Solid and Hazardous Waste Chapter 24

Solid Waste Footprint US = 4.4 lbs per person per day 229 million tons per year

Solid Waste Types of Solid Waste

Solid Waste Disposal of Solid Waste

Sanitary Landfills

Problems Associated with Sanitary Landfills Methane gas production Surface water / ground water contamination Not a long-term remedy Even when closed, considerable cost

Mass Burn Incinerator

Incineration of Solid Waste CO 2 emissions per kwatt-hour of electricity production

Problems Associated with Incineration Always some air pollution Produce large amounts of ash Site selection often controversial NIMBY

Industrial Composting Reduces yard waste in landfills Can be sold or distributed to community

The Three R’s Three goals: 1) Reduce 2) Reuse 3) Recycle

Reducing the Amount of Waste Pollution Prevention Act (1990) Dematerialization - cans/toasters

Reusing The Waste Reusing Products Refilling glass beverage bottles

Recycling The Waste Solid waste produced by average family of four in one year in US

Recycling into What?

The Special Problem of Plastic Shear amount is staggering Do not readily breakdown Chemical Complexity Plastics have large macromolecules. When different types of plastics are melted together they tend to phase- separate, like oil and water, and set in these layers. The phase boundaries cause structural weakness in the resulting material. Another barrier to recycling is the widespread use of dyes, fillers, and other additives in plastics. Additives are less used in beverage containers and plastic bags, allowing them to be recycled.

The Special Problem of Tires Using Old Tires Crumb Recycling Incineration Retreads Low Grade Rubber

Bottle Bills Energy Savings Bauxite

Waste Prevention Integrated Waste Management

Voluntary Simplicity Organic Man Granola Man Environmental Man

E-Waste 1999 average lifespan of a computer 4-6 years it dropped to less than 2 years. Personal computers contain toxic heavy metals such as barium, cadmium, chromium, copper, zinc, nickel and lead. All of these materials are regulated by the EPA.

Waste = Food Voluntary Simplicity on an industrial scale 1.Proprietary - Plastics and many containers are an amalgamation of materials 2.An ounce of prevention is worth? Pollution Prevention Act 1990 Pollution prevention is reducing or eliminating waste at the source by modifying production processes, promoting the use of non-toxic or less-toxic substances, implementing conservation techniques, and re-using materials rather than putting them into the waste stream. Under this initiative, EPA focuses on an industry-by-industry approach rather than a pollutant-by-pollutant approach to regulatory policy.

Hazardous Waste Examples:

Hazardous Waste Management of Hazardous Waste Cleaning Up Existing Toxic Waste: The Superfund Program Old toxic waste dump site Cleanup

Super Fund Superfund National Priorities List (2002) 1234 sites currently listed 259 removed from list Sites Listed Delisted 63 New sites proposed

Superfund$$$ 1.Common name for: Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) 2. A response to “The Love Canal” 3. Where does the money come from? 70% parties responsible pay cleanup 30% payed for by a tax on chemical and oil companies

The Biological Treatment of Hazardous Contaminants - Bioremediation - Phytoremediation

Management of Hazardous Waste 1) Source reduction 2) Conversion to less hazardous materials 3) Long-term storage

Hazardous waste landfill

Environmental Justice Environmental Justice and Ethical Issues Rights of poor/ Minorities / disenfranchised vs. rights of rich & powerful Mandating Environmental Justice at the Federal Level