Solid, Toxic and Hazardous Waste

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Solid, Toxic and Hazardous Waste
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SOLID WASTE

• Solid waste-any unwanted or discarded materials
  that is not a liquid or gas
• United States-leader of the throw away society
• 4.6 of the world's population
• 33 of the world's solid waste
• 75 of its hazardous waste

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Solid Waste

• MSW (municipal solid waste)
• 60 homes
• 40 commercial and institutional facilities
• Agricultural waste
• Mining waste
• Industrial waste

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Solid Waste

• Problems
• Disease
• Fire potential
• Decrease in the aesthetic quality of the
  environment

www2.tltc.ttu.edu/jackson/solid20waste.ppt
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MUNICIPAL SOLID WASTE

• In 2008, US
• Approximately 4.5 pounds of waste per person per
  day
• Up from 2.7 pounds per person per day in 1960
• Developed world ranges from 1.8-4.8 pounds of
  waste per person per day
• Developing world ranges from 1.2 pounds of waste
  per person per day

http//www.epa.gov/epaoswer/non-hw/muncpl/facts.ht
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Waste Disposal Methods

• Landfills
• Incineration
• Shrinking the waste stream (Integrated Waste
  Management)
• Composting
• Reduce
• Reuse
• Recycle

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Sanitary Landfills

• Under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act
  (RCRA), landfills that accept MSW are primarily
  regulated by state, tribal, and local governments
• protect human health and the environment
• conservation of energy and natural resources,
  reduction in waste generated, and environmentally
  sound waste management practices.
• EPA established national standards

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Landfill Design

• Bottom liner may be layers of clay or other
  synthetic material (clay, plastic, or composite),
  placed on compacted soil.
• Bottom of the landfill is sloped and pipes along
  the bottom collect leachate.
• Leachate pumped away and treated at a plant.
• Trash is dumped onto the landfill and
  consistently layered with soil to promote safer
  and better decomposition.
• A cover is placed over the landfill to keep water
  out (to prevent eventual leachate formation).
• Landfills also must have a system to dispose of
  methane gas.

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Landfill Design
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Federal Landfill Standards

• Location restrictions
• built in suitable geological areas away from
  faults, wetlands, flood plains, or other
  restricted areas
• Operating practices such as compacting and
  covering waste frequently with several inches of
  soil helps reduce odor control litter, insects,
  and rodents and protect public health
• Groundwater monitoring requires testing
  groundwater wells to determine whether waste
  materials have escaped from the landfill

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Waste Disposal Methods Cont.

• Incineration
• Reduces volumes of waste up to 90
• Higher tipping fees
• Leads to increased air pollution
• Produce concentrated toxic ash
• Energy used to heat buildings or generate
  electricity
• Require large quantities in order to burn
  efficiently

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Shrinking the Waste Stream

• Composting
• Biological decomposition of organic matter, such
  as food and yard wastes, into humus, a soil-like
  material
• Benefits
• Keeps organic wastes out of landfills
• Provides nutrients to the soil
• Increases beneficial soil organisms
• Reduces the need for fertilizers and pesticides
• Protects soils from erosion

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Shrinking the Waste Stream

• Reduce
• Decrease excess packaging
• Excess packaging of food and consumer products is
  one of our greatest sources of unnecessary waste.
• Source reduction (waste prevention) means
  consuming and throwing away less
• Developing products that are easy to reuse,
  manufacture and recycle
• Purchasing durable,
  long-lasting goods

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Shrinking the Waste Stream

• Reuse
• Repair, donate, or selling them
• Use a product more than once, either for the same
  purpose or for a different purpose
• Preferable to recycling because the item does not
  need to be reprocessed before it can be used
  again
• Reduces energy and pollution
• Ways to reuse
• Using durable coffee mugs
• Using cloth napkins or towels
• Refilling bottles

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Shrinking the Waste Stream

• Recycling
• Closed vs. open looped
• Benefits
• Reduces the emission of many greenhouse gases and
  water pollutants
• Saves energy, supplies valuable raw materials to
  industry
• Creates jobs
• Stimulates the development of greener
  technologies
• Conserves resources
• Reduces the need for new landfills

http//www.epa.gov/epaoswer/non-hw/muncpl/facts.ht
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U.S. Recycling Rates
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E-WASTE

• Consists of toxic and hazardous waste such as
  PVC, lead, mercury and cadmium, etc.
• In 2012, global sales of new equipment usually
  will become obsolete or unwanted often within 1-3
  years
• 238.5 million tvs
• 444.4 million computers and tablets
• 1.74 billion cell phones
• US produces almost ½ of the worlds e-waste but
  only recycles about 11-14
• About ¾ of the e-waste that given to recyclers is
  exported to developing countries

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Hazardous Waste

• Any discarded liquid or solid that contains
  substances known to be
• Fatal to humans or laboratory animals in low
  doses.
• Toxic, carcinogenic, or mutagenic.
• Explosive or highly reactive.
• Ex. paints, cleaners, oils, batteries, and
  pesticides
  contain hazardous components

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Disposal of Hazardous Wastes

• Deep-well disposal-liquid hazardous wastes pumped
  through a pipe beneath aquifers
• Aboveground buildings-made of concrete
• Surface impoundments-excavated depressions or
  ponds into which liquid hazardous wastes are
  drained and stored
• Secure hazardous waste landfills-store in drums
  and carefully bury

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HAZARDOUS WASTE REGULATION

• Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)
• Expanded in 1976 to cover hazardous waste
• Protect human health and the natural environment
  by reducing or eliminating the generation of
  hazardous waste
• cradle to grave tracking
• Comprehensive Environmental Response,
  Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA).
• Superfund
• Imposes a tax on chemical an petroleum industries
• Identifies abandoned hazardous waste dump sites
• Protects and cleans up groundwater near sites

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SUPERFUND SITES HEAR OF LOVE CANAL?

• Love Canal (Niagara Falls, NY)
• Homes and a school were built on land that a
  chemical company used as a toxic waste dump
  (1942-1953)
• Toxic wastes leaked out causing asthma,
  dizziness, blurred vision, seizures,
  miscarriages, birth defects, etc.
• 1978-1980 939 families were evacuated
• Company paid 98 million to help cleanup mistake

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BROWNFIELDS PROGRAM

• Created in 1995 by EPA to assist state and local
  governments in cleaning up contaminated
  industrial or commercial sites that may require
  environmental cleanup before they can be
  redeveloped or expanded