Chapter 21- Solid and Hazardous Waste

3 R’s

Reduce, reuse, recycle

The Waste Stream

the steady, constant flow of wastes from domestic, industrial, commercial, and construction refuse

Open Dumps

Historically, the most common way to deal with waste, they pollute air and water. Mainly used in developing countries

Microplastics

Fragments of plastic less than 5mm that come from bigger plastics breaking down

Nanoparticles

small enough particles that can be absorbed by cells

U.S. and waste

Sends 54% of trash to landfills, 33% recycled, 13% incinerated

Sanitary Landfill

refuse is compacted and covered with dirt. Bottom of landfill is surrounded by an impermeable layer along with drainage systems. Methane in there is managed and often turned into electricity or flared

Landfills before 1984 in US

Open dump landfills, contaminated groundwater, more landfills, cheap and convenient

Landfills today in US

Larger, more expensive, less of them, more contained

E-waste

Discarded electronics. China used to take most e-waste but is now banned

Incineration

Packing refuse into a compartment that is set on fire. Energy recovery can use the heat from the burning trash to heat buildings or produce electricity. The ash and unmelted refuse gets put in a landfill or is recycled. Mostly used in Europe and produces little emissions

Recycling

Reprocessing discarded materials to new, useful products such as glass and aluminum

Recycling Benefits

saves $, energy, materials, landfill space, reduces pollution, encourages people to be more aware

Recycling Obstacles

Recycling material like plastic is tricky, public policies favor extraction of raw material, Price fluctuations in material,

Biogass

Fermenting organic waste in air-tight, liquid filled containers that convert organic waste into heat and electricity

Composting

Recycling organic material in fertilizer

Reusing

Reusing bottles, autoparts in junkyards, building material, etc

Reducing

Bringing down waste- slowing consumption

Domestic Waste type

Mostly paper, plastic, glass, and metal, most of it is packaging

Hazardous Waste

Discarded material that is 1. Fatal in small doses 2. Toxic, carcinogenic, mutogenic or teratogenic 3. Ignitable w/flash point less than 60C 4. Corrosive or 5. Explosive

Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)

US Federal Program that requires testing and management of toxic waste

Comprehensive Environemntal Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA)/Superfund Act

aims at cleanup and containment of abandoned toxic waste sites

Superfund Amendment & Reauthorization Act (SARA)

Amendment to CERCLA. States that communities have the right to know what toxic substances are being produced/used nearby

Superfund Sites

Resolving pool designed for cleanup, immediate emergency response. Used to be funded by the manufacturers but is now funded by public tax $

National Priority List (NPL)

The superfund sites that are being done the most at

Superfund characteristics

Contaminants such as lead, trichloroethylene, talene, benzene, PCBs, chloroform, phenol, arsenic, cadmium, and chromium. Often located in the rust belt around aging factories or dumps, or by overrepresented minority populations

Brown Fields

Unsafe, contaminated soil and water sites that used to be industrial sites

Ways to fix brownfields

Excavating unsafe soil and storing in a contamination site, holding groundwater to same standards as drinking water, incinerating organic compounds in soil, covering contaminated site with impermeable membrane

Superfund Site in Michigan

Anderson Development Company Superfund Site in Adrian, Michigan that manufactured organic chemicals

Effects of Microplastics

Advantages and disadvantages of Incineration

Advantages- energy source, less landfill space, recycling of material,

Disadvantages- sorting trash, hiring workers to segregate, expensive