Environmental Encyclopedia

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Environmental Encyclopedia 3

Baghouse

Sir Francis Bacon. (Painting by Paul Somer. Corbis-

Bettmann. Reproduced by permission.)

In The Advancement of Learning (1605) and Novum

Organum (1620), Bacon attacked all teleological ways of

looking at nature and natural processes (i.e., the idea found

in Aristotle and in medieval scholasticism that there is an

end or purpose which somehow guides or shapes such pro-

cesses). For Bacon, this way of looking at nature resulted

from the tendency of human beings to make themselves the

measure of the outer world, and thus to read purely human

ends and purposes into physical and biological phenomena.

Science, he insisted, must guard against such prejudices and

preconceptions if it was to arrive at valid knowledge.

Instead of relying on or assuming imaginary causes,

science should proceed empirically and inductively, continu-

ously accumulating and analyzing data through observation

and experiment. Empirical observation and the close scrutiny

of natural phenomena allow the scientist to make inferences,

which can be expressed in the form of hypotheses. Such

hypotheses can then be tested through continued observation

and experiment, the results of which can generate still more

hypotheses. Advancing in this manner, Bacon proposed that

science would come to more and more general statements

about the laws which govern nature and, eventually, to the

secret nature and inner essence of the phenomena it studied.

As Bacon rather famously argued, “Knowledge is

power.” By knowing the laws of nature and the inner essence

107

of the phenomena studied, human beings can remake things

as they desire. All knowledge is for use, and the underlying

motivation of science is technical control of nature. Bacon

believed that science would ultimately progress to the point

that the world itself would be, in effect, merely the raw

material for whatever future ideal society human beings de-

cided to create for themselves.

The possible features of this future world are sketched

out in Bacon’s unfinished utopia, The New Atlantis (1627).

Here Bacon developed the view that the troubles of his time

could be solved through the construction of a community

governed by natural scientists and the notion that science

and technology indeed could somehow redeem mankind.

Empirical science would unlock the secrets of nature thus

providing for technological advancement. With technologi-

cal development would come material abundance and, im-

plicitly, moral and political progress.

Bacon’s utopia is ruled by a “Solomon’s House"—a

academy of scientists with virtually absolute power to decide

which inventions, institutions, laws, practices, and so forth

will be propitious for society. Society itself is dedicated to

advancing the human mastery of nature: “The End of Our

Foundation is the Knowledge of Causes and secret motions

of things; and the enlarging of the bounds of the human

empire, to the effecting of all things possible.”

[Lawrence J. Biskowski]

ESOURCES

OOKS

Bacon, F. The Advancement of Learning. 1605.

Sibley, M. Q. Nature and Civilization. Itasca, IL: Peacock, 1977.

———. The New Atlantis. 1627.

———. Novum Organum. 1620.

BACT

see

Best available control technology

Baghouse

air pollution control

device normally using a collection

of long, cylindrical, fabric

filters

to remove

particulate

mat-

ter from an exhaust air stream. The filter arrangement is

normally designed to overcome problems of cleaning and

handling large exhaust volumes. In most cases, exhaust gas

enters long (usually 33–50 ft [10–15 m]), vertical, cylindrical

filters on the inside from the bottom. The bags are sealed

at the top. As the exhaust air passes through the fabric filter,

particles are separated from the air stream by sticking either

to the filter fabric or to the cake of particles previously

collected on the inside of the filter. The exhaust then passes

Environmental Encyclopedia 3

Balance of nature

Baghouse. (McGraw-Hill Inc. Reproduced by per-

mission.)

to the

atmosphere

free of most of its original particulate-

matter

; collection efficiency usually increases with

particle size.

The buildup of particles on the inside of the bags is

removed periodically by various methods, such as rapping

the bags, pulsing the air flow through the bags, or shaking.

The particles fall down the long cylindrical bags and are

normally caught in a collection bin, which is unloaded peri-

odically. A baghouse system is usually much cheaper to

install and operate than a system using

electrostatic precipi-

tation

to remove particulates.

Balance of nature

The ideal of a balance of

nature

is based on a view of the

natural world that is largely an artifact created by the tempo-

ral, spatial, and cultural

filters

through which humans re-

spond to the natural world. For a variety of reasons we have

interpreted the natural course of events in the world around

us to maintain equilibrium, and seek to return it to equilib-

rium when disturbed.

There are three components to nature’s balance: eco-

logical, evolutionary, and population. In an ecological sense,

108

communities were thought to proceed through successional

stages to a steady state climax. When disturbed, the commu-

nity would return to that climax state.

Stability

was an

endpoint, and once reached the community became a partly

closed homeostatic system. In an evolutionary sense, the

current compliment of

species

is interpreted as the ultimate

product of

evolution

, rather than a temporary expression

of a continually changing global taxa. In the population

sense, concepts like

carrying capacity

and the constant

interplay between environmental

resistance

and biotic po-

tential is interpreted as creating a balance of numbers in a

population, and between the population and its

environ-

ment

. Three ideas are fundamental to the above; that nature

undisturbed is constant, when disturbed nature returns to

the constant condition, and constancy in nature is the desired

endpoint.

This interpretation of nature may be so strongly fil-

tered by our cultural interpretation and idealization of bal-

ance, that we tend to produce conclusions not in keeping

with our observations of nature. Assumptions of human

centrality may be sufficiently strong to bend the usually clear

lens supplied by science in this case. Although the theme

of balance in nature has been formally criticized in

ecology

for over 65 years (since Frederick Clements and Henry Glea-

son focused the argument in the 1920s) the core of the

science did not change until about 25 years ago. Since that

time, a dynamic approach that pays no special attention to

equilibrium processes has taken center stage in ecological

theorizing.

The primary alternatives are part of the group of ideas

termed intermediate disturbance hypotheses. These ideas

offer a different view of how communities assemble, sug-

gesting that disturbance is more frequent and/or more influ-

ential than performing a routine return to an equilibrium

state. Furthermore, disturbance and non-equilibrium situa-

tions are responsible for the most diverse communities, tropi-

cal rain forests and coral reefs, through the reduction in

competition

caused by disturbance factors.

Few theorists, however, suggest that non-equilibrium

settings are the single most powerful explanation, or are

mutually exclusive with communities that do have an equilib-

rium. There are situations that seem to seek equilibrium,

and smaller subsystems that appear virtually closed. In local

situations, certain levels of resources and disturbance may

create long term stability and

niche

differentiation or other

mechanisms may be the principal cause of a species diverse

situation.

Although theorists have been working to verify, revise,

and examine new developments in ecology, very little atten-

tion has been given to alternative, more complex theoretical

interpretations of nature, in terms of time, space, and dyna-

mism in resource and environmental management. The im-

Environmental Encyclopedia 3

Bald eagle

plications ofaccepting a non-equilibrium orientation for envi-

ronmental management are significant. Most of the

underpinnings of resource management include steady state

carrying capacity,

succession

, predator-prey balance, and

community equilibrium as foundations.

There are three major implications of the shift from

equilibrium to non-equilibrium approaches to the environ-

ment. First, until a more realistic theory is used, the rate of

resource extraction from nature will be subject to considerably

higher uncertainty than we currently suspect. Since we expect

communities to seek equilibrium, we believe we can predict

populations and species numbers to a greater degree than may

be warranted. Second, we perceive that areas of high

biodiv-

ersity

are due to long and short term stability, when in fact

the forces may be just the opposite. Therefore, management

that attempts to maintain stability is the reverse of what is

actually needed. Third, the kinds of disturbance we create in

these diverse communities (

deforestation

, introduction of

non-native species, or oil

pollution

) may not mimic anything

natural and a species may have little defense against them. A

characteristic of communities with high species diversity is

small population size, thus human disturbance may cause ex-

ceptionally high rates of

extinction

. A central facet of the

burgeoning practice of ecological restoration should be an

ability to accurately mimic disturbance regimes.

Balance in nature has a strong appeal to our sensibili-

ties and has anchored natural resource management prac-

tices. Now practice stands well behind theoretical develop-

ments and increased integration of more modern ecological

science is required to avoid costly resource management

mistakes.

[Dave Duffus]

ESOURCES

OOKS

Botkin, D. E. Discordant Harmonies: A New Ecology for the Twenty First

Century. New York: Oxford University Press, 1990.

Ehrenfeld, D. The Arrogance of Humanism. New York: Oxford University

Press, 1981.

Pickett, S. T. A., V. T. Parker and P. L. Fiedler. “The New Paradigm in

Ecology: Implications for Conservation Biology Above the Species Level.”

In Conservation Biology, edited by P. L. Fiedler and S. K. Jain. New York:

Chapman and Hall, 1992.

ERIODICALS

Gleason, H. A. “The Individualistic Concept of Plant Association.” Bulletin

of the Torrey Botanical Club 53 (1926): 7–26.

Bald eagle

The bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus), one of North

America’s largest birds of prey with a wingspan of up to 7.5

109

ft (2.3 m), is a member of the family Accipitridae. Adult

bald eagles are dark brown to black with a white head and

tail; immature birds are dark brown with mottled white

wings and are often mistaken for golden eagles (Aquila chry-

saetos). Bald eagles feed primarily on fish, but also eat ro-

dents, other small mammals and carrion. The bald eagle is

the national emblem for the United States, adopted as such

in 1782 because of its fierce, independent appearance. This

characterization is unfounded, however, as this

species

usually rather timid.

Formerly occurring over most of North America, the

bald eagle’s range—particularly in the lower 48 states—had

been drastically reduced by a variety of reasons. One being

its exposure to DDT and related pesticides, which are magni-

fied in the

food chain/web

. This led to reproductive prob-

lems, in particular, thin-shelled eggs that were crushed dur-

ing incubation. The banning of DDT use in the United

States in 1972 may have been a turning point in the recovery

of the bald eagle. Eagle populations also were depleted due

lead poisoning

. Estimates are that for every bird that

hunters shot and carried out with them, they left behind

about a half pound of

lead shot

, which affects the

wildlife

in that

ecosystem

long after the hunters are gone. Since

1980, more than 60 bald eagles have died from lead poison-

ing. Other threats facing their populations include

habitat

loss or destruction, human encroachment, collisions with

high power lines, and shooting.

In 1982 the population in the lower 48 states had

fallen to less than 1,500 pairs, but by 1988 their numbers

had risen to about 2,400 pairs. Due to strict

conservation

laws, the numbers have continued to rise and there are now

6,000 pairs. On July 4, 2000, the bald eagle was removed

from the Endangered listing and is now listed as Threatened

in the lower 48 states. The bald eagle is not endangered in

the state of Alaska, since a large, healthy population of about

35,000 birds exists there. During the annual

salmon

run,

up to 4,000 bald eagles congregate along the Chilkat River

in Alaska to feed on dead and dying salmon.

Bald eagles, which typically mate for life and build

huge platform nests in tall trees or cliff ledges, have been

aided by several recovery programs, including the construc-

tion of artificial nesting platforms. They will

reuse

, add to,

or repair the same nest annually, and some pairs have been

known to use the same nest for over 35 years. Because

the bald eagle is listed as either endangered or threatened

throughout most of the United States, the federal govern-

ment provides some funding for its conservation and recovery

projects. In 1989, the federal government spent $44 million

on the conservation of threatened and

endangered species

Of the 554 species listed, $22 million, half of the total

allotment, was spent on the top 12 species on a prioritized

Environmental Encyclopedia 3

Barrier island

Bald eagle (

Haliaeetus leucocephalus

). (Photograph by Robert J. Huffman. Field Mark Publications. Reproduced by permission.)

list. The bald eagle was at the top of that list and received

$3 million of those funds.

[Eugene C. Beckham]

ESOURCES

OOKS

Ehrlich, P., D. Dobkin, and D. Wheye. Birds in Jeopardy. Stanford, CA:

Stanford University Press, 1992.

Temple, S., ed. Endangered Birds: Management Techniques for Preserving

Threatened Species. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1977.

ERIODICALS

Dunstan, T. C. “Our Bald Eagle: Freedom’s Symbol Survives.” National

Geographic 153 (1978): 186–99.

RGANIZATIONS

American Eagle Foundation, P.O. Box 333, Pigeon Forge, TN USA 37868

(865) 429-0157, Fax: (865) 429-4743, Toll Free: (800) 2EAGLES, Email:

EagleMail@Eagles.Org., <http://www.eagles.org>

B(a)P

see

Benzo(a)pyrene

110

Barrier island

An elongated island that lies parallel to, but mostly separate

from, a coastline. Barrier islands are composed of sediments,

mainly sand, deposited by longshore currents, wind, and

wave action. Both marine and terrestrial plants and animals

find

habitat

on barrier islands or along their sandy beach

shorelines. These islands also protect coastal lagoons from

ocean currents and waves, providing a warm, quiet

environ-

ment

for

species

that cannot tolerate more violent wind

and wave conditions. In recent decades these linear, sandy

islands, with easy access from the mainland, have proven a

popular playground for vacationers. These visitors now pose

a significant threat to breeding birds and other coastal spe-

cies. Building houses, roads, and other disruptive human

activities can destabilize

dunes

and expose barrier islands

to disastrous storm damage. In some cases, whole islands

are swept away, exposing protected lagoons and delicate

wetlands

to further damage. Major barrier island forma-

tions in North America include those along the eastern

coasts of the mid-Atlantic states, Florida, and the Gulf of

Mexico.

Environmental Encyclopedia 3

Basel Convention

Located parallel to coastlines, Barrier islands attract visitors that now pose a significant threat to the birds and

other coastal species living there. (JLM Visuals. Reproduced by permission.)

Basel Convention

The Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary

Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal is a

global treaty that was adopted in 1989 and became effective

on May 5, 1992. The Basel Convention represents a response

by the international community to problems caused by the

international shipment of wastes. Of the over 400 million

tons of hazardous wastes generated globally every year, an

unknown amount is subject to transboundary movement.

(United States companies were estimated to export about

140,000 tons of

hazardous waste

in 1993). In the 1980s,

several highly publicized “toxic ships” were accused of trying

to dump hazardous wastes illegally in developing countries.

The uncontrolled movement and disposal of hazardous

waste, especially in developing countries which often lacked

the know-how and equipment to safely manage and treat

hazardous wastes, became a significant problem due to high

domestic costs of treating or disposing of wastes.

Through its Secretariat in the

United Nations Envi-

ronment Programme

, the Convention aims to control the

111

transboundary movement of wastes, monitor and prevent

illegal traffic, provide technical assistance and guidelines,

and promote cooperation. The Convention imposes obliga-

tions on treaty signatories to ensure that wastes are managed

and disposed of in an environmentally sound manner. The

main principles of the Basel Convention are to (1) reduce

transboundary movements of hazardous wastes to a mini-

mum consistent with environmentally sound management;

(2) treat and dispose of hazardous wastes as close as possible

to their source of generation; and (3) reduce and minimize

the generation of hazardous waste. The Convention gener-

ally prohibits Parties to the Convention from importing or

exporting hazardous wastes or other wastes from or to a

non-contracting party. However, a Party to the convention

may allow such import or export if the Party has a separate

bilateral or multilateral agreement regarding the transbound-

ary movement of hazardous wastes with a non-party and

that agreement provides for “environmentally sound man-

agement.” To date, the Convention has defined environmen-

tally sound management practices for a number of wastes

and technologies, including organic solvents, waste oils, pen-

Environmental Encyclopedia 3

Rick Bass

tachloraphenol (PCBs), household wastes, landfills, inciner-

ators, and oil

recycling

The Conference of the Parties (COP) is the governing

body of the Basel Convention and is composed of all govern-

ments that have ratified or acceded to it. The COP has met

three times since the Convention entered into force in May

1992 (in Piriapolis, Uruguay, on December 4, 1992; Geneva,

Switzerland, on March 25, 1994; and Geneva, Switzerland,

September 18–22, 1995). In the most recent meeting, the

Parties adopted an amendment to the Convention that will

ban the export of hazardous wastes from developed countries

to developing ones. The Fourth Meeting of the Conference

of the Parties, held in Kuala Lumpur in October 1997,

incorporated work on lists of wastes into the system of the

Basel Convention. These lists should help to mitigate practi-

cal difficulties in determining exactly what is a waste, a

problem that has been encountered by a number of Parties.

Currently, the European Community and 108 States

are Party to the Basel Convention. Though the United States

was among the original signatories to the Basel Convention

in 1989, the United States is still not a party to the Conven-

tion since Congress has yet to pass implementing legislation.

The United States does participate in planning and technical

aspects of the Convention.

[Stuart Batterman]

Rick Bass (1958 – )

American writer

Bass was born in south Texas and grew up there, absorbing

stories and family lore from his grandfather during deer-

hunting trips. These early forays into Texas hill country

form the basis of the author’s first book, The Deer Pasture,

published when he was 27 years old. At one time or another,

Bass has lived in Texas, Mississippi, Vermont, Utah, Arkan-

sas, and Montana.

Bass received a degree in geology from Utah State

University in 1979 and went to work as a

petroleum

geolo-

gist in Mississippi, prospecting for new oil

wells

. This expe-

rience informed one of his better-known nonfiction books,

Oil Notes. Written in journal form, Oil Notes offers medita-

tions on the art and science of finding energy in the ground,

as well as reflections on the author’s personal life and his

outdoor adventures.

Bass is a passionate environmentalist whose nonfiction

in particular celebrates efforts to reclaim a wilder America.

Books such as The Lost Grizzlies: A Search for Survivors

demonstrate his conviction that America’s larger predators

should be allowed to survive and thrive. Bass highlights the

112

Rick Bass. (Photograph by L. L. Griffin. Reproduced by

permission.)

plight of the wolf in 1992’s The Ninemile Wolves and 1998’s

The New Wolves.

Bass features his adopted Montana homeland in some

of his publications, including his nonfiction titles Winter:

Notes from Montana, a 1991 release, and The Book of Yaak,

which was published in 1996. Bass’s essays are often linked

by comments about his dog, a German shorthaired pointer

named Colter. Bass gave readers a more exclusive look at

Colter with his 2000 book Colter: The True Story of the Best

Dog I Ever Had. The work, however, also stays true to Bass’s

characteristic nature themes. Publisher’s Weekly said Colter

was as much “a book about appreciating nature and life” as

it was the story of Bass and his dog.

Although most of Bass’s publications are nonfiction,

the author has written both short stories and novels. Perhaps

not surprisingly, the masculine sports of

hunting

, fishing,

and drinking are central to many of Bass’s stories. Bass

published his first novel in 1998, Where the Sea Used to Be.

The story involves a young geologist named Wallis who is

sent by an oilman named Old Dudley to an isolated part of

Montana. While investigating the land, Wallis stays with

Mel, Old Dudley’s daughter. Wallis comes to love both Mel,

who studies

wolves

, and the remote landscape. This book

was followed by a collection of short stories in 2002, called

The Hermit’s Story. Bass continued to publish essays and

Environmental Encyclopedia 3

Bats

stories in the early 2000s in many popular magazines, includ-

ing Sports Afield, Audobon, National Geographic Traveler, At-

lantic Monthly, Sierra, and others.

ESOURCES

ERIODICALS

Kinsella, Bridget. “Taking a Title to the Dogs and Beyond”Publishers

Weekly247, no. 23 (June 5, 2000): 19.

Bats

Bats, the only mammals that fly, are among nature’s least

understood and unfairly maligned creatures. They are ex-

tremely valuable animals, responsible for consuming huge

numbers of insects and pollinating and dispersing the seeds

of fruit-bearing plants and trees, especially in the tropics.

Yet, superstitions about and fear of these nocturnal creatures

have led to their persecution and elimination from many

areas, and several

species

of bats are now threatened with

extinction

There are over 900 species of bats, representing almost

a quarter of all mammal species, and they are found on every

continent except

Antarctica

. Most types of bats live in the

tropics, and some 40 species are found in the United States

and Canada. The largest bats, flying foxes, found on Pacific

islands, have wingspreads of five feet (1.5 m). The smallest

bats, bamboo bats, are the size of the end of a person’s

thumb.

Bats commonly feed on mosquitoes and other night-

flying insects, especially over ponds and other bodies of

water. Some bats consume half of their weight in insects a

night, eating up to 5,000 gnat-sized mosquitoes an hour,

thus helping to keep insect population under control. Some

bats hunt ground-dwelling species, such as spiders, scorpi-

ons, large insects, and beetles, and others prey on

frogs

lizards, small birds, rodents, fish, and even other bats. The

infamous vampire bat of Central and South America does

actually feed on blood, daily consuming about a tablespoon

from cattle and other animals, but it does not generally

bother humans.

Bats that live in tropical areas, such as fruit bats (also

called flying foxes), often feed on and pollinate plants. Bats

are thus extremely important in helping flowers and fruit-

bearing plants to reproduce. In tropical rain forests, for exam-

ple, bats are responsible for pollinating most of the fruit

trees and plants.

Bats are usually social animals. Some colonies consist

of millions of bats and use the same roost for centuries. Bat

manure (

guano

) is often collected from caves and used as

fertilizer

. Most bats come out only at night and spend their

days in dark roosts, hanging upside down, sleeping, nursing

113

and tending their young, or grooming their wings and fur.

Bats become active an hour or so before dark, and at dusk

they leave their roosting areas and fly out to feed, returning

home before dawn. Many bats flying at night navigate and

locate food, such as flying insects, by echolocation, emitting

continuous high frequency sounds that echo or bounce off

of nearby objects. Such sounds cannot be heard by humans.

Most bats have just one or two young a year, though some

have up to four offspring at a time. The newborn must hold

onto its mother, sometimes for several weeks, and be nursed

for six to eight weeks. Some species of bats live up to 25

years. Most bats in North America migrate or hibernate in

caves during the winter, when food is scarce and tempera-

tures reach freezing point. Superstitions about and prejudice

against bats have existed for hundreds of years, but most

such tales are untrue. Bats do not carry bedbugs or become

entangled in women’s hair; they are not blind and indeed

do not even have poor vision. In fact, except for the occa-

sional rabid bat, these creatures are not dangerous to humans

and are quite timid and will try to escape if confronted. In

recent years, public education programs and conservationists,

such as Dr. Merlin Tuttle, head of Bat Conservation Interna-

tional in Austin, Texas, have helped correct these misconcep-

tions about bats and have increased appreciation for the

valuable role these creatures play in destroying pests and

pollinating crops. Bracken Cave, located between San Anto-

nio and Austin, is owned by Bat Conservation International

and with some 20 million Mexican freetailed bats residing

there in the spring and summer, the cave is said to shelter

the world’s largest bat colony and the largest collection of

mammals anywhere on the planet. The pregnant females

migrate there in early March from central Mexico to nurse

and raise their young, and the colony can consume 250 tons

of insects a night.

According to Dr. Tuttle, a colony of just 150 big

brown bats can eat almost 40,000 cucumber beetles in a

summer, which “means that they’ve protected local farmers

from 18 million root worms, which cost American farmers

$1 billion a year,” including crop damage and

pesticide

costs. Dr. Tuttle and his organization suggest that people

attract the creatures and help provide

habitat

for them by

constructing or buying bathouses, which his groups sell.

Nevertheless, bats continue to be feared and exterminated

throughout the world. Major threats to the survival of bats

include intentional killing, loss of habitat (such as old trees,

caves, and mines), eviction from barns, attics, and house

eaves, pesticide

poisoning

, and vandalism and disturbance

of caves where they roost. According to Dr. Tuttle, “Bats

are among the most endangered animals in America. Nearly

40 percent of America’s 43 species are either endangered or

candidates for the list.”

Environmental Encyclopedia 3

Battery recycling

Indiana bat (

Myotis sodalis

). (Photograph by Merlin

D. Tuttle. Bat Conservation International. Reproduced by

permission.)

Over a dozen species of bats worldwide are listed by the

U.S. Department of the Interior

endangered species

including the gray bat (Myotis grisescens) of central and south-

eastern United States; the Hawaiian hoary bat (Lasiurus

cinereus semotus); the Indiana bat (Myotis sodalis) of the east-

ern and mid-western United States; the Ozark big-eared

bat (Plecotus townsendii ingens) found in Missouri, Okla-

homa, and Arkansas; the Mexican long-nosed bat (Lep-

tonycteris nivalis) of New Mexico, Texas, Mexico, and Cen-

tral America; Sanborn’s long-nosed bat (Leptonycteris

sanborni) of Arizona, New Mexico, Mexico, and Central

America; and the Virginia big-eared bat (Plecotus townsendii

virginianus) found in Kentucky, North Carolina, West Vir-

ginia, and Virginia.

[Lewis G. Regenstein]

ESOURCES

OOKS

Neuweiler, Gerhard. The Biology of Bats. Translated by Ellen Covey. New

York: Oxford University Press, 2000.

114

Tuttle, Merlin D. America’s Neighborhood Bats. Austin: University of Texas

Press, 1988.

ERIODICALS

Raver, Anne. “Batman Returns (The Real One).” The New York Times

(May 23, 1993): 18.

THER

U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. December 2001 [cited May 2002]. <http://

ecos.fws.gov/webpage>.

Batteries

see

Lead

Battery recycling

The United States consumes over $10.4 billion in batteries

annually, powering everything from children’s toys to hear-

ing aids. Because batteries contain certain toxic substances,

such as

cadmium

lead

, and sulfuric

acid

, introducing them

into landfills and other

solid waste

disposal facilities once

they are used can be harmful to the

environment

and to

public health.

Virtually every type of battery currently in common

use—alkaline, lead acid, nickel-cadmium, lithium

ion

, and

more—can be recycled to some extent. Even rechargeable

batteries, which were designed in part to cut down on the

expense and environmental impact of battery consumption,

can be recycled after they have lost the ability to hold a

charge.

The Universal Waste Rule, an amendment to the

Re-

source Conservation and Recovery Act

(RCRA) was in-

troduced by the United States

Environmental Protection

Agency

(EPA) in 1995 in an effort to lower some of the

administrative and financial barriers to collection and

recycl-

ing

of batteries and other potentially hazardous household

products. It was hoped that making recycling of lead batteries

easier and more profitable to recycle would lead to more

extensive recycling programs. The rule streamlined the regu-

latory process for businesses and excluded rechargeable bat-

teries from

hazardous waste

handling requirements. How-

ever, individual states had the final determination over

whether or not to adopt the amendment.

Further EPA legislation passed in 1996 entitled the

Mercury-Containing Rechargeable Battery Management

Act (or Battery Act) promotes recycling of rechargeable

batteries through a national uniform code that removes ob-

stacles presented by conflicting state recycling laws and regu-

lations. The Battery Act also mandates that manufacturers

of portable rechargeable batteries and products use universal

recycling labeling, make batteries easy to remove from prod-

ucts, and prohibit the intentional introduction of

mercury

Environmental Encyclopedia 3

Bay of Fundy

into batteries (i.e., mercury added beyond the trace amount

present naturally).

Some battery manufacturers have created take-back

programs, sometimes referred to as product stewardship or

extended producer responsibility, to encourage recycling of

their products. Manufacturers “take back” used batteries that

are returned by consumers, retailers, and community recycl-

ing programs. These programs are voluntary in the United

States, and are popular in the

European Union

(EU) where

they are legally required in many countries. Austria and

Germany, for example, require all battery manufacturers to

take back batteries at no cost to the consumer.

According to the EPA, over 350 million rechargeable

batteries are sold each year in the United States. The industry

trade magazine Electronics Business News puts worldwide

sales of rechargeable batteries at approximately $5.5 billion

in 2001. Yet only a small portion of these rechargeable

batteries enter the recycling stream, and the batteries have

become a significant source of heavy metal contamination

at solid waste facilities.

Passage of the Battery Act paved the way for the

largest North American take-back battery recycling program,

administered by the non-profit Rechargeable Battery Re-

cycling Corporation (RBRC). The RBRC facilitates and

promotes awareness of rechargeable battery recycling

throughout the United States and Canada. Its activities are

funded through licensing fees paid by the by manufacturers

of portable rechargeable batteries and products. The RBRC

recycles

nickel

cadmium (Ni-Cd), nickel metal hydride (Ni-

MH), lithium ion (Li-ion), and small sealed lead (Pb; SSLA)

batteries used in cordless phones, power tools, laptop and

notebook computers, cell phones, and other portable devices.

Lead-acid batteries, the type of wet-cell battery used

in cars, boats, and other vehicles, are one of the most highly

recycled products in America. In 1999, 93.3% of lead-acid

batteries were recycled, compared to 42% of all paper and

52% of

aluminum

cans. As of early 2002, 42 states had

adopted legislation requiring the recycling of lead-acid bat-

teries. Some states charge a deposit fee to consumers who

purchase a new lead-acid battery without trading in an old

one for recycling. Most states that charge this fee (including

Arizona, Minnesota, and New York) refund it if the con-

sumer brings back a used battery for recycling after the

purchase. In addition to keeping lead and sulfuric acid out

of solid waste facilities, lead-acid battery recycling is a sub-

stantial source of recycled polypropylene and generates 2

billion lb (907 million kg) of lead for

reuse

annually.

Most alkaline and carbon-zinc batteries manufactured

in the United States since 1993 do not contain added mer-

cury, and therefore are not considered hazardous waste. Be-

cause of the perceived reduced risk of these “zero added

mercury” batteries to the environment, many communities

115

advise residents to deposit them into their regular trash,

where they end up in landfills. This method is sometimes

deemed more cost-effective than sorting and transporting

these batteries for recycling. However, recycling programs

for alkaline batteries are available and growing in popularity.

[Paula Anne Ford-Martin]

ESOURCES

OOKS

Pistoia, J. et al eds. Used Battery Collection and Recycling. New York: Elsevier

Science, 2001.

ERIODICALS

Sova, Chris and Harve Muellerx. “A Charged-Up Market: The Recycling of

Several Types of Batteries Has Created a Number of Established Processes.”

Recycling Today 40, no.3 (March 2002):100.

THER

Municipal and Industrial Solid Waste Division, Office of Solid Waste,

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. “Mercury-Containing and Re-

chargeable Battery Management Act.” 42 USC 14301. <http://www.access-

.gpo.gov/uscode/title42/chapter137_.html> [May 17, 2002].

RGANIZATIONS

Rechargeable Battery Recycling Corporation, 1000 Parkwood Circle, Suite

450, Atlanta, GA USA 30339 (678) 419-9990, Fax: (678) 419-9986,

Email: corporate@rbrc.com, <http://www.rbrc.org>

Bay of Fundy

The Bay of Fundy is a marine

ecosystem

that lies on the

northeastern coast of North America, bordering parts of the

Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia and

the U.S. state of Maine. It encompasses about 62.5-thousand

(180-thousand km

) of marine coastal-shelf

habitat

mostly less than about 660 ft (200 m) deep. The Bay is

renowned for its exceptionally high tides, which can exceed

53 ft (16 m) in its upper reaches in the Minas Basin. These

are higher tides than occur anywhere else in the world.

During the peak tidal

flooding

of the Bay the flow of water

is about 880-million ft

/s (25-million m

/s), equivalent to

about 2000 times the average flow of the Saint Lawrence

River.

The astonishing tides of the Bay of Fundy occur be-

cause its long shape, great size, and increasing up-bay shal-

lowness result in its tidal waters “piling up” to great depths.

This effect is amplified by the natural period of tidal oscilla-

tion of the Bay of about 13 hours, which further pushes

against the natural tidal cycle of 12.4 hours. This rare physical

phenomenon is known as a “near-resonant response.” The

tidal heights are particularly extreme in the upper reaches

of the Bay, but even in its lower areas small boats are com-

monly left high and dry during the twice-daily low tides,

and rivers may have a reversing tidal bore (or advancing wave)

Environmental Encyclopedia 3

Bay of Fundy

The Bay of Fundy with the New Brunswick skyline at its shores. (Communications NB. Reproduced by permission.)

moving upstream with each tide. The “Reversing Falls” near

the mouth of the Saint John River is another natural phe-

nomenon associated with the great tides of the Bay of Fundy.

The huge tidal flows of the Bay of Fundy result in

great

upwellings

of nutrient-rich bottom waters at some

places, allowing high rates of

ecological productivity

occur. The high productivity of marine

phytoplankton

sup-

ports a dense

biomass

of small crustaceans known as

zoo-

plankton

, which are fed upon by great schools of small

fishes such as herring. The zooplankton and fishes attract

large numbers of such seabirds as gulls, phalaropes, and

shearwaters to the Bay during the summer and autumn

months, and also abundant fin

whales

, humpback whales,

northern right whales (this is the most

endangered species

of large whale), harbor porpoises, and white-sided

dolphins

The high productivity of the Bay once also supported

large stocks of commercial marine

species

, such as cod,

haddock, scallop, and others. Unfortunately, most of these

potentially renewable resources have been decimated by over-

fishing. The Bay still, however, supports large commercial

fisheries of lobster and herring. There has also been a huge

development of

aquaculture

in the lower Bay, especially in

116

the Passamaquoddy Bay area of New Brunswick. In the

late 1990s the production of Atlantic

salmon

had a value

exceeding $100-million (Canadian). The intense manage-

ment systems associated with salmon aquaculture have

caused environmental damages in the vicinity of the holding

pens, including the build-up of

organic waste

, contamina-

tion with anti-fouling

chemicals

and antibiotics, and genetic

“pollution” caused when escaped fish inter-breed with the

endangered native salmon of the Bay.

In shallow areas, the extreme tidal ranges of the Bay

expose extensive mudflats at low tide. In some parts of the

upper Bay these mudflats are utilized by immense numbers

of shorebirds during their autumn

migration

. The most

abundant of these is the semi-palmated sandpiper, one of the

most abundant shorebirds in the world. During its autumn

migration, hundreds of thousands of these birds feed on mud

shrimp in exposed mudflats at low tide, and then aggregate in

dense numbers on shingle beaches at high tide. The sandpip-

ers greatly increase their body weight during the several

weeks they spend in the upper Bay of Fundy, and then leave

for a non-stop flight to South America, fuelled by the fat

laid down in the Bay.