Typhoon Mawar’s Destruction
In the aftermath of Typhoon Mawar, which brought violent 140 mph winds and pounding rains to Guam in May, the island territory is now undergoing cleanups organized by government officials. Hundreds of electronics from dozens of schools have been damaged and need recovery as part of this effort.
Tropical cyclones, known as typhoons or hurricanes depending upon the location in which they originate, are some of the most destructive natural phenomena in existence. It has been observed that storms forming from May to October in the northwestern Pacific and affecting Asia have become especially intense due to climate change. Scientists believe this is because a warmer ocean provides additional energy which fortifies these storms, making them more dangerous.
Those who reside in Guam, an island approximately equivalent to Chicago in size and situated 1,500 miles away from Philippines, are unfortunately well versed in dealing with tropical storms. While no casualties or injuries were reported, the magnitude of Mawar was strong enough to cause extensive damage. Wind sensors and radar equipment used by the local Weather Service for meteorological data were even broken in the inclement weather.
“As sunlight is starting to peek, we are waking up to a rather disturbing scene out there across Guam,” stated Landon Aydlett, a meteorologist, reporting a storm update from the service’s Guam office. “We are looking out our door and what used to be a jungle looks like toothpicks. It looks like a scene from the movie ‘Twister,’ with trees just thrashed apart.”
President Biden Issues State of Emergency
As the typhoon neared, President Biden declared an emergency for Guam which opened the door for federal aid. The call to action was followed by evacuation orders from local authorities, and the suspension of commercial flights in and out of the island.
Lt. Cmdr. Katie Koenig of the U.S. Navy made a statement discussing how the Typhoon impacted the American military, which has major facilities on the island. All aircraft located on the island, prior to the storm, either fled or were moved into guarded hangars. All naval vessels, except one with an engine issue, departed safely from the port before the storm hit.
As per an EPA press release, all 41 public schools in Guam were visited by federal contractors to stockpile broken electronics, solar panels and household hazardous waste. This material was then combined with scrap and waste accumulated from other parts of the island before being transferred into shipping containers.
URT to Process Half a Million Pounds of E-Scrap
Julia Giarmoleo, a spokesperson for the Environmental Protection Agency, informed E-Scrap News that all electronic scrap will be sent to Universal Recycling Technologies’ (URT) facility located in Clackamas, Oregon, close to Portland.
In another recent interview, the regional sales manager of URT, Bryan Catello, revealed that ACTenviro, a hazardous waste company based in San Jose, CA holds the Federal Emergency Management Agency contract for the cleanup. This firm has a long history of working with URT on previous assignments, which is why it contacted the company to recycle the e-scrap.
He estimated that URT would get approximately 24 containers of e-scrap items, two of which included solar panels. Every individual container with electronics was expected to have a weight of 20,000 pounds, leading to a total of around 500,000 pounds combined.
Catello also confirmed that there are currently a total of 5 containers in transit. Initially, they will be heading to South Korea before being loaded onto another vessel and travelling to Los Angeles. Afterwards, the load consisting of computers, monitors, bulbs, and solar panels will be delivered via trucks straight to Clackamas.
Catello, who has been with URT for 8 years, additionally noted the amount of distance the recycling feedstock had to travel to get to URT. He marveled that the journey is equivalent to one-third of the earth’s total circumference.
