TOXIC SUBSTANCES AND HAZARDOUS WASTE

Toxic Substance

material that has toxic properties.

Lead chromate

discrete toxic chemical.

Asbestos

a **toxic material that does not have an exact chemical composition** but comprises a variety of fibers and minerals.

Gasoline

**toxic substance rather than a toxic chemical** in that it contains a mixture of many chemicals.

Toxic Substance

**do not quickly or easily break down in the environment,** and in rather small quantities, they can pose severe health threats including cancer, respiratory and neurological damage, birth defects, miscarriages, and even death.

arsenic, cadmium, chromium, copper, lead, mercury, and zinc.

Natural Toxic Substance

organochlorines

group of synthetic organic chemicals

polybrominated diphenyl ethers

a flame retardant

persistent organic pollutant (POP)

bioaccumulates in the food chain

Radioactive waste

**from nuclear power plants**, the manufacture of atomic weapons, and hospital X- ray equipment involves human manipulation of natural uranium.

Medical waste,

often from contaminated PVC plastics used in intravenous tubes, blood bags, and other instruments can be highly toxic.

polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons

**carcinogens** released in the burning of fossil fuels

Hazardous Waste

any **waste that poses a threat to the environmen**t, and has explosive, flammable, oxidizing, infectious, radioactive and corrosive properties.

Hazardous Waste

substances that are without any safe commercial, industrial, agricultural or economic usage and are shipped, transported or brought from the country of origin for dumping or disposal into or in transit through any part of the territory of the Philippines (RA 6969).

Hazardous Waste

also refer to by-products , side- products, process residues, spent reaction media, contaminated plant or equipment or other substances from manufacturing operations and as consumer discards of manufactured products which present unreasonable risk and/or injury to health and safety and to the environment (RA 6969).

Toxic substances

**may purposely be released onto land or into air or water**, such as in the application of pesticides, or by mistake, such as in a chemical spill caused by a train accident.

6\.634 billion

In 2012, __________ pounds of t**oxic chemicals were released into the air and water and on land.**

Toxic substances

it can enter the food chain, killing fish and other wildlife.

transport,

**Spills of hazardous materials may occur during** their _______, such as chemical spills in freight train derailments and trucking accidents.

Toxic waste

**very difficult to recycle**, and disposal requires careful handling and long-term monitoring.

35 million

Roughly __________ pounds of hazardous waste are disposed of in the U.S. each year.

HAZARDOUS WASTE

difficult but not impossible to recycle.

* Burial
* Deep-well injection
* Incineration to generate electricity
* Fly-ash storage
* Treatment and storage in liquid form in containers

FIVE WAYS TO DISPOSE OF TOXIC WASTE:

Burial

Private landfills, licensed to accept toxic waste, must have clay or plastic liners as well as inground monitors to detect leakage.

Deep-well injection

runs the risk of putting toxic waste into aquifers used for drinking water or irrigating crops.

Incineration to generate electricity

Incineration of toxic waste raises the possibility of air pollution and dispersing toxics over a large area.

Fly-ash storage

Fly ash must be kept from interacting with rain so that the remaining toxins in the fly ash do not wash off into groundwater or surface water.

Treatment and storage in liquid form in containers

Storage of toxic liquids in metal containers is vulnerable to corrosion and leakage over time, especially when the containers are buried in the ground.

tolerance levels

The **EPA has established** ____________ for toxic substances, which are **reviewed from time to time.**

strict tolerance levels

_____________ **may burden industry and local governments,**

liberal tolerance levels

__________________ **may expose many people to serious and unnecessary harm.**

Risk assessment and tolerance levels

______________________________ **are a good example of the precautionary principle**, which holds that it is wise to restrict or ban certain substances that may cause harm even though scientific evidence is not yet conclusive.

Brownfields

**unused land or buildings that are awaiting recovery** after the end of industrial activity.

brownfields

The EPA defines ________ as “real property, the expansion, redevelopment, or reuse of which may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of a hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant.”

Brownfields

________ sites range in size from ***abandoned gas stations to defunct factory complexes.***

Rust Belt

Many cities of the _______, which **stretches from southern New England through the Mid-Atlantic states** and into the industrial Midwest, have lost much of their manufacturing base over the last 50 years.

425,000; 5 million acres

Estimates vary on the number of brownfields, but the U.S. General Accounting Office has reported _________ sites, and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has noted about _________ of abandoned industrial lands within U.S. cities.

Brownfields

**often have good access to transportation networks**, sewer and water facilities, and population concentrations.

* Reliable assessment
* Risk-based cleanup standards
* Limits to future cleanup liability
* Financial incentives for redevelopment of brownfields

Four Elements of Brownfields Redevelopment

Brownfields redevelopment

**occurs as a partnership between public regulatory and funding agencies** on the one hand and private investors, developers, and neighborhood groups on the other.

Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) Amendments of 1972

also known as the **Federal Environmental Pesticide Control Act**

Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) Amendments of 1972

require manufacturers of chemical pesticides to register them with the EPA before they are distributed.

PD 1144

CREATING THE FERTILIZER AND PESTICIDE AUTHORITY AND ABOLISHING THE FERTILIZER INDUSTRY AUTHORITY

RA 10068

Organic Agriculture Act of 2010

Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)

**In 1976, Congress passed the _________________________ that allows the EPA to obtain information from private companies on new and existing chemicals** and to control or in some cases ban the manufacture, distribution, importing, and processing of toxic chemicals.

80,000

Yet there are more than ______ chemicals in use in America, and only a couple hundred of them have been tested for their effects on humans and the environment.

Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act of 1986

The _____________________________________________ was **passed by Congress in response to the 1984 accidental toxic chemical release in Bhopal, India,** that killed several thousand people.

Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act of 1986

was d**esigned to help local communities protect public health and safety and the environment from chemical hazards.**

Community Right-to-Know Act

**GOES A STEP FURTHER in requiring companies that manufacture,** use, or store hazardous materials to keep records on the location, quantity, use, and any release of those materials into the air, land, or water.

1990 Pollution Prevention Act

The ____________________________ **created the EPA Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics to promote the reduction, reuse, and recycling of toxic chemicals and waste in general.**

Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics

responsible for administering the Emergency Planning and Community- Right- to Know Act, the TSCA, and the toxics release inventory.

**PD 984**

Pollution Control Law.

2001; International Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants

In _____, the U.S. signed the _______________________ to ban the production of 10 POPs.

Oil Pollution Act of 1990

Congress passed the _______________ to **strengthen the ability of the EPA to prevent and respond to catastrophic oil spills.**

Oil Pollution Act

enacted in response to the huge oil spill caused when the oil tanker **Exxon Valdez hit a reef in Alaskan waters in 1989.**

RA 9483

Oil Pollution Compensation Act of 2007.

Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) of 1976; Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments in 1984

Congress passed the ___________________________ and the Hazardous and ___________________________ to **regulate the disposal of hazardous waste.**

“CRADLE TO GRAVE”

The purpose of these laws was to create a ____________ tracking system for hazardous substances, from their manufacture to their disposal.

Love Canal

In **1978**, a **huge toxic dump** was discovered at _________ near Niagara Falls, New York.

Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980

The ________________________________, better known as CERCLA, or the **SUPERFUND LAW,** was **passed by Congress in response to Love Canal** and the growing awareness that there were potentially thousands of toxic waste sites throughout the nation.

* Inventory
* Analysis
* Action Strategy
* Zoning Ordinance
* Capital Improvements Program

PLANNING FOR TOXIC SUBSTANCES AND HAZARDOUS WASTE

Action Strategy

should present techniques and programs for achieving the hazardous waste goals and objectives as well as a timetable.

local zoning ordinance

**can state that a hazardous waste landfill is not permitted in any zoning district.**

zoning ordinance

**can encourage the redevelopment of brownfields sites** by allowing for a wide array of uses, depending on the necessary level of cleanup for each use.

Capital improvements program

**can address hazardous waste landfill capacity and future needs** as well as the siting of new or expanded hazardous waste facilities, incinerator facilities, and recycling facilities.