companies in the world, offering a diverse range of services in the design and construction industries. For more information, please visit http://www.taisei.co.jp/english/index.html

About DuPont

DuPont is a science-based products and services company. Founded in 1802, DuPont puts science to work by creating sustainable solutions essential to a better, safer, healthier life for people everywhere. Operating in more than 70 countries, DuPont offers a wide range of innovative products and services for markets including agriculture and food; building and construction; communications; and transportation. For more information, please visithttp://www.dupont.com

About the World Business Council for Sustainable Development

The World Business Council for Sustainable Development brings together some 200 international companies in a shared commitment to sustainable development through economic growth, ecological balance and social progress. Members are drawn from more than 30 countries and 20 major industrial sectors. The WBCSD also benefits from a global network of about 60 national and regional business councils and partner organizations. Its mission is to provide business leadership as a catalyst for change toward sustainable development, and to support the business license to operate, innovate and grow in a world increasingly shaped by sustainable development issues.

About IBM

For more information, visit, www.ibm.com.

Media Contacts:

June Namioka
IBM
Office: +81-3-5563-5671
june@jp.ibm.com

Moira O'Brien-Malone
The World Business Council for Sustainable Development
Office: +41 787 130 442
obm@wbcsd.org

To clean or not to clean those recyclables

I have always wondered whether this was a necessary step before putting something into the recycling bin.  Does it waste more water and the energy to get that water to my apartment than the energy that my recycling will save?  I did not know, but I figured that rinsing out my recyclables was the right thing to do for the people at the recycling center who had to go through my “trash.”  As it turns out, according to Slate’s “Green Lantern” column from 2/3/2009, I was both wrong and right.  No, you don’t really have to wash out those recyclables.  They wash them at the recycling facility before they are processed.  However, sometimes it will be months before that material gets processed.  So yes, washing out your recyclables helps keep the recycling facility a cleaner, more sanitary, less stinky place for those workers that have to inhabit the same space every day with your “trash.”    

Energy-Efficiency Is An Easy Way to Save You Green

In these challenging economic times, a few dollars saved is a very good thing.  So if you can save some green while being green, then it is a bonus.  And there are lots of ways people can save green by being green.  One way is to control the amount of energy that your household appliances use.  Something that many people do not realize is that appliances use electricity even when they are shut off. Energy experts call these appliances vampires because they are plugged in to the wall socket sucking electricity all day and all night.  

I came across this cool diagram today illustrating the common household vampires and how much energy and money they drain.  If you want to find out how to make your home more energy-efficient, check out this website.  

The best way I have found to save energy is by unplugging unused appliances and shutting off the power strips for the TV and its peripherals and the computer and its peripherals when not in use. There are power strips you can buy that turn off after a certain period of inactivity.  

Always make sure to turn your computer off when not in use.  This is one of the most overlooked energy vampires. People leave their computers on for hours on end, and some people never turn them off at all.  And if your computer does not come with some form of power management capabilities, there is free power management software you can download. This will enable you to set your computer to shut off automatically after a specified period of inactivity.  

I have Windows Vista on my laptop, and I set the power management settings for both when plugged in and when powered by the battery to shut the computer down after 10 minutes of inactivity. And it will shut off, but if I just stepped away for a bit, it takes mere seconds for my computer to "wake up."  When done for the day, I simply shut it off and turn off my power strip.                

Eco News

I read a lot...books, magazines, the Internet.  I seem to spend a lot of my reading time lately on environmental issues.  It is something I am really interested in learning more about.  I want to be educated on what I can do to make a difference.  Here are some of the more interesting bits of info I have read recently.

From Self magazine's July 2008 issue: Clif bar and TerraCycle have a program called the Wrapper Brigade.  The nationwide initiative recycles packaging that consumers submit and is weaving it into material for backpacks, gym totes and other products to be in Target stores next year.  Wrapper Brigade also donates two cents per wrapper to a charity of your choice. 

From Self magazine's July 2008 issue: 61% of women agree that it is difficult to tell which beauty products are natural or organic, a study from the Benchmarking Company, a research firm in McLean, Virginia, reports.  Look up eco-friendly products at GreenerChoices.org. 

From Body + Soul magazine's July 2008 issue: Two companies give new life to old clothes-

The Urban Renewal collection by Urban Outfitters features pieces constructed from discarded clothing and accessories.  

Goodwill Industries teamed up with designer Nick Graham to create William Good, a repurposed clothing line that aims to save 100% of unsold donated items from landing in the trash.  Find current styles at ecocitizenonline.com or, next spring, at retailers around the country.

From Body + Soul magazine's July 2008 issue: If we recycled 100 million unused cell phones, we could save enough energy to power 194,000 homes in America for a year.  To find an e-cycler, visit epa.gov/cellphones.        

Every Day Is a Chance to Live Green

I strive to live every day by my motto that "less for me means more for others."  By this I don't mean that people should take more than their share of resources because others are doing without.  I mean that if each and every one of us made small changes to our lifestyles, we could save countless resources for others. 

• According to Diet for a Small Planet by Frances Moore Lappe, if you sit down to an 8 oz. steak, the "feed cost" of that steak is 45-50 people with empty bowls in front of them, bowls that could have been filled with a full cup of cooked cereal grains.
• If we recycled 100 million unused cell phones, we could save enough energy to power 194,000 homes in the US for a year.  
• We go through 100 Billion plastic bags per year in the US, less than 1% of which get recycled.  An estimated 12 Million barrels of oil is required to make them, and the annual cost to US retailers of giving them out is estimated at $4 Billion.  
• The chopsticks that you get with your Chinese takeout cost China approximately 25 Million trees a year to make.
• Americans consume an estimated 70 Million+ water bottles a day, and only 14% get recycled. 
• Each person in the US uses an average of 700 pounds of paper products per year.

So I don't eat a lot of red meat.  I do eat it, though, I won't deny it.  I know being a vegetarian would be even better for the planet, though. I have had the same cell phone for a little over two years.  It is only the second one I have ever owned (I lost my first cell phone).  When this phone finally does need to be replaced, all I have to do is return it to AT&T, because the carriers recycle used cell phones.  

I carry a reusable bag with me absolutely everywhere.  They make them to fit on your belt buckle or key chain.  

My boyfriend and I rarely if ever order takeout.  It is environmentally disastrous, not to mention lazy and bad for your waistline.

I rarely drink bottled water.  On occasion I have bought a bottle of water or juice while out, but I ALWAYS recycle the bottle.  

We do not keep paper towels or paper napkins in our apartment.  I use sponges and old socks for cleaning, and we simply wash our hands after a messy meal, or if really necessary, wipe our hands on a cloth towel.  

We swapped out all of the regular light bulbs in our apartment with CFLs.  I turn off the lights when I leave a room, and I shut off and/or unplug appliances I am not using.  

For every bag of garbage we make, we make 2-3 bags of recycling.  

We eat as local and as healthy as we can afford to-organic as much as possible.  

We don't own a car.  We both own a bicycle, though.  And we both walk a lot and use a fair amount of public transportation.  

We don't have an air conditioner.  We have a ceiling fan and a window fan, and we turn them off when we are gone.

I just live this way because I feel it is the right thing to do.  I don't feel like I am sacrificing anything.  I feel blessed by what I do have and feel that everyone should have the chance to experience abundance in their lives.  If everyone on Earth consumed the way we did in the US, we would need 5-6 Earths just to satisfy the demand for resources.  I personally think that says that we, as a country, are thoughtless and greedy.  The Earth is not ours to plunder.