■ Environment
■ Environment
Hao Chen, Chemistry Professor, New Jersey Institute of Technology( NJIT)
represents a multiple-order-of-magnitude cost reduction over existing solutions. The technology developed through this research was proven to be so successful that the National Science Foundation is currently supporting the creation of a startup company, led by two of the undergraduate researchers in my laboratory, to patent and commercialize the technology.
IMPLEMENTATION OF STATE-OF-THE-ART TECHNOLOGIES
Commercial Solar Panel Recycling
Commercial Solar Panel Recycling( CSPR) is transforming New Jersey’ s environmental landscape through state-of-the-art technologies. As the only company in the state with an NJ DEP R & D permit for solar panel recycling, our mission is clear: keep solar panels out of landfills.
Our innovative technologies recover valuable materials, including aluminum, to produce a new generation of durable components. Junction boxes and cables are responsibly processed by R2-certified recyclers. Our TCLP-tested and approved PV glass is repurposed into practical commercial solutions. Finer glass, treated with color agents, creates lasting road surface marking applications, including bike lane markings and parking indicators. Larger glass cullets are combined with recycled plastics and molded to become commercial-grade pavers for farms and pathways.
CSPR is not only reducing solid waste and promoting a sustainable, leading-edge New Jersey, but also setting a pioneering national example of successful environmental technology implementation.
Renova Environmental Company Renova is at the forefront of environmental innovation, specializing in soil and groundwater remediation through cutting-edge solutions that restore contaminated sites efficiently and sustainably. The Renova team integrates a number of in-situ soil stabilization & solidification( ISS) technologies to remediate impacted soils, minimizing waste disposal and reducing carbon footprints. They also implement nature-based erosion control measures, such as hybrid living shorelines and installing bio-friendly concrete products. As a growing force in environmental restoration, Renova is the primary installer of the Greenwalk™ system, an innovative public access solution that reduces impacts to sensitive habitats and lowers maintenance costs. Through these innovative approaches, Renova not only restores environmental health but also promotes sustainable land use.
GZA GeoEnvironmental for GZA’ s Wildlife Observation App
As part of the comprehensive biodiversity services GZA is providing to one of the world’ s largest beauty and cosmetics companies, GZA has developed an innovative, citizen-science website application to engage the beauty company’ s employees. The app incorporates on-site educational signage with QR codes that allow employees enjoying the natural resources at their facilities to easily record observations of flora and fauna. GZA has conducted comprehensive biodiversity surveys at 16 of the beauty company’ s North American distribution, R & D, administrative, and warehouse facilities, including 14 in the U. S. and two in Canada. Biodiversity surveys were completed at five of the client’ s sites in New Jersey.
Data recorded by employees on the app will contribute to GZA’ s analyses of each site to guide the beauty company’ s sustainable action plan to drive measurable increases in biodiversity, specifically, animal, plant, and pollinator species at all company sites. The app is easy, engaging and fun – receiving positive feedback from users and executives leading the company’ s sustainability initiative.
Hao Chen Chemistry Professor New Jersey Institute of Technology( NJIT)
Hao Chen led a team of seven professors from NJIT’ s Department of Chemistry and Environmental Science that developed a new three-minute test for toxic per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances( PFAS) – the man-made“ forever chemicals” that accumulate in the environment and take years to degrade. The method, which involves an ionization technique for analyzing the molecular composition of samples called paper spray mass spectrometry, can detect traces of PFAS in food packaging, water and soil. The approach is 10-100 times more sensitive than the current standard technique, liquid chromatography / mass spectrometry.“ Current testing methods are costly and time-consuming, taking hours for sample preparation and analysis in some cases,” Chen said.“ This is a much faster, sensitive and versatile method that can monitor our drinking water, land and consumer products for contamination in minutes.”
Haley & Aldrich, Inc.
This nomination is for implementation of state-of-the-art technology for managing extensive technical and regulatory documents, which is a challenge in the environmental sector. Haley & Aldrich has developed Ragnarock, a web-based decision support tool that leverages a retrieval-augmented generation framework and a document indexing pipeline. The system extracts content from millions of pages and organizes it within a fine-tuned database, enabling the effective analysis of technical and regulatory documents. Its applications span permitting, compliance support, contaminated site management, and remedy decisions. At a recent industry conference, Ragnarock was showcased by aligning project scenarios with relevant regulatory frameworks based on historical permit data. In one notable project, the tool processed hundreds of technical documents to facilitate exposure ranking assessments, demonstrating its practical role in supporting informed environmental decision-making. This innovation improves assimilation of large amount of data and documents which helps make better and cost-effective decisions in improving our environment.
IMPLEMENTATION OF SUSTAINABLE
BEST PRACTICES
LAN Associates
With over ten miles of undeveloped beachfront, Island Beach State Park is a rare natural environment in New Jersey. The few buildings on the barrier island include restrooms, bathhouses, and other necessities for the park’ s one million yearly visitors. When these buildings’ multiple septic systems began to fail, LAN and CP Engineers were retained to help design an innovative sewer conveyance system that uses vacuum technology.
Installing the system and the needed seven miles of pipe, without disrupting the ecologically sensitive area, required LAN’ s civil engineering and land use departments to provide design and permitting work to prove the project could be constructed without harming the environment. LAN’ s land use and civil engineering teams worked with numerous state and local entities to obtain twelve individual permits and approvals to address concerns about local wildlife and historic structures. This work ensured the park remained accessible and the natural environment remained pristine.
AnythingIT, LLC. For over 30 years, AnythingIT’ s IT Asset Disposition( ITAD) services play a crucial role in Continued
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