Finance in the Hospitality Industry Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4250 words

Finance in the Hospitality Industry - Assignment Example Owner’s capital, however, is in most cases limited since the sole trader may not have adequate savings to finance capital expenditure. Ploughing back profits involves re-investing the income from the business. Profits for reinvestment are readily available in the business provided the business earns profits. The opportunity cost of reinvesting capital is lower compared to other sources of capital (Fields, 2011). Ploughing back profits will help the sole trader avoid the huge costs of interest paid on bank loans and leasing of the required machinery. The only disadvantage of this source of capital is that it is not always available, especially during periods when the business is not making the profit. Banks provide short-term, medium-term and long-term finances to the businesses. Banks will finance all asset needs of the trader including working capital, equipment and machinery. Bank loans are usually readily available sources of capital expenditure (Fields, 2011). This is because banks are always ready to invest in businesses in terms of providing the loan to earn interest. Another advantage of banks is that they offer some degree of flexibility such that the borrower can pay off the loan early and terminate the contract to avoid accumulation of interest (Drury, 2003). Banks, however, require huge interest rates and collateral, which limits the accessibility of these finances. This implies that the sole trader will need to work hard in order to generate enough cash flow to cover the interest payments and return the principal. Additionally, banks will require assurance of payment by requiring personal guarantees and secured interest on personal assets. Friends and relatives can support sole traders when establishing business enterprises. They can provide finances for buying capital goods. As a sole trader, I can either receive the full some for buying the required machinery or contribute a proportion of the  £50,000.  Ã‚  

Leisure tourism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Leisure tourism - Essay Example e use of a Geo-demographic Information System (GIS) showed that most of the population living in Deptford is young falling in the under 35 age bracket though exceptions are present. (Burns, 2007, p. 21). Since the target market consists of youth and teenagers, the marketing and promotional strategies should be adequate for them. They are all more concerned about their health and the emotional benefits derived from exercise. Simultaneously the young market is also concerned about their looks and appearance and how it can be improved by exercise. The main research design for the problem is exploratory research. it will be used because of its high flexibility and the fact that impractical solutions are removed from the and practical solutions are generated after analyzing the gathered data. (Marketing research). Secondary research will have the advantages of being cost effective and cheap. Data will be gathered from surveys and other researches which have already been conducted and their conclusions and findings will be used to generate a set of solutions. Primary data will be more expensive and time consuming to collect and will mostly take the form of surveys and interviews. The Wavelength gym management will conduct both online and general surveys to find out more about the nature of the gyms customers. Online surveys can be deployed to survey sites which can effectively target the required audience. Whereas other surveys can be conducted at grocery stores, parks, libraries and banks in Deptford. The next step towards conducting more primary research is conducting a focus group interview. A focus group which will be a group of a few people say 10, will be gathered from Deptford and requested for a paid interview. This will be a longer interview which will be in depth and will generate more information about the target audience. The interviewees will also fall in the same age bracket as the targeted potential customers so that the needs and the promotional

EQ Industrial Services (EQIS) Plant Explosion Research Paper

EQ Industrial Services (EQIS) Plant Explosion - Research Paper Example This threatened the lives of people residing near the plant, with evacuation of about 17,000 residents. After the accident, a majority of them had to seek medical attention as a result of the contamination. The plant is a handler of a variety of industrial waste, ranging from household chemicals like sulfur, fertilizer, pesticides and chlorine to paints and solvents. EQ Industrial Services, Inc. is an environmental service company founded in 1997, and is located in Ypsilanti, Michigan. It provides transportation, remediation, industrial cleaning including hazardous waste disposal and recycling, waste handling services including treatment and storage, and emergency services to its municipal and industrial clients. The explosion caused the evacuation of residents; and two weeks later, a chemical reaction exploded forcing emergency crews to evacuate businesses that were located near the plant. The reaction drum contained a solution of sodium metal that ignites on exposure to air or water. Reports claimed that the fumes from the reaction caused burning eyes, was because of chlorine exposure. Ironically, the State Department of Environment and Natural Resources had approved the company’s cleanup plan a day before. Following the accident, EQ Industrial was pinned down and asked to provide a written report on the cause of the explosion and the precautionary measures it had issued to the public. The Environmental Quality Company, which houses highly toxic chemicals, was also at the fire site. The presence of dangerous chemicals rendered fire fighters helpless, and they were forced to watch the flames die out on their own. The fire saw 18 people hospitalized, including nine residents who complained of respiratory distress and one fire fighter who experienced nausea and respiratory problems, and another eight law enforcement officers. This report will recount on the causes, effects and the recommendations associated with this kind of explosion, which was primarily believed to result from chlorine exposure. Symptoms of the victims of the accident as a result of chemical exposure Pulmonary edema and respiratory distresses are among the effects of inhaling high concentrations of chlorine in such an accident. Patients who are exposed to chlorine are prone to immediate onset of rapid breathing, rales, hemoptysis, wheezing or blue discoloration of the skin. Some patients may experience prolonged pulmonary injury resulting in collapse of the lungs and possible death. The lowest lethal concentration exposure is 430 ppm in 30 minutes duration. Reactive airways dysfunction syndrome (RADS) is a chemical irritant asthma that may results due to exposure to chlorine. The smaller diameter of children’s airways makes them more vulnerable to corrosive agents than adults - they are also vulnerable to gas due to their increased minute ventilation per kilogram and failure of evacuating exposed areas. Long-term exposure to chlorine can lead to cancer, teeth corrosion, flulike symptoms and a possibility of acquiring RADS. Pathophysiology of chlorine, which was e xposed in this accident Chlorine is a noncombustible gas at room temperature and atmospheric pressure, with a characteristic greenish-yellow color. The effects of the upper and lower respiratory tract are as a result of chlorine’s solubility to water - this is what caused respiratory complains by some victims. This solubility characteristic cause prolonged exposure as it delays the onset of upper airways symptoms for a number of minutes. Moreover, chlorine is denser than air; therefore, it is near ground level, which increases

Leisure tourism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Leisure tourism - Essay Example e use of a Geo-demographic Information System (GIS) showed that most of the population living in Deptford is young falling in the under 35 age bracket though exceptions are present. (Burns, 2007, p. 21). Since the target market consists of youth and teenagers, the marketing and promotional strategies should be adequate for them. They are all more concerned about their health and the emotional benefits derived from exercise. Simultaneously the young market is also concerned about their looks and appearance and how it can be improved by exercise. The main research design for the problem is exploratory research. it will be used because of its high flexibility and the fact that impractical solutions are removed from the and practical solutions are generated after analyzing the gathered data. (Marketing research). Secondary research will have the advantages of being cost effective and cheap. Data will be gathered from surveys and other researches which have already been conducted and their conclusions and findings will be used to generate a set of solutions. Primary data will be more expensive and time consuming to collect and will mostly take the form of surveys and interviews. The Wavelength gym management will conduct both online and general surveys to find out more about the nature of the gyms customers. Online surveys can be deployed to survey sites which can effectively target the required audience. Whereas other surveys can be conducted at grocery stores, parks, libraries and banks in Deptford. The next step towards conducting more primary research is conducting a focus group interview. A focus group which will be a group of a few people say 10, will be gathered from Deptford and requested for a paid interview. This will be a longer interview which will be in depth and will generate more information about the target audience. The interviewees will also fall in the same age bracket as the targeted potential customers so that the needs and the promotional

Government Intervention in the Workplace and Economic Development Essay Example for Free

Government Intervention in the Workplace and Economic Development Essay In a free economic system, the decisions made by the buyers and decisions made by the suppliers, determine equilibrium prices and levels of output, in a free market. Scarce resources are thus allocated according to the competing pressures of demand and supply. An increase in demand of a product, signals the producers to increase the supply of the commodity, as potential profit levels increase so as to meet the increased demand. The working of a free market mechanism is a strong tool which has been used in determining allocation of resources among competing ends (Riley, 2006). There exists an increased claim that when issues, and policies are left on their own economic devices rather than instigating a state control on them, it would result to a more harmonious and equal society with increase in economic development. This concept is based on the liberal theory of economics which was first believed to be formulated by Adam Smith. It proposes a society where there is minimal government intervention in the economy. When government intervenes in workplaces, does it result to economic development? This is an issue of contention between various economists, and we shall look at both the advantages and the disadvantages of government intervention in working places and the effect on economic development (Mishra, Navin Geeta, 2006). The government has various goals and it may intervene in the price mechanism, in order to change resource allocation, with a view to attain a specific social or economic welfare. The government intervenes in the free market system so as to influence allocation of resources in ways that will be favorable in meeting their goals. These goals might include correcting a market failure, achieving a more equitable wealth distribution in the economy, or general improvement in the performance of the economy. These interventions however come with a certain cost on the working of economic systems (Mishra, Navin Geeta, 2006). Government has continually set rules and regulations that govern conditions and operations in work places. These rules and regulations, may affect supply or output of a certain commodity. We shall examine different areas that the government has intervened in work places and its consequent effect on the economy. It is in order for government to intervene as it has multiple macro-economic goals of achievement of economic development, full employment, and price stability, among others. These goals sometimes are contradictory as the achievement of one goal affects the attainment of the other (Brux, 2008). Price controls In various work places the government can impose price controls. There are two forms of price controls which can be imposed by the government. The government can impose high prices for certain goods which are referred to as floor prices. This is a price that is set in which a commodity cannot be sold below this price. Consumers are thus required to pay high prices for these commodities regardless whether the demand is low or otherwise. It ensures that the income by the producers of these commodities is higher than they could have otherwise obtained in a deregulated market (Petkantchin, 2006). The other type of price control is what is referred as price ceiling. It is a price that is set by the government, whereby suppliers are not allowed to exceed this price. It is an incentive to ensure that needy buyers or consumers can obtain this commodity at a lower price. This control is mostly found in the main utilities such as telecommunications, water, gas and others. Free market economists argue that this control increases the burden of costs to businesses which damage their competitiveness as a result of huge amount of red tape (Riley, 2006). When prices are freely set by the market, they easily regulate the economy. Producers are able to determine which products are highly valued and preferred by the consumers, they help them ascertain the management methods and technologies which will produce the greatest economic well being. Firms therefore attain incentives in order to innovate, integrate desired management skills in order to produce the desired commodities. Prices are also good indicators of the availability of resources. If the price of a commodity increases as a result of shortage, it signals the producer that, the there is a need to cut back on wastage of that resource, and efficient use of it. In general terms, prices enable economic players to enhance the most efficient use of scarce economic resources. When the government controls prices, whether in form of a price floor or a price ceiling, then it becomes a disadvantage to the economy (Petkantchin, 2006). The government requires that in order for a certain business to be conducted, a license is necessary. This is a form of government intervention in work places, since it creates barriers to entry for potential competition. According to Brux (2008), licenses are issued to ensure that customers are protected from inferior quality goods and services. Licenses however, are harmful to these consumers when they are a requirement of the law. This is because they reduce the availability of a certain commodity or service in a particular area, more so when there is a quota on the number of licenses to be issued. It is also detrimental to the well being of the consumers when the license fees are so high that smaller competitors cannot afford. This limits entry to a certain market which can be a way of creating monopoly. Prices charged on the commodity are higher than when there is a more liberal market. This affects the economic well being of a nation. The government also intervenes in work places by the use of fiscal policies. It alters the level and the pattern of demand for a particular commodity in the market which has its consequences in economic development. One such policy is the use of indirect taxes on demerit goods. This includes goods such as alcohol, tobacco consumption among others. Their consumption comes with a certain cost on the health or the general welfare of the consumer. The government induces such taxes, in order to increase the price and thereby increase the opportunity cost of consumption. Consumer demand towards such commodities decreases. This intervention means that these industries would not perform at their optimal point. They reduce their production so as to cater for the reduced demand of their commodities. It is a compromise on full employment that macro economic policies try to achieve, and as a result lower the level of economic development (Brux, 2008). Employment laws that govern businesses have been put in place by the government. They are a form of government interventions that also affect economic development. In the employment law, the government offers some legal protection for workers by setting the maximum working hours or setting the minimum wages to be paid to workers. Organizations are thus controlled in form of wages paid to workers, which should have otherwise been left to be determined by the competitive laws of labor demand and supply. The effect of this intervention is an increase in the amount that an organization spends on wages. There is also a limitation that is placed by the government in form of working hours. This acts to curtail production levels which have a negative effect on the GDP. The profitability of the firm is also affected by increasing its operation costs. This reduces organizational profits that would have been used to increase the level of organizational investments (Riley, 2006). When the government pays subsidies, it intervenes in the work places as it will obtain the money from businesses and public borrowing. This is an increase in public expenditure which means that the government has to increase the interest rates in order to attract funds from investors. Increase in interest rates has negative effect on businesses. This is because the cost of borrowing finances for investments increases which reduces the overall profitable ventures that are available for the business. The overall activity of business is thus curtailed or in more general terms the level of investment in the economy decreases. A decrease in the level of investment reduces the aggregate demand which inhibits economic development (FunQA. com, 2009). Government intervention is sometimes in form of tariffs. The government intervenes in imported products by imposing high taxes on them. They do this in order for the government to earn income and protect the local industries. When a consumer consumes these goods, he/she pays high prices for them which make the consumer worse off. The consumer is thus forced to consume less of other products and services. In the macro economy, the effect is to reduce demand of other goods and services which will make the economy to be worse off. This government intervention has a negative impact on economic development (Pearson Education Inc. , 2010). It is very common for both the small and big businesses to call in the government so as to protect them. Small businesses requests the government to offer them less regulation while increase the same on the big businesses. They also ask for fair pricing laws which act to hurt the consumers. Pricing laws keep prices for commodities high, since they come in form of price floors and hurt efficient competitors. This is because efficient competitors are capable of offering the same commodity in form of quality and quantity at a lower price but the law by the government prohibits such. Competition is thus hindered to a greater extent as prices are maintained at a high level. If the commodity in question is an essential commodity, it would results to inflation which has adverse effects on economic development (Brux, 2008). Market Liberalization The government sometimes uses its power in order to introduce fresh competition into a certain market. This will happen in the case where the government breaks the monopoly power of a certain firm. It ensures that competitors can penetrate the market which enhances the quality of products and services which are offered to the consumers. It introduces a more liberal economy, where the market is not controlled by one player who dictates on the prices and the level of output. These are the laws of competition policy, which act against price fixation by companies and other forms of anti-competitive behavior (Riley, 2006). Other benefits that arise from government intervention include correction of externalities. Externalities can be defined as the spill over costs or in some cases benefits. Externalities make the market to operate in a level that the amount of output and the level of production are not at a socially optimal level. When there is a lot of corn being produced, the law of demand and supply will mean that price has to decrease as supply exceeds demand. When the government allows the price of corn to decrease beyond a certain level, the producers of corn will be at a loss which will de motivate further production of corn. In such circumstances, the government intervenes by the use of price floor where price would not go below that limit. Leaving the market forces to adjust the price and output will socially affect some sectors of the economy and as such lead to the welfare of citizens being worse off (Pearson Education Inc. , 2010). Another reason as to why the government intervenes in the economy is to correct market failures. Consumers sometimes lack adequate information as to the benefits and costs which come from the consumption of a certain product. Government thus imposes laws that will ensure that the consumers have adequate information about the products so as to improve the perceived costs and benefits of a product. Compulsory labeling that is done on cigarette packages is one of those legal concerns that give adequate health warnings to cigarette smokers. It is a way in which the government protects its citizens from exploitation and harmful habits that would affect them in the long run. This might have a short term effect in form of decreased profits on Tobacco manufacturers, but long term effects on improved health of consumers and a saving on future medical expenses (Riley, 2006). According to Riley (2006), it will be known that government intervention does not always result into the plans and strategies set or prediction by economic theory. It is rare for consumers and businesses to behave the way the government exactly wanted them to behave. This in economics has been referred to as law of unintended consequences which can come into play in any government intervention. This would have negative consequences on the economic level since inappropriate policies would mean negative effects and influence. The market is able to maintain itself in equilibrium through price mechanisms and other economic factors. When the government intervenes, it affects this smooth operation of the market and this may lead to either shortages or surpluses. The effect becomes worse when the government relies on poor information in making these interventions in workplaces. The effects might be expensive to the administration of businesses, and the interventions might also be disruptive to the operations of the business if these interventions are major and frequent. It might also remove some liberties (Pearson Education Inc. , 2010). Government interventions in workplaces should not be aimed to create great changes in the market. The conditions prevailing in the economy should be well reviewed and analyzed. This will ensure that threats that can damage the economy have been identified and measures against such taken. It would be of great advantage if government interventions are designed to facilitate the smooth working of the economy rather than implementing a new and a direct control over the market. They should be assessed on whether they lead to a better use of scarce resources, whether fairness is being upheld in the intervention and whether the policy enhances or reduces the capacity of future generations in improving economic activity (Riley, 2006). Conclusion Some economists believe that with perfect competition, there will be no need for any government intervention. Is it therefore wise to leave the economy to the doctrine of laissez-fare where there is no control or intervention by the government? As much as there exists some negative effects on economic development due to government control, the benefits which accrue as a result of controlled government intervention would be under no circumstances be compared with the risks that would accrue when the government adopts the liberal economic structure. References Brux, J. (2008). Economics Issues and Policy. 4th ed. Ohio: Cengage Learning FunQA. com, (2009). Economics: Advantages and Disadvantages of Government Intervention? Retrieved 21 May 2010, from http://www. funqa. com/economics/92-Economics-2. html Mishra, R. Navin, B. Geeta P. eds. (2006). Economic liberalization and public enterprises. ISBN 8180692574 Pearson Education, Inc. (2010). Reasons for government intervention in the market. Retrieved 21 May 2010, from http://wps. pearsoned. co. uk/ema_uk_he_sloman_econbus_3/18/4748/1215583. cw/index. html Petkantchin, V. (2006). The Pernicious Effects of Price Controls. Retrieved 21 May 2010, from http://docs. google. com/viewer? a=vq=cache:mYXWxJC6EpMJ:www. iedm. org/uploaded/pdf/avr06_en. pdf+Price+controls+and+their+effectshl=engl=kepid=blsrcid=ADGEEShvcqptHKj3Y_Mrxy5hhG7resIp_Y7FVbxWwhBqmLTBqzdSn3hvuXLutFYW9m1uRWom_D5InOy5G5Jp5AMTuCoFxKA-Rj-1tbrOA0PrnDz5VOBbruMR2HYdYcYm-SLf5Oq_aZBmsig=AHIEtbTFfKO-NWp1d5bX2HTlouAB_gP1fQ Riley, G. (2006). Government Intervention in the Market. Retrieved 21 May 2010, from http://tutor2u. net/economics/revision-notes/as-marketfailure-government-intervention-2. html

Methods Of Recovering Energy From Waste

Methods Of Recovering Energy From Waste Biomass (waste) energy is increasingly attracting attention worldwide because it is a renewable source of energy and potentially CO2 neutral. At present, most waste materials are converted into electricity often by combustion. Waste combustion is widely applied for district heating and combined heat and power for electricity generation. This report describes waste, waste reduction and treatment regulations in Europe as well as different types of waste generated, an overview of waste to energy technologies applied throughout the world today. Energy from waste has been evaluated based on their ability to reduce the emission of pollutant into the atmosphere. In order to mitigate climate change which is gaining increasing awareness, recent developments of different technologies that have been able to process waste to generate heat and power with high efficiencies can be considered to be the most viable option to replace fossil fuels. 2 INTRODUCTION Due to the rising cost and the ecological disadvantages of fossil fuels, there as been concerns about the future of energy supply in the world. According to the World Energy Council, fossil fuel covers about 82% of the worlds energy. And this has caused severe damages for the environment in terms of greenhouse emissions, sea level rising, air pollution, etc. Moreover, as the World continues to experience globalization, rapid industrialization and technological advancement, it will certainly get to a point, where supply of these fossil fuels will not meet demand. Therefore, it is imperative to find an alternative source of energy (Soetaert and Vandamme, 2006). Research and development of renewable sources of energy and energy from biomass is expected to be of immense benefit to the society as it reduces the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and it is not exhaustible. Biomass is a major source of biologically derived bio fuels (bio-ethanol) and biogas. This is considerably becoming a reality in energy/electricity generation. Biomass can be burnt directly to produce heat or electricity, or it can be converted into solid, liquid or gaseous fuel through fermentation process into alcohol and anaerobic digestion into biogas. There are many environmental and social benefits associated with biomass energy. These include reduction in CO2 levels, energy carriers to rural communities, waste control, etc. (Calbe, Bajay, Rothman and Harry, 2000). Biomass raw materials for energy generation includes the first generation feedstocks i.e. energy crops (corn, sugarcane, wheat, etc) and the second generation feedstock mainly lignocellulosic materials (wood and agricultural residues). Hence, using biomass as a substitute for fossil fuels is sustainable and beneficial. However, there have been contentions on the use of human food (energy crop) for energy generation especially in developing countries where there is shortage of food. Hoffert et al. (2002), Dismiss the use of biomass for energy, others take the opposite view (Dewulf and Langenhove 2006). To this effect, energy recovery from waste can be an economical viable option. 3 WASTES 3.1 Definition Waste arises as a result of human technological development and social activities. The Uks Environmental Protection Act 1990 indicated waste includes any substance which constitutes a scrap material, an effluent or other unwanted surplus arising from the application of any process or any substance or article which requires to be disposed of which as been broken, worn out, contaminated or otherwise spoiled, this is supplemented with anything which is discarded otherwise dealt with as if it were waste shall be presumed to be waste unless the contrary is proved. Murphy et al. (2002) defined waste as a material with no further beneficial use. The figure below shows the Schematic illustration of the EU Legal definition of waste 3.2 EU WASTE FRAMEWORK DIRECTIVE The Directive requires all Member States to take the necessary measures to ensure that waste is recovered or disposed of without endangering human health or causing harm to the environment and includes permitting, registration and inspection requirements. The Directive also requires Member States to take appropriate measures to encourage firstly, the prevention or reduction of waste production and its harmfulness and secondly the recovery of waste by means of recycling, re-use or reclamation or any other process with a view to extracting secondary raw materials, or the use of waste as a source of energy (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, 2009). 3.3 UK WASTE MANAGEMENT POLICY The UK Waste Policy is developed from the idea of sustainable development. This policy encourage diversion from landfills by imposing high tax levies on landfill site, reduce the amount of waste produced by the commercial sector, and ultimately encourage re-use and recycling of materials. 3.4 WASTE HIERARCHY Figure 3.1 Waste hierarchy 3.5 TYPES OF WASTE Municipal Solid Waste Hazardous/Radioactive Waste Sewage Sludge Medical/Clinical Waste Agricultural Waste Industrial and Commercial Waste Other Waste e.g. construction and demolition industry waste, mines and quarry waste and power station ash, iron and steel slags (Williams, 1999). There are also two different kinds of component fraction in a waste stream; The Organic fraction i.e. Biodegradable and the Inorganic fraction. 3.5.1Municipal Solid Waste This is composed of/includes mainly household waste, with commercial and trade waste which is collected or disposed of by a municipality within an area. The composition of MSW streams varies, depending upon socio-economic factors, geographical locations, climate, population density and level of industrialization etc. for example in US and other industrialized countries where value is placed on time, consumers have adapted to the mentality of using disposable at all times, thereby driving packaging and wrapping technologies to a new level, in addition with the putrescible waste from food stuffs. The energy fraction contained in materials of this type of waste stream can be between 75 to 90%. Whereas in less developed countries where the waste stream is composed dominantly of putrescible fraction i.e. foodstuffs, vegetable and organic materials with minute packaging materials, the energy content will be much lower (Murphy, 2002). 3.5.2 Hazardous Waste Hazardous Waste is waste which contains substances that are considered to be dangerous to health and society. This includes substances which are reactive, infectious, harmful, toxic and corrosive etc. examples are chemicals such as, hydrogen cyanide, sulphuric acid, hydrofluoric acid etc. explosives such as dynamite, ammunition etc. water reactive chemicals such as potassium, phosphorous, sodium hydride etc. In USA, estimate arisings of hazard waste is 275 million tonnes, UK 4.5 million tonnes, Germany 6 million tonnes, Spain 1.7 million tonnes (Williams, 1999). 3.5.3 SEWAGE SLUDGE Sewage Sludge is usually generated at the waste water treatment facility. It is a by-product of the treatment of raw sewage from domestic households, which may also include commercial and industrial waste. The sewage is composed mainly of water, but after treatment, the moisture material is concentrated to form sewage sludge (Williams, 1999). They are solid, semi-solid or bio solid in nature. Harper-Collins Dictionary of Environmental Science defines Sewage Sludge as a semi-solid mixture of bacteria, virus-laden organic matter, toxic metals, synthetic organic chemicals, and settled solids removed from domestic and industrial waste at sewage treatment plants. (Renewable Energy Institute) The sewage sludge treatment undergoes both aerobic and anaerobic digestion and the final treated sewage sludge is either land filled, spread on land as fertilizers or incinerated. Recent developments have shown that biogas can be produced during anaerobic digestion. 3.5.4 CLINICAL WASTE Clinical Waste is mainly produced/waste arising from health centres, hospitals and nursing homes etc. Examples include drugs, syringes, needles, blood, human or animal tissue etc. Approximately 0.3 millions tonnes of clinical waste arises in the UK annually. Majority of clinical waste are incinerated (Williams, 1999). 3.5.5 AGRICULTURAL WASTE Agricultural waste is waste streams generally produced from agricultural activities. They are produced within agricultural premises and they include organic materials such as slurry, manure from livestock, silage effluent and crop residues. It is estimated that approximately 700 million tonnes of agricultural waste is produced in OECD countries. UK also produces large tonnage, 80 million tonnes estimated from housed livestock alone (Williams 1999). 3.5.6 INDUSTRIAL AND COMMERCIAL WASTE These are types of waste stream that arises from both industrial and commercial sectors such as hotels and catering, food, drink and tobacco manufacturing industries, metal manufacturing industries, timber and wooden furniture industries, mechanical and electrical industries, transport and communication industries etc. The typical composition of this waste streams differs and very wide. A survey carried out by Environmental Agency of some 4,500 commercial and industrial businesses in England in 2002/2003 showed that commercial waste amounted to 30 million tonnes and industrial waste 38 million tonnes (mt). In that survey, the main sectors producing CI wastes were retail (12.7mt), food, drink and tobacco (7.2mt), professional services and other (7.1mt), utilities (6.2mt), the chemicals industries (including fibre, rubber and plastics) (5.3mt), basic metal manufacture (4.8mt) and hotels/catering (3.4mt) (Defra, commercial and industrial waste in England, 2009). 4 ENERGY RECOVERIES FROM WASTE TECHNOLOGIES Energy is recovered from waste either through thermal combustion or biological/chemical reactions. The energy recovery process produces electricity directly through combustion, or produces synthetic and combustible fuel i.e. methane. 4.1 INCINERATION Incineration with energy recovery is the controlled combustion of waste and it is the most wide spread waste to energy implementation. It involves the combustion of waste streams at high temperatures and the heat produced can be used to drive a turbine in order to produce electricity and district heating. Waste materials or fuel are fed into incinerators in two ways, the mass fired/burning systems and refuse derived fuel (RDF) fired systems. The mass burning involves minimal processing; the entire mixed municipal solid waste is fed into a furnace without any removal/separation of recyclable and non combustible materials. For RDF fired technologies, MSW undergoes pre-treatment, separation of non-combustible and recyclable material which is known as RDF. RDF fired systems has a higher energy content compared to unprocessed MSW because of its homogeneity (Tchobanoglous, Thiesen and Vigil, 1993). There are various types of incinerator plant design: moving grate, fixed grate, rotary-kiln, and fluidized bed incinerator. 4.1.1 Moving Grate This can also be called Municipal Solid Waste incinerators. The moving grate enables the movement of waste by a waste crane at one end of the grate through the combustion chamber to the ash pit at the lower end. The combustion air is supplied through the grate lying below. Cooling of the grate itself is essential for the mechanical strength of the grate. One single moving grate boiler can handle 35 metric tonnes of waste per hour, and 8,000 hours per year. 4.1.2 Fixed Grate This is a simpler type of incinerator. It is made of a brick lined compartment with a fixed metal grate above the lower ash pit, with one opening for loading and another opening in the side for removing incombustible solids known as clinkers. 4.1.3 Rotary kiln It is mostly used by municipalities and large industrial plants. Rotary kiln incinerators have 2 chambers, primary and secondary chamber. In the primary chamber, movement and conversion of solid fraction of the waste to gases and partial combustion occurs while the secondary chamber completes the gas phase combustion reactions. 4.1.4 Fluidized Bed Fluidized Bed Combustion (FBC) is a combustion technology used in power plants. FBC developed from efforts to find a combustion process that is able to control pollutant emissions. Advanced fluidized bed combustion offers a viable power generation technique. In fluidized bed combustion, a strong airflow is forced through a sand bed, which keeps the waste suspended on pumped air currents and takes on fluid like character. Due to the turbulent mixing, the waste and sand are fully circulated through the furnace. 4.2 BALDOVIE WASTE TO ENERGY PLANT The Baldovie waste to energy plant is a state of the art facility commissioned in Dundee in 1999, to replace a waste disposal incinerator due to its inability to meet EU requirements on emissions. The plant is run by a joint venture between Dundee city council and private sector partners. The joint venture is collectively called Dundee energy recycling limited (DERL). The plant processes 120,000 tonnes of waste annually and generates electricity to meet its own demand (about 2.2MW) and also supply to the public (about 8.8MW). Separation techniques carried out before combustion removes and recovers ferrous metals which can be resold (Gazetteer for Scotland, 2010). 4.3 LANDFILL GAS CAPTURE Landfill is a waste disposal site where waste is deposited onto or into the land. When waste is deposited, it undergoes various degradation process which produces gas mainly methane. Modern landfills have gas recovery systems, where the landfill gas is extracted and can be used for production of steam, heat and electricity (Dewulf and Langenhove 2006, p.248) 4.4 ANAEROBIC DIGESTION Anaerobic treatment technologies are used throughout the world for effective treatment of organic waste. This technology is particularly attractive because the energy required for operating the process is minimal compared to energy required for aerobic process. Anaerobic digestion is a complex biogenic process which involves the microbial degradation or conversion of organic waste in a closed reactor vessel (absence of air) to produce gas chiefly methane (55-65%), CO2 (35-45%), and trace amounts of N2, H2 and H2S, depending on factors such as the composition of waste, organic loadings applied to the digester, time and temperature. The methane-rich biogas which can be combusted to generate heat and electricity In general anaerobic digestion is considered to occur in three stages: A] Liquefaction or polymer breakdown; B] Acid formation; and C} Methane formation Substrates for anaerobic digestion includes waste water from food processing, breweries, distilleries etc. sewage sludge, animal waste, farm residues. 4.5 GASIFICATION AND PYROLYSIS Gasification is defined as a partial oxidation/combustion of biomass and various combustible waste/carbonaceous fuels to produce gas. This gas can be used in internal combustion engines and gas turbines to generate electric power. Pyrolysis is a thermal process which involves the breakdown of organic materials in waste under pressure in the absence of oxygen. The pyrolysis process produces a liquid residue and gas which can be combusted to generate electricity. The principal difference between the two systems is that, pyrolysis system use an external source of heat to drive the endothermic pyrolysis reaction in an oxygen free environment, whereas gasification systems are self-sustainable and use air or oxygen for partial combustion of solid state (Tchobanoglous, Thiesen and vigil 1993). 5 CONCLUSIONS Energy from waste has been evaluated based on their ability to reduce the emission of pollutant into the atmosphere, minimise waste, and generate heat and power. With the recent development of different technologies that have been able to process waste to generate energy with high efficiencies, waste to energy technologies can be considered to be viable substitute/option for fossil fuels for electricity generation and also in minimizing of waste accumulation.

Drink Up - Drunk Driving Should Be Legalized :: Argument, DUI, Alcohol

Drink Up - Drunk Driving Should be Legalized   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Drunk driving should be legalized in the United States to help improve our standard of living. The legalization of driving while intoxicated would severely reduce the numbers of crimes that are committed on the roads. The number of illegal actions occurring on the roads would be reduced by the number of people that used to break the law by driving while drunk. Allowing people to drive drunk would also reduce the number of accidents occurring on the road systems. For example, only twenty percent of all auto accidents involve a person who has been drinking, where as almost all accidents involve someone who has not been drinking. Removing the restrictions against drinking would remove most of the eighty percent of the accidents that do not involve alcohol. Also, the accidents that would still be occurring would not have as many injuries. Out of the accidents that involve alcohol the person who has been drinking is usually the one who survives the accident, often with out a scratch. Allowing people who have been drinking to drive would also improve the quality of life for those who choose not to drink. Currently people who have been drinking are legally required to use some form of transportation other than them operating a motor vehicle. This requires them to hang around where they are and get a ride with someone else or wait or some public transportation. With the legalization of driving while drunk the non-drinking population would not need to be bothered by drunk people that do not have rides. Finally, this would help stimulate the economy which may be in dire trouble. For example, with the removal of restrictions on alcohol, many more alcoholic beverages would be sold because a Drink Up - Drunk Driving Should Be Legalized :: Argument, DUI, Alcohol Drink Up - Drunk Driving Should be Legalized   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Drunk driving should be legalized in the United States to help improve our standard of living. The legalization of driving while intoxicated would severely reduce the numbers of crimes that are committed on the roads. The number of illegal actions occurring on the roads would be reduced by the number of people that used to break the law by driving while drunk. Allowing people to drive drunk would also reduce the number of accidents occurring on the road systems. For example, only twenty percent of all auto accidents involve a person who has been drinking, where as almost all accidents involve someone who has not been drinking. Removing the restrictions against drinking would remove most of the eighty percent of the accidents that do not involve alcohol. Also, the accidents that would still be occurring would not have as many injuries. Out of the accidents that involve alcohol the person who has been drinking is usually the one who survives the accident, often with out a scratch. Allowing people who have been drinking to drive would also improve the quality of life for those who choose not to drink. Currently people who have been drinking are legally required to use some form of transportation other than them operating a motor vehicle. This requires them to hang around where they are and get a ride with someone else or wait or some public transportation. With the legalization of driving while drunk the non-drinking population would not need to be bothered by drunk people that do not have rides. Finally, this would help stimulate the economy which may be in dire trouble. For example, with the removal of restrictions on alcohol, many more alcoholic beverages would be sold because a