GSMA Dorong Pemakaian Energi Terbarukan di Jaringan Mobile

detilnya di:
http://www.gsmworld.com/news/press_2008/press08_56.shtml

Menargetkan 118.000 base station di negara berkembang memakai green power pada tahun 2012

18th September 2008, Nairobi: The GSMA launched the Green Power for Mobile programme with the goal of helping the mobile industry use renewable energy sources, such as solar, wind, or sustainable biofuels*, to power 118,000 new and existing off-grid base stations in developing countries by 2012. Achieving that target would save up to 2.5 billion litres of diesel per annum and cut annual carbon emissions by up to 6.3 million tonnes.

The GSMA, the global trade body for the mobile industry, forecasts that by 2012 up to 50% of new off-grid base stations in the developing world could be powered by renewable energy. Backed by 25 mobile operators, the Green Power for Mobile programme will provide expertise to support the deployment of base stations that use renewable energy. Up to now, off-grid base stations have primarily been powered by generators running on diesel fuel, which is increasingly expensive, generates carbon dioxide emissions, and can be difficult to transport to remote locations.

“As they strive to bring the benefits of mobile coverage to as many people as possible, operators need to find reliable, sustainable and economic sources of power far beyond the reach of national electricity grids,” said Rob Conway, CEO and Member of the Board of the GSMA. “Through our Development Fund, the GSMA has built deep expertise in solar, wind and other renewable energy sources that mobile operators can tap to help them connect the unconnected, reduce operating costs and minimise environmental damage.”

Following extensive research with mobile operators, the GSMA Development Fund estimates that only 1,500 base stations worldwide are powered by at least one form of renewable energy. Challenges to date have included commercial viability, equipment availability and lack of expertise, but the GSMA’s research suggests that rising diesel prices and falling renewable equipment costs mean that operators investing in green power sources for base stations could recoup the capital costs in as little as 24 months.

The GSMA Development Fund is already working with several mobile operators to develop renewable power solutions for a variety of base stations located in diverse geographies. The Development Fund has supported Digicel’s deployment of wind and solar energy to power 17 new base stations on the Pacific island of Vanuatu.

“As oil becomes more scarce and expensive, renewable energy will be used more and more to power telecommunications networks anywhere that grid power is not available,” said John Delves, CEO of Digicel Vanuatu. “Using alternative power solutions, such as harnessing wind and solar energy, will help lower our operational expenditure and reduce our environmental impact, giving people in the more remote islands of Vanuatu access to communications for the first time.”

After a successful pilot in conjunction with the GSMA Development Fund and Ericsson, Idea Cellular now uses waste cooking oil to help power more than 350 base stations in the state of Andhra Pradesh in India, where the conventional electricity supply can be erratic. The base stations run on a blend made up of 80% diesel fuel and 20% waste cooking oil.

“If we can secure enough vegetable oils from sustainable sources, we will move to a blend of 50% diesel and 50% biofuels, which will be better for the environment and for our operating costs,” said Anil K Tandan, Chief Technology Officer of Idea. “We are also exploring other alternative sources of power as we seek to ensure that our mobile network continues to be reliable, sustainable and cost-effective.”

The major suppliers of base stations have anticipated the growing demand for green networks and have introduced a variety of low-energy products as well as renewable energy power solutions. New entrants are also emerging, providing tailored bolt-on power solutions for base stations. The GSMA is developing metrics for “green” base stations, to support operators in their decision-making on providers and products.

Today, the operators involved in the Green Power for Mobile programme are meeting in Kenya, hosted by Safaricom, a leader in the use of renewable energy for networks with 30 base stations powered by solar and wind energy.

As well as supporting operators with experts in the field, the GSMA Development Fund has also launched a Web site providing a wealth of information on the viability of a range of renewable energy solutions in different environments.

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*Biofuels which are (a) produced from feedstocks that have been grown on idle and marginal land that has not been deforested for the purpose of biofuel crop plantation, (b) result in lower carbon emissions than diesel when calculated on a whole of life basis and taking into account the effect of land use changes and (c) are produced in a manner that contributes to the social and economic development of local, rural and indigenous peoples and communities.

Catatan:
Di antara nama operator yang berpartisipasi di program ini, ketemu nama AXIS dan Indosat.

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There’s Gold in Them Old Cell Phones

From:
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2288681,00.asp

04.28.08

by Reuters

HONJO, Japan (Reuters ) – Thinking of throwing out your old cell phone? Think again. Maybe you should mine it first for gold, silver, copper and a host of other metals embedded in the electronics—many of which are enjoying near-record prices.

It’s called “urban mining”, scavenging through the scrap metal in old electronic products in search of such gems as iridium and gold, and it is a growth industry around the world as metal prices skyrocket.

The materials recovered are reused in new electronics parts and the gold and other precious metals are melted down and sold as ingots to jewelers and investors as well as back to manufacturers who use gold in the circuit boards of mobile phones because gold conducts electricity even better than copper.

“It can be precious or minor metals, we want to recycle whatever we can,” said Tadahiko Sekigawa, president of Eco-System Recycling Co which is owned by Dowa Holdings Co Ltd.

A tonne of ore from a gold mine produces just 5 grams (0.18 ounce) of gold on average, whereas a tonne of discarded mobile phones can yield 150 grams (5.3 ounce) or more, according to a study by Yokohama Metal Co Ltd, another recycling firm.

The same volume of discarded mobile phones also contains around 100 kg (220 lb) of copper and 3 kg (6.6 lb) of silver, among other metals.

Recycling has gained in importance as metals prices hit record highs. Gold is trading at around $890 an ounce, after hitting a historic high of $1,030.80 in March.

Copper and tin are also around record highs and silver prices are well above long term averages.

RECYCLING METALS

Recycling electronics makes sense for Japan which has few natural resources to feed its billion dollar electronics industry but does have tens of millions of old cell phones and other obsolete consumer electronic gadgets thrown away every year.

“To some it’s just a mountain of garbage, but for others it’s a gold mine,” said Nozomu Yamanaka, manager of the Eco-Systems recycling plant where mounds of discarded cell phones and other electronics gadgets are taken apart for their metal value.

At the factory in Honjo, 80 km (50 miles) southwest of Tokyo , 34-year-old Susumu Arai harvests some of that bounty.

A ribbon of molten gold flows into a mould where it sizzles and spits fire for a few minutes before solidifying into a dull yellow slab, on its way to becoming a 3 kg (6.6 lb) gold bar, worth around $90,000 at current prices.

Wearing plastic goggles to protect his eyes while he works, Arai said he was awestruck when he started his job two years ago.

“Now I find it fun being able to recover not just gold, but all sorts of metals,” he said.

The scrap electronics and other industrial waste is first sorted and dismantled by hand. It is then immersed in chemicals to dissolve unwanted materials and the remaining metal is refined.

Eco-System, established 20 years ago near Tokyo, typically produces about 200-300 kg (440-660 lb) of gold bars a month with a 99.99 percent purity, worth about $5.9 million to $8.8 million.

That’s about the same output as a small gold mine.

Eco-System also recovers metals from old memory chips, cables and even black ink which contain silver and palladium.

RECYCLING CELL PHONES

But despite growing interest in the environment and recycling, the industry struggles to get enough old mobile phones to feed its recycling plants.

Japan’s 128 million population uses their cell phones for an average of two years and eight months.

That’s a lot of cell phone phones discarded every year, yet only 10-20 percent are recycled as people often opt to store them in their cupboards due to concerns about the personal data on their phones, said Yoshinori Yajima, a director at Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry.

Just 558 tonnes of old phones were collected for recycling in the year to March 2007, down a third from three years earlier, industry figures show.

As metals prices rise, the Japanese industry faces growing competition for scrap, which is pushing up prices.

“We are seeing more competition from Chinese firms, and naturally the goods go where the money is,” Dowa’s Takashi Morise said.

In response, Japanese firms are importing used circuit boards from Singapore and Indonesia, as they also contain valuable minor metals that Japan is particularly eager to recover.

These minor metals such as indium, a vital component in the production of flat panel televisions and computer screens, antimony and bismuth are indispensable for producing many high-tech products.

However, they are often not easy to acquire as China has tightened export controls, making it harder for Japanese manufacturers to buy these metals.

That’s where the “urban miners” step in.

“Our wish is to be able to help Japanese manufacturers that need these metals,” Eco-System President Sekigawa said.

(Editing by Nick Trevethan and Megan Goldin)

($1=101.96 Yen)

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Hejo Hapeku, Hejo Hoperatorku *Halah*

mangsudnya Green Mobile Phone, Green Mobile Operator geto loh. sunda teaaa

ternyata operator pun sebetulnya bisa dilibatkan untuk hape ijo. salah satu contoh menarik bisa dilihat di www.greenmobile.co.uk.

kapan ya di Indo ada yg beginian juga?

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Berponsel Ramah Lingkungan

lagi musim topik ramah-lingkungan neh. gw jd pengen tau, apa dunia per-hape-an jg bisa ramah lingkungan? nih ada tips yg gw dapetin.

Batre & charger
ketahui brapa lama waktu yg dibutuhin utk ngisi batre hapemu. ini bisa diliat di manualnya, bisa juga dari pengalaman pakenya.

trus, kalo batre udah terisi penuh, segra cabut charger.
bukan skedar ngelepasin hape dari charger tapi ngebiarin charger tetep kecolok di steker yah. soalnya listrik tetep ngalir ke charger meski udah ga ada hape yg disetrumnya.

inget: over charging bisa ngurangi umur perantinya; batre… hape… juga charger loh!
malah ngurangin umur kita kalo hape meledug gara2 sirkuitnya korslet :D:D

Beli… beli…
gak ada yg ngelarang sih mo beli hape baru tiap bulan atau tiap hari. pun gak ada yg larang mo punya hape dua-tiga biji atau berbiji2 skali pun. duitnya duit elo inih :p

tapi kebayang gak ke mana perginya hape bekas yg udah gak bisa dipake itu? nambahin tumpukan plastik en logam yg susah didaur ulang!

so, apa yg bisa dilakuin?

- kenali dulu kebutuhan komunikasi lo. trus beli deh hape yg sesuai dgn kebutuhan lo tadi. jadi ga perlu sering2 ganti hape deh.

kalo perlu, beli hape yg punya tanda ramah lingkungan. di Indo emang blom umum. tp kalo gak dimulai dari sekarang, mo kapan lagi???

kalo skedar bosen liat warnanya yg itu2 aja, ya cari aja hape yg bisa digonta-ganti casingnya. atau kreatip dikitlah coy… tempelin stiker lutcu2 atau apa kek… :D

- pake en rawat hape lo dgn baek en bener.
jangan dipake buat nimpuk anjing tetangga yg brisik atau buat ngulek sambel rujakan. )

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Weird Green Mobile Technology Touted At Science Museum London

Artikel asli:
http://www.24hourmuseum.org.uk/nwh_gfx_en/ART35325.html

By Richard Moss

21/03/2006

(photograph of a flowerpot with a sunflower and three mobile phones with sunflower motifs on them)
Just pop it in a flower pot and watch it grow – it’s the sunflower phone cover. © Warwick University

A mobile phone that biodegrades into a sunflower and a circuit board made out of lasagne are just two of the innovative examples of green mobile phone technology revealed in a new Science Museum exhibition opening in London on March 29 2006.

Government Local Environment Quality Minister, Ben Bradshaw MP, who will be opening ‘Dead Ringers’ at Antenna – the science and technology news gallery of the Science Museum has already praised the exhibition for raising some important issues.

“We tend to upgrade our phones without thinking about what happens to our old one when we no longer need it,” said the Minister. “So what should we do with our old phones when we do? And what can manufacturers do to make it easier for people to make the right choices for the environment?”

The exhibition is sponsored by waste management company SITA through the Landfill Tax Credit Scheme, with additional funding from Defra, and it is full of innovative answers to the Minister’s questions.

(photograph of two men opening the doors of a large lorry out which spills thousands of mobile phones)
There is a big mobile phone mountain growing in the UK. © Fonebak

Scientists and manufacturers are currently looking at ways of designing phones that are better for the environment, and some of their ideas on display here include circuit boards made from chicken feathers and phones featuring new smart metals that take themselves apart for recycling.

However, the aforementioned sunflower phone is one of the stars of the show. Its prototype cover with implanted sunflower seed allows the sunflower to grow, getting its additional nutrients from the biodegrading phone cover.

This unique design‚ dreamed up by researchers from Warwick University and materials company PVAXX, is yet to hit the shelves but should give green minded mobile users the option to simply bury their used phone covers in the garden.

1712 mobile phones are upgraded every hour in the UK alone, which means there is a sizeable mountain of unusable and unrecyclable phones kicking around the country’s already overburdened refuse system.

(photograph showing an electric circuit board on a sheet of lasagne)
Perhaps electric circuits mounted on sheets of lasagne are the answer? © Jennie Hills/Science Museum

In response to this looming problem further inventive design ideas are revealed in the exhibition, which includes new and biodegradeable battery designs and innovations from Nokia, which may reduce the need for toxic flame retardants, aiding easier recycling of mobile-derived plastics.

There are around 50 million mobiles in the UK – a figure that is fast catching up to the current UK population at just under 60.5 million. But with global usage of mobile phones expected to reach 2 billion this year, this love of electronic gadgets is creating a worldwide waste problem.

Mobiles are designed to last around 10 years, but we tend to change them around every 18 months, adding to current disposal issues.

‘Dead Ringers?’ also investigates how the coming European-wide WEEE (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment) legislation will affect industry and consumers, and the methods scientists and industry are using to tackle the waste problem.

The all new NEC biodegradable phone is not yet available in the UK. © Jennie Hills/Science Museum

(photograph of a mobile phone being held up to the camera by a person)
There is a big mobile phone mountain growing in the UK. © Fonebak

“These are some of the core questions we are raising in our current review of England’s waste strategy so the Science Museum’s exhibition is especially timely,” added the Minister.

A simple solution could be to upgrade less often, creating less waste. Chucking phones in landfill will no longer be a legal option once the new government regulations are in place.

If you want your say on the Government’s review on England’s waste, the consultation paper and accompanying Regulatory Impact Assessment and Environment Report are available from the Defra website Deadline for comments is May 9 2006.

Science Museum, London

Exhibition Road, London, SW7 2DD, England
T: 0870 870 4868
Open: Daily 10.00-18.00
Closed: Closed 24-26 December

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