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Meanwhile, in Europe’s hotbed of commuter
bicycling, Amsterdam, residents choose their
bikes 28 percent of the time, according
to the International Bicycle Fund (IBF).
In other European cities, the stats are
also impressive: Commuters choose bikes
20 percent of the time in Denmark, 10 percent
in Germany, eight percent in the United
Kingdom, and five percent in both France
and Italy. In stark contrast, the IBF reports
that American city dwellers choose bikes
less than one percent of the time. Meanwhile,
estimates of the number of American adults
who commute by bicycle regularly range from
a low of 400,000 (based on U.S. Census data)
to a high of five million (according to
the Bicycle Institute of America).
Unlike their American counterparts, Europe’s
urban planners are working to increase bicycle
ridership, according to Janet Larsen of
the Earth Policy Institute, an environmental
think tank. Copenhagen, for example, has
3,000 bicycles in the city, available for
short-term use for a small fee. Amsterdam
provides covered bike parking at bus stops,
encouraging both bike riding and mass transit
at the same time.
In Muenster, Germany, bus lanes can be used
by bikes but not by cars. Special lanes
near intersections feed cyclists to a stop
area ahead of cars, and an advance green
light for cyclists ensures that they get
through the intersection before cars behind
them begin to move. Thanks to government
programs to ease traffic congestion in Germany,
bicycle use has increased by 50 percent
over the past 20 years. Meanwhile, the United
Kingdom has developed a plan to quadruple
bicycle use by the year 2012. And in the
European Union, bicycles have been included
for the first time in the comprehensive
transportation plan.
“European cities are much less suited
to motoring and much more suited to short-distance
bicycle transportation than are American
cities,” says transportation analyst
John Forester. He cites historical reasons,
including that European capitals were designed
as walking cities served by rail, while
America instead embraced cars.
Unfortunately for the world’s air
quality, a similar trend is developing in
China, where people are ever more turning
to cars and abandoning their bikes. Beijing,
for instance, has been converting hundreds
of bike lanes into car lanes and parking
areas, as a recent influx of motor vehicles
is maxing out existing roads. And with increased
car traffic and fewer bike lanes, bicycle
riding is getting more hazardous. “Nowadays
there are just too many accidents, with
a lot of cyclists getting hurt,” says
Zhang Lihua of the China Cycling Association.
“Riding bicycles is becoming too inconvenient
and too dangerous,” he adds.
CONTACTS:
International Bicycle Fund, www.ibike.org
Earth Policy Institute, www.earth-policy.org
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Dear EarthTalk:
Can asphalt roof shingles be recycled?
—
Kate Prendergast, Warwick, NY
Asphalt shingles are the most common type
of roofing material used for residential
homes today. In fact, the National Association
of Home Builders (NAHB) estimates that up
to 60 percent of dwellings use them. Each
year, the re-roofing of homes in the U.S.
generates about 11 million tons of waste
shingles--at a cost of more than $400 million
in disposal fees alone. Meanwhile, more
than 60 manufacturing plants generate up
to one million tons of new material every
year.
This enormous glut has led to the relatively
new practice of shingle recycling. Asphalt
roofing shingles have great recycling potential
because they are easy to isolate. Shingles
are then ground into small pieces, and can
then be reused in a variety of ways. Currently,
almost all recycled asphalt shingles are
used in paving, because of the costs savings
they can yield. But they can also be used
for new roofing and for fuel oil, according
to the California Integrated Waste Management
Board.
The Construction Materials Recycling Association
has joined with the University of Florida,
the National Roofing Contractors Association
and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
on shinglerecycling.org, a website that
answers questions about how and where to
recycle asphalt roof shingles. Along with
a wealth of other resources, the site offers
a state-by-state listing of environmental
and permitting issues related to asphalt
shingle recycling, including how to deal
with potential asbestos content.
According to the Asphalt Roofing Manufacturing
Association, asphalt shingle recycling facilities
are available in at least 15 states, including
Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa,
Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New
Hampshire, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio,
Pennsylvania and Washington.
For more information, NAHB publishes an
informative booklet entitled From Roofs
to Roads: Recycling Asphalt Roof Shingles
into Paving Materials. Written primarily
for waste generators, processors and regulators,
the booklet details potential end uses for
recycled shingles, summarizes the issues
that recyclers face, and lists resources
and equipment manufacturers, including for
equipment that enables demolition companies
to shred and prepare shingles for recycling
themselves.
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