Re: Environmental Impact

Hello all,

I have been more or less off the list for quite some time (there are
1548 unread messages in my alt.photo folder....), but I'll put a word in
anyway. Please excuse me if I've missed previous postings.

In my opinion "Dilution is the Solution" reflects a completely outdated
approach to disposal of environmental contaminants. Here in Norway, it
is mostly forbidden (i.e. you are not permitted to dilute a fixative to
reach the concentrations allowed released in the sewage), even though I
believe some still practice this.

Dilution may be acceptable if, and only if, what we are releasing into
the environment is fully biodegradable, AND the ecosystem has capacity
to handle the load. This includes having enough oxygen to "fuel" the
degradation without H2S-formation. Many ecosystems have no spare
capacity today.

My saying would be: "Do your very best to minimize your ecological
footprint". If I have the skills to safely practice alt.photo processes,
I really do not have any excuse for not learning how to minimize the
environmental impact of my actions. We just have to do our little bit,
every one of us!

Best regards,
Tom Einar Andersen

Rick Retzlaff wrote:
> I used to work at an environmental consulting company and they had a
> saying - "Dillution is the Solution"
>
> Richard Retzlaff
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: John Cremati [mailto:johnjohnc@core.com]
> Sent: Thursday, March 31, 2005 10:29 AM
> To: alt-photo-process-l@sask.usask.ca
> Subject: Re: Environmental Impact
>
>
> A while ago I was playing around with Photo applications to
> Electroplating, and Electro etching of metals .......... I got a book
> written in the 1940's on the subject of " Making Big Money
> Electroplating Baby Shoes"........... In the book they stated it was very
> important to make sure all the chemicals were to be disposed of safely!
> ........ Some electroplating chemicals are nasty, Arsenic, Formaldehyde,
> acids, heavy metals , ect........Their recomendation was going out to the
> back yard and digging at least a "12 inch hole" to dump the chemicals
> in.!.......
>
> Those were simpler times...........
>
> John Cremati
>
>
Received on Fri Apr 1 09:45:19 2005