EMD
Millipore announced it has launched ech2o—the first collection and
recycling program for EMD Millipore laboratory water purification consumables.
Each year,
companies discard thousands of used water purification cartridges that are
incinerated or buried in landfills. Developed in cooperation with Heritage
Environmental Services, the ech2o program allows U.S. users of
EMD Millipore lab water purification systems to return exhausted cartridges for
dismantling.
The
program builds on the environmental sustainability advances already in place at
EMD Millipore, and will have a positive effect on the environment. Environmental
impact will be reduced by 10 to 12% for the overall cartridge life cycles,
depending on the type of purification cartridge.
“Traceability is
the underlying principle of the program,” says Stéphane Mabic, Merck Millipore
Application Manager and Sustainability Initiative Project Manager. “It begins
with user identification via the EMD Millipore Website, increases with barcode
identification of the cartridge during transport, and continues right up to the
auditable Heritage waste management site where cartridges are recycled. To
complete the traceability aspect, we also had a third party specialized in life
cycle assessment (LCA) perform a full LCA of the cartridges. Information
regarding the cartridge LCAs and the assessment method is available on our Website
in the ISO 14021 self-certification section,” he concludes.
A
streamlined Web-based process makes it easy for users to return cartridges, and
the program has been adapted for small- and large-volume users.
EMD Millipore, www.emd-millipore.com
