My apologies for the lack of posts this month as I have been busy working on Tecnon OrbiChem’s new blog site and other social media networks. We also launched late last month our new Handbook of Commercial Bio-based Chemicals and it is great to say that it has gathered quite an attention from both the petrochemicals and renewable chemicals industries.
Now that the busy travel season has winded down for me, hopefully, I’ll get back to the good old blogging days. We’ll start with this announcement from the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on its call for nominations for the 2017 Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Awards for companies or institutions that have developed a new process or product helping to protect public health and the environment.
The EPA describes Green Chemistry as the design of chemical products and processes that reduce the generation and use of chemicals that are hazardous to the environment and people’s health. Of course, this means that these products/processes don’t have to be based on biotechnology or renewable feedstock. The blog used to report clean technologies as well but those were the old days when I have more time in my hands (sigh).
Anyway, the nominations for innovative technologies featuring greener chemicals and products are due to the agency by 31 December 2016. The EPA anticipates giving five awards in June 2017 to outstanding green chemistry technologies in traditional categories and a sixth award to a green chemistry technology that addresses climate change.
Since the inception of the program, EPA has received more than 1700 nominations and presented awards to developers of 109 technologies. This program reportedly has helped cut hazardous solvents and chemicals by more than 826 million pounds, saved 21 billion gallons of water, and eliminated 7.8 billion pounds of carbon dioxide releases to air.
The award categories include:
- Focus Area 1: Greener Synthetic Pathways
- Focus Area 2: Greener Reaction Conditions
- Focus Area 3: The Design of Greener Chemicals
- Small Business* (for a technology in any of the three focus areas developed by a small business)
- Academic (for a technology in any of the three focus areas developed by an academic researcher)
- Specific Environmental Benefit: Climate Change (for a technology in any of the three focus areas that reduces greenhouse gas emissions)
Click this link on how to enter
Contact Information:
Cathy Milbourn (milbourn.cathy@epa.gov)
(202)564-7849
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