Solid and Hazardous Waste

1. Solid and Hazardous Waste

2. Wasting Resources • United States • 4.6% of the world's population • 33% of the world's solid waste • 75% of its hazardous waste

3. Waste Overview • Solid Waste • any unwanted material that is solid • The U.S. produces 11,000,000,000 tons (22,000,000,000,000 lbs) per year • Some of this solid waste can be recycled (agricultural waste), but much has to dealt with • Waste Stream: the steady flow of wastes that humans produce from all sources

4. Solid Waste • Source Reduction • Reuse • Recycling • Composting • Incineration • Landfills • Hazardous Waste • Superfund Sites

5. Where does U.S. waste come from?

6. Sources of U.S. waste • Mining waste makes up 75% of all waste, but much of that is used soil or spoil • Industrial solid waste: • scrap metal, plastics, paper, fly ash (power plants) and sludge • most is burned or buried on-site • Municipal solid waste (MSW) • from homes and businesses • 700kg per person per year • 60% dumped, 24% recycled, 16% burned

7. Solid Waste • Problems • Disease (Rodent and pest reduction) • Fire potential • Decrease in the aesthetic quality of the environment www2.tltc.ttu.edu/jackson/solid%20waste.ppt

8. MSW—more commonly known as trash or garbage—consists of everyday items Product packaging Grass clippings Furniture Clothing Bottles Food scraps Newspapers Appliances Paint Batteries Municipal Solid Waste http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/non-hw/muncpl/facts.htm

9. *Includes rubber and textiles Source: EPA Office of Solid Waste, Municipal Solid Waste Fact Sheet www.epa.gov/epaoswer/non-hw/muncpl/facts.htm

10. MSW • In 1999, U.S. residents, businesses, and institutions produced more than 230 million tons of MSW • Approximately 4.6 pounds of waste per person per day (1680 pounds/year) • Up from 2.7 pounds per person per day in 1960 http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/non-hw/muncpl/facts.htm

12. MSW • Several MSW management practices prevent or divert materials from the wastestream • Source reduction • Reuse • Recycling • Composting http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/non-hw/muncpl/facts.htm

13. Agriculture Waste • Livestock produce sewage • 200,000 hens, 1200 head of cattle in a feedlot, & 10,500 hogs may produce as much waste as 20,000 people • In the U.S., there are 337 million hen, 96.1 million head of cattle & 58.7 million hogs which produce twice as much sewage as all the humans in the U.S.

14. 1. Source Reduction • Source reduction (waste prevention) means consuming and throwing away less • Purchasing durable, long-lasting goods • Seeking products and packaging that are as free of toxins as possible http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/non-hw/muncpl/facts.htm

15. Source Reduction • May be as complex as redesigning a product • use less raw material in production • have a longer life • be used again after its original use is completed • Source reduction actually prevents the generation of waste in the first place, it is the most preferable method of waste management and goes a long way toward protecting the environment http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/non-hw/muncpl/facts.htm

16. Source Reduction • Since 1977, the weight of 2-liter plastic soft drink bottles has been reduced from 68 grams each to 51 grams • That means that 250 million pounds of plastic per year has been kept out of the waste stream

17. 2. Reuse • Reusing items by repairing them, donating them to charity and community groups, or selling them • Use a product more than once, either for the same purpose or for a different purpose • Reusing, when possible, is preferable to recycling because the item does not need to be reprocessedbefore it can be used again

18. Other Options: Reduce Waste • Reduce consumption • reduce manufacturing to produce less waste • reduce packaging (50% of domestic waste) • trash taxes • also, modify waste • photodegradable and biodegradable plastics

19. Other options: reuse waste • Glass bottles for beverage • charge high prices and give return rebate • use fabric bags for groceries • reuse car parts, motor oil etc.

20. Ways to Reuse • Using durable coffee mugs • Using cloth napkins or towels • Refilling bottles • Donating old magazines or surplus equipment • Reusing boxes • Turning empty jars into containers for leftover food • Purchasing refillable pens and pencils • Participating in a paint collection and reuse program

21. 3. Recycling • Recycling, including composting, diverted 64 million tons of material away from landfills and incinerators in 1999, up from 34 million tons in 1990 • Typical materials that are recycled include batteries, recycled at a rate of 96.9%, paper and paperboard at 41.9%, and yard trimmings at 45.3% • These materials and others may be recycled through curbside programs, drop-off centers, buy-back programs, and deposit systems http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/non-hw/muncpl/facts.htm

22. Other options: Recycle waste • Recycling is defined as the process of turning discarded materials into new materials • into same product (aluminum cans) • into a different product (fleeces) • Successes: • 2/3 of all aluminum cans are recycled (2 months) • paper recycling is taking off (40%) • recycling Sunday papers would save 500,000 trees per week • In Japan, 50% of all household waste is recycled (20% in U.S.)

23. http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/non-hw/muncpl/mswdata.htm

24. Benefits • Recycling • Prevents 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 for our children’s future • Reduces the need for new landfills and combustors • Reduce greenhouse gas emissions that affect global climate • In 1996, prevented the release of 33 million tons of carbon into the air—roughly the amount emitted annually by 25 million cars.

25. http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/non-hw/muncpl/mswdata.htm

26. Comparison of Countries’ Waste Treatment

27. 4. Composting • Composting is the controlled biological decomposition of organic matter, such as food and yard wastes, into humus, a soil-like material • Composting is nature's way of recycling organic wastes into new soil used in vegetable and flower gardens, landscaping, and many other applications http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/non-hw/muncpl/facts.htm

28. Composting • House-by-house recycling of organic material under aerobic conditions • green waste and plant food waste are broken down by soil organisms and turned into humus

29. http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/non-hw/muncpl/mswdata.htm

30. http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/non-hw/muncpl/mswdata.htm

31. Benefits • Composting • Keeps organic wastes out of landfills • Provides nutrients to the soil • Increases beneficial soil organisms (e.g., worms and centipedes) • Suppresses certain plant diseases • Reduces the need for fertilizers and pesticides • Protects soils from erosion • Assists pollution remediation http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/non-hw/muncpl/facts.htm

32. 5. Incineration and Resource Recovery • Also called “energy recovery” or “waste-to-energy” • trash is burned, and the heat is used to generate electricity • 1000 plants word-wide (110 in U.S.)

33. Incinerators • Two types: • refuse-derived • trash is sorted before burning • less air pollution • higher quality fuel • mass burn • all trash burned • more air pollution • 10-20% of original mass is ash which must be disposed of as toxic waste • recycling is so effective in places that cities are having trouble with contractual agreements

34. Incinerator Example

36. 6. Landfills • Under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), landfills that accept MSW are primarily regulated by state, tribal, and local governments • EPA, however, has established national standards these landfills must meet in order to stay open • The number of landfills in the United States is steadily decreasing—from 8,000 in 1988 to 2,300 in 1999 • The capacity, however, has remained relatively constant • New landfills are much larger than in the past

37. Landfills • Built to decrease problems with insect and rodent populations • litter is compacted and covered every day • newer ones have lining (only 15%) • up to 50% of all cities have used up landfill space • Landfills in Ohio • cities export trash (New Jersey)

38. Traditional Landfills

39. Resource Conservation and Recovery Act The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) was enacted by Congress in 1976 and amended in 1984. The act's primary goal is to protect human health and the environment from the potential hazards of waste disposal. In addition, RCRA calls for conservation of energy and natural resources, reduction in waste generated, and environmentally sound waste management practices.

41. Landfill Design The bottom liner may be layers of clay or other synthetic material (clay, plastic, or composite), which is placed on compacted soil. The bottom of the landfill is sloped and pipes along the bottom collect leachate. This leachate collections system must be very carefully planned and built by engineers. It is usually a system of pipes. (These pipes are among a gravel and sand layer.) The leachate is then 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. The structure of this system must be carefully engineered.

42. Federal Landfill Standards • Location restrictions ensure that landfills are built in suitable geological areas away from faults, wetlands, flood plains, or other restricted areas • Liners are geomembrane or plastic sheets reinforced with two feet of clay on the bottom and sides of landfills • Bioreactors start at 1:33

43. Landfill Design

44. Advanced Landfills

45. Federal Landfill Standards • Operating practices such as compacting and covering waste frequently with several inches of soil help 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

47. Exporting Wastes • Wastes get exported from developed (wealthy) countries to developing (poor) countries • there is little control by receiving countries about what is in trash • in 1994 there was a ban on transporting toxic wastes • also happens within countries - trash goes to poor neighborhoods (and Am. Indians)

48. Federal Landfill Standards • Closure and postclosure care include covering landfills and providing long-term care of closed landfills • Corrective action controls and cleans up landfill releases and achieves groundwater protection standards • Financial assurance provides funding for environmental protection during and after landfill closure (i.e., closure and postclosure care)

50. Overview • Hazardous waste - any discarded material, liquid or solid, that contains materials known to be • fatal in low doses • toxic, carcinogenic, mutagens or teratogens • ignitable at less than 60C • corrosive • explosive • 265 million tons a year • largest source is in the chemical and petroleum industries • 60 million enters the waste stream