Reducing Solid Waste and Hazardous Waste Chapter 19 -2,3 Reducing Solid Waste and Hazardous Waste

Source Reduction Source reduction - any change in the design, manufacture, purchase, or use of materials to reduce the amount of toxicity Before they become municipal solid waste. Source reduction also includes the reuse of products or materials.

What can I do? Buy products that have less packaging or that can be used more than once. Purchase dish towels instead of paper towels.

What can manufacturers do? Redesigning products to use less material and to last longer

Recycling Recycling - process of recovering valuable or useful materials from waste or scrap. Process of reusing some items.

Recycling Making products from recycled materials usually saves: Energy Water Other resources. 95% less energy is needed to produce aluminum from recycled aluminum than from ore. 70% less energy is needed to make paper from recycled paper than from trees.

Recycling The steps of recycling: 1.Collecting and sorting materials 2.Taking materials to recycling facility 3.Cleaning materials so that they can be shredded or crushed 4.Reusing the shredded or crushed material to manufacture new products 5.Selling the new products

Compost Compost -mixture of decomposing organic matter Manure or rotting plants Used as fertilizer and soil conditioner.

Yard Waste Yard waste - 15% of a community’s solid waste. If all biodegradable wastes were composted, the amount of solid waste going to landfills could be reduced.

Do it yourself recycling Plastic beverage containers can be recycled to make nonfood containers, insulation, carpet yarn, textiles, fiberfill, and more.

Photodegradable Photodegradable plastic - made to become weak and brittle when left in the sun for many weeks. Eventually, it breaks into pieces.

Green Plastics Green plastic -blending of sugars in plants with a special chemical agent to make plastics.

Green Plastics The production of green plastics requires 20 to 50% less fossil fuel. Engineered to degrade within 45 days of being thrown away.

Green Plastics Bacteria in soil eat sugars and leave the plastic weakened Full of microscopic holes. Chemical agent then cause the long plastic molecules to break into shorter molecules.

Problems? Degradable plastics are only reduced to smaller pieces Not eliminated. The plastic pieces will remain just as long as regular plastics.

Hazardous Wastes Hazardous wastes - wastes that are a risk to the health of living organisms. Some examples are dyes, cleansers, solvents, plastics, and pesticides.

RCRA The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) requires producers of hazardous waste to keep records of how their wastes are handled.

Superfund Act 1980 Gives the EPA the right to sue the owners of hazardous waste sites who had illegally dumped waste. Also allows the EPA to force the owners to pay for the cleanup.

Biological Treatments of Waste Sludge from petroleum refineries, for example, may be converted by soil bacteria into less harmful substances

Where is it found? Disposed of on land Concentrated or solid forms are often put in barrels and buried in special landfills.

Deep-well Injection Pump hazardous wastes deep into the ground Absorbed into a dry layer of rock below the level of groundwater Wastes then covered with cement to prevent contamination of groundwater

Surface Impoundment Surface Impoundment Surface impoundment - natural depression or a human-made excavation that serves as a disposal facility that holds an accumulation of wastes. Ponds with sealed bottoms. Accumulate and settle to the bottom of the pond, while water evaporates from the pond and leaves room to add more wastes. Surface Impoundment

Plant a Tree! Flowering plants and trees that absorb heavy metals can also be planted in contaminated areas.

Take our trash! Exported through international trade agreements Facilities specialize in treating, disposing of, or recycling a particular hazardous waste.

Around the House Illegal to pour motor oil on the ground or throw it in the trash. US throw away over 185 million gallons of used motor oil every year. Can be recycled by taking it to an automobile service station.