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Healthy Forests Provide Clean and Abundant Water

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14 Jun, 2024

This post was originally published on Healthy Forest

Active forest management plays a crucial role in protecting clean water supplies, particularly in regions vulnerable to wildfires and water scarcity, such as Arizona and California. For decades, passive management across the west has contributed to unnaturally thick forests that increase severe wildfire risks and impact water availability.

Wildfire Risks in Overgrown Forests
In thick forests, wildfires tend to burn hotter and more destructively, consuming everything in their path and leaving the soil exposed and vulnerable to erosion. Without vegetation to hold the soil together, rainfall can wash ash and debris into rivers and reservoirs, compromising water quality and reducing storage capacity. Additionally, the infrastructure downstream, such as dams and water treatment plants, can suffer significant damage from the influx of debris.

Water Usage by Forests
Overgrown forests not only pose a fire hazard but also consume vast amounts of water. Trees and undergrowth take up water from the ground, reducing the amount available for aquifers and downstream flows. By contrast, research suggests thinning the forest can significantly reduce this water uptake.

Innovative Use of LiDAR Technology
A partnership between the Salt River Project (SRP) and Arizona State University (ASU) employed LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) technology to gather detailed data on forest density and water usage. LiDAR sensors, mounted on planes and helicopters, provide high-resolution scans of forest areas, allowing researchers to accurately count trees and estimate their water consumption. This precise data enables the development of effective forest management strategies tailored to maximize water conservation.

Pilot Project in Kaibab National Forest
A pilot project in the Kaibab National Forest exemplifies the potential benefits of forest thinning. By thinning approximately 3,400 acres, researchers estimated an increase of about 230 acre-feet, or nearly 75 million gallons, of water in the first year alone. Considering that one acre-foot can supply water for three Arizona families for a year, this increase represents a significant contribution to the region’s water supply.

Long-Term Benefits of Forest Thinning
Thinning forests to a more natural state, with fewer but larger trees, can lead to numerous long-term benefits. Reduced tree density allows more water to remain in the ground or flow into tributaries, recharging springs and rivers. It also decreases fire danger, promoting healthier, more resilient forests. This balance between tree growth and water availability can create a more sustainable ecosystem.

Water Savings for California
The implications of forest thinning extend beyond Arizona. A 2011 study by experts from UC Merced, UC Berkeley, and the Environmental Defense Fund suggests significant water conservation potential in California. The study found that reducing forest cover by 40% could increase total runoff by 9%, potentially adding 2.2 million acre-feet of water to California’s supply annually. This highlights the broader applicability of forest thinning as a water management strategy.

Active forest management, through practices like forest thinning, offers substantial benefits for water conservation and wildfire risk reduction. Innovations in data collection and analysis, such as the use of LiDAR technology, enable more precise and effective management strategies. As demonstrated by the SRP and ASU’s efforts, thinning overgrown forests can enhance water availability, protect infrastructure, and promote healthier ecosystems. By adopting similar practices, other regions can also reap the benefits of improved forest and water management.

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Source: Healthy Forest

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Taking the electronic pulse of the circular economy

Taking the electronic pulse of the circular economy

In June, I had the privilege of attending the 2025 E-Waste World, Battery Recycling, Metal Recycling, and ITAD & Circular Electronics Conference & Expo events in Frankfurt, Germany.

Speaking in the ITAD & Circular Electronics track on a panel with global Circular Economy leaders from Foxway Group, ERI and HP, we explored the evolving role of IT asset disposition (ITAD) and opportunities in the circular electronics economy.

The event’s focus on advancing circular economy goals and reducing environmental impact delivered a series of insights and learnings. From this assembly of international expertise across 75+ countries, here are some points from the presentations that stood out for me:

1. Environmental impact of the digital economy

Digitalisation has a heavy material footprint in the production phase, and lifecycle thinking needs to guide every product decision. Consider that 81% of the energy a laptop uses in its lifetime is consumed during manufacture (1 tonne in manufacture is equal to 10,000 tonnes of CO2) and laptops are typically refreshed or replaced by companies every 3–4 years.

From 2018 to 2023, the average number of devices and connections per capita in the world increased by 50% (2.4 to 3.6). In North America (8.2 to 13.4) and Western Europe (5.6 to 9.4), this almost doubled. In 1960, only 10 periodic table elements were used to make phones. In 1990, 27 elements were used and now over 60 elements are used to build the smartphones that we have become so reliant on.

A key challenge is that low-carbon and digital technologies largely compete for the same minerals. Material resource extraction could increase 60% between 2020 and 2060, while demand for lithium, cobalt and graphite is expected to rise by 500% until 2050.

High growth in ICT demand and Internet requires more attention to the environmental footprint of the digital economy. Energy consumption of data centres is expected to more than double by 2026. The electronics industry accounts for over 4% of global GHG — and digitalisation-related waste is growing, with skewed impacts on developing countries.

E-waste is rising five times faster than recycling — 1 tonne of e-waste has a carbon footprint of 2 tonnes. Today’s solution? ‘Bury it or burn it.’ In terms of spent emissions, waste and the costs associated with end-of-life liabilities, PCBAs (printed circuit board assembly) cost us enormously — they generally achieve 3–5% recyclability (75% of CO2 in PCBAs is from components).

2. Regulating circularity in electronics

There is good momentum across jurisdictions in right-to-repair, design and labelling regulations; recycling targets; and voluntary frameworks on circularity and eco-design.

The EU is at the forefront. EU legislation is lifting the ICT aftermarket, providing new opportunities for IT asset disposition (ITAD) businesses. To get a sense, the global market for electronics recycling is estimated to grow from $37 billion to $108 billion (2022–2030). The value of refurbished electronics is estimated to increase from $85.9 billion to $262.2 billion (2022–2032). Strikingly, 40% of companies do not have a formal ITAD strategy in place.

Significantly, the EU is rethinking its Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) management targets, aligned with upcoming circularity and WEEE legislation, as part of efforts to foster the circular economy. A more robust and realistic circularity-driven approach to setting collection targets would better reflect various factors including long lifespans of electronic products and market fluctuations.

Australia and New Zealand lag the EU’s comprehensive e-waste mandated frameworks. The lack of a systematic approach results in environmental degradation and missed positioning opportunities for businesses in the circular economy. While Australia’s Senate inquiry into waste reduction and recycling recommended legislating a full circular economy framework — including for imported and local product design, financial incentives and regulatory enforcement, New Zealand remains the only OECD country without a national scheme to manage e-waste.

3. Extending product lifecycles

Along with data security and digital tools, reuse was a key theme in the ITAD & Circular Electronics track of the conference. The sustainable tech company that I lead, Greenbox, recognises that reuse is the simplest circular strategy. Devices that are still functional undergo refurbishment and are reintroduced into the market, reducing new production need and conserving valuable resources.

Conference presenters highlighted how repair over replacement is being legislated as a right in jurisdictions around the world. Resources are saved, costs are lowered, product life is extended, and people and organisations are empowered to support a greener future. It was pointed out that just 43% of countries have recycling policies, 17% of global waste is formally recycled, and less than 1% of global e-waste is formally repaired and reused.

Right to repair is a rising wave in the circular economy, and legislation is one way that civil society is pushing back on programmed obsolescence. Its global momentum continues at different speeds for different product categories — from the recent EU mandates to multiple US state bills (and some laws) through to repair and reuse steps in India, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.

The European Commission’s Joint Research Commission has done a scoping study to identify product groups under the Ecodesign framework that would be most relevant for implementing an EU-wide product reparability scoring system.

Attending this event with the entire electronic waste recycling supply chain — from peers and partners to suppliers and customers — underscored the importance of sharing best practices to address the environmental challenges that increased hardware proliferation and complex related issues are having on the world.

Ross Thompson is Group CEO of sustainability, data management and technology asset lifecycle management market leader Greenbox. With facilities in Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra, Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch, Greenbox Group provides customers all over the world a carbon-neutral supply chain for IT equipment to reduce their carbon footprint by actively managing their environmental, social and governance obligations.

Image credit: iStock.com/Mustafa Ovec

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