Mr. Manskopf

Notes Also At www.manskopf.com

Mr. Manskopf

Notes Also At www.manskopf.com

WASTE MANAGEMENTWASTE MANAGEMENT

Chapter 19Chapter 19

Love Canal, New YorkWhen Waste is Not Disposed of ProperlyLove Canal, New YorkWhen Waste is Not Disposed of Properly

• 1942 to 1958 Hooker Chemicals Disposal Site

• 1953 Sold to Niagara Falls School Board (school, housing)

• 1976 Residents becoming sick

• 1978 Lois Gibbs leads outcry

• 1980 Declared Disaster Site• 2004 Taken off Superfund

List

Section 1: Wasting ResourcesSection 1: Wasting Resources

• Why should we care about solid waste?

• How much waste does the U.S. produce?

• What is in the garbage?

• The throw away mentality: OUT of SIGHT… OUT OF MIND

Solid WasteSolid Waste • Unwanted or discarded material that is not liquid or gas

• Out of sight Out of Mind

• No Waste In Nature

Two Reasons to Be Concerned:

1) Wasted Resources

2) Causes huge amounts of air, water, land pollution and soil erosion

Wasting ResourcesWasting Resources

Industrial and agricultural wasteIndustrial and agricultural waste

Municipal solid wasteMunicipal solid waste

US: 11 billion metric tons/yearUS: 11 billion metric tons/yearFig. 24-2 p. 533

Affluenza In ActionAffluenza In Action• U.S. produces 1/3rd of

world’s solid waste and buries ½ of it

• Most waste comes from mining, oil, gas, ag., sewage, industry

• Think about a simple product like a computer…how much waste produced to create it (Life Cycle)

Municipal Solid Waste (MSW)Municipal Solid Waste (MSW)• 1.5% of Solid Waste is

MSW

• Between 1960 and 1990 per capita MSW grown 70%...why do you think that is?

• 38% is paper, 12% yard waste, 11% food waste, 10% platics

• E-Waste Growing FAST

MSWMSW

MSW Continued…MSW Continued…Garbologists findings

• 50 year old newspapers still readable

• Pork Chops decades old

WHY DO THEY NOT DECOMPOSE????.....what do things need to decompose

MSW Continued…MSW Continued…Enough disposable

diapers each year linked together would go to moon and back 7 times

Enough office paper to build a wall 11 feet high between NYC and SF

What are the options for dealing with waste?What are the options for dealing with waste?

Waste management (high waste approach)Waste is part of economic growth, lets manage negatives

Waste management (high waste approach)Waste is part of economic growth, lets manage negatives

Burying, burning, shipping Burying, burning, shipping

Waste prevention (low waste approach)Before product is produced look to minimize life cycle

Waste prevention (low waste approach)Before product is produced look to minimize life cycle

Reduce, reuse, recycle Reduce, reuse, recycle

Six Ideas For Less WasteSix Ideas For Less Waste1) Consume less: Do we

Really NEED this?

2) Redesign products to use less resources: How can we make this product using less resources throughout their life cycle

3) Redesign to use and make less pollution: Toxic substances etc.

Six Ideas For Less WasteSix Ideas For Less Waste4) Develop products

that are easier to repair, reuse, remanufacture, compost or recycle

5) Design products to last longer

6) Eliminate or reduce packaging (nude packaging)

Methods of Solid Waste DisposalMethods of Solid Waste Disposal

Burning and BuryingBurning and Burying

• What are advantages and disadvantages of burning solid waste?

• What are the advantages and disadvantages of burying solid waste?

Typical Waste to Energy Plant (incinerator)

Burning WastesBurning Wastes

Burning WasteBurning Waste• Japan and Switzerland

over 50%, U.S. about 16%

• More than 280 project canceled in U.S. due to high costs, concern among citizens, air pollution etc.

Burying WastesBurying Wastes

Sanitary landfills Sanitary landfills

Leachate collection Leachate collection

Monitoring wells Monitoring wells

Emit greenhouse gases (CO2 and methane)

Emit greenhouse gases (CO2 and methane)

Open dumps Open dumps

Sanitary LandfillSanitary Landfill

Fig. 24-14 p. 547

And what about all of the older landfills around U.S. and the rest of the world???

NIMBYNIMBY • Not In My Back Yard common with landfills and incinerators

Review Costs and Benefits: LandfillsReview Costs and Benefits: Landfills

Benefits Costs

Decomposition yields methane, which can be used like natural gas.

Leachate may eventually escape and contaminate the groundwater.

When full, landfills are capped. The land can be used for recreation.

Trash decomposes very slowly.

Few communities are willing to host landfills (NIMBY).

Review: Costs and Benefits of Incineration Review: Costs and Benefits of Incineration

Benefits Costs

Incinerating waste reduces its weight by up to 75% and volume by up to 90%.

Toxic ash must be disposed of.

Heat from burning trash can be used to generate electricity (waste-to-energy).

Dioxins, heavy metals, and PCBs can be created and released by burning waste.

Section 2: Minimizing WasteSection 2: Minimizing Waste

• How can we reduce, reuse, recycle our waste?

What is REUSE?What is REUSE?Cleaning and using the material over and over again increasing the lifespan of the product

Junkyards and salvaging wood from old homes etc.

Not Reuse…Not Reuse…

Reuse: BenefitsReuse: Benefits

Extends resource supplies Extends resource supplies

Saves energy and money Saves energy and money

Reduces pollution Reduces pollution

Create jobs Create jobs

Reusable products Reusable products

Reuse: CostsReuse: Costs • Waste (especially e-waste) can contain harmful substances…especially heavy metals

Many eke out living scavenging for waste in large open dumps

Some SuccessSome Success• 95% of Finland’s soft

drink, beer, wine bottles reused

• Germany about 3/4th are refilled

Other examples of Reuse…Other examples of Reuse…

Shopping bags and tool libraries

RecyclingRecycling

• What is recycling?

• What is composting?

• How should we recycle solid waste?

• How much waste paper is being recycled?

• How feasible is recycling plastics?

• Why isn’t more reused and recycled?

What is recycling?What is recycling?Reprocessing solid waste into

new useful products

5 Categories in US Household Recycling

1) Paper Products

2) Glass

3) Aluminum

4) Steel

5) Some plastics

Characteristics of Recyclable MaterialsCharacteristics of Recyclable Materials

Easily isolated from other wasteEasily isolated from other waste

Available in large quantitiesAvailable in large quantities

Valuable Valuable

Recycling RatesRecycling Rates

• Switzerland, Japan 50%

• U.S. 30% up from 6.4% in 1960

• 60-80% is achievable

Wastepaper RecyclingWastepaper Recycling

• Easy to recycle

• Removing ink, glue coating and reconverting into pulp

• 42% of world tree harvest is for paper

• Currently U.S. recycles 49% of waste paper

• Making paper has big enviro impact

Wastepaper RecyclingWastepaper Recycling

How plastics are made

Recycling plastic is difficult chemically and economically

•10% in U.S. recycled

•Different resins

•Low cost of oil

•Biodegradable plastics (bioplatics) offer hope

Types of PlasticTypes of Plastic

Economics of RecyclingEconomics of Recycling

• Paper, aluminum, steel are easy to recycle and make easy economic sense

• CRITICS: 1) plenty of landfill space, 2) Glass and plastic expensive to recycle

• Employs 1.1 million people

Why we don’t recycle moreWhy we don’t recycle more• Enviro Costs not included

(externalities)

• Too few government subsidies

• Tipping fees at landfills cheap

• Price fluctuations for goods

• Often don’t PAUT

• Life cycle costs often not factored in

Did You Know? States with “bottle bills” (consumers receive a refund per returned bottle or can) have reduced their beverage container litter by 69–84% and total litter by 30–64%.

Did You Know? States with “bottle bills” (consumers receive a refund per returned bottle or can) have reduced their beverage container litter by 69–84% and total litter by 30–64%.

CompostingComposting • Composting organic waste mimics nature

• Only 5% of yard waste composted in U.S….could easily be raised to 35%

• Compost used as fertilizer, topsoil and help restore eroded land

Composting Composting

Section 7: Hazardous WasteSection 7: Hazardous Waste

• What is hazardous waste?

• What can we do with hazardous waste?

• How can we detoxify waste?

• What are advantages and disadvantages of burying hazardous wastes?

• What are Brownfields?

What is Hazardous Waste?What is Hazardous Waste?Any discarded solid or

liquid that is toxic, ignitable, corrosive or reactive enough to explode or release toxic fumes.

• 80-90% from developed countries

• 72% from Petro-Chem

• 22% mining

What is hazardous waste?What is hazardous waste?• Ignitable: Can catch fire

• Corrosive: Can damage or destroy metals

• Reactive: Chemically unstable; can explode or produce fumes when combined with water

• Toxic: Harmful or fatal when inhaled, ingested, or touched

• Common sources of hazardous waste include batteries, cleaning agents, paints, and pesticides.

• Common sources of hazardous waste include batteries, cleaning agents, paints, and pesticides.

Case Study: Bhopal IndiaCase Study: Bhopal India

• 1984 World’s worst industrial accident

• Union Carbide pesticide plant explosion

• Toxic cloud settled over region killing 23,000

• 120,000 to 150,000 suffer chronic illnesses related to accident

Hazardous Waste DisposalHazardous Waste Disposal

• Landfills: Specifically designed to keep hazardous waste contained

• Surface impoundment: Liquid waste poured into shallow lined pits; water evaporates and solid waste is transported elsewhere

• Deep-well injection (see diagram on right): Wastes injected into deep, confined porous rock layers

Hazardous Waste LandfillHazardous Waste Landfill

Surface Impoundments: Trade-offsSurface Impoundments: Trade-offs

BrownfieldsBrownfields

Abandoned industrial and other hazardous waste site

• Factories, junk yards, gas stations

• Usually older urban areas like Camden are full of them

BrownfieldsBrownfields

• Can be cleaned up and reborn as parks, industrial parks, etc.

• First need to be cleaned

• Some developers weary of taking risks and costs

BrownfieldsBrownfields

One example of many in Camden: http://www.state.nj.us/dep//srp/brownfields/bda/n_camden.htm

Case Studies: LeadCase Studies: Lead

Lead poisoning major problem in children Lead poisoning major problem in children

Primary Sources of LeadPrimary Sources of Lead

Leaded gasoline (phased out by 1986) Leaded gasoline (phased out by 1986)

Lead paint (banned in 1970) Lead paint (banned in 1970)

Lead in plumbing Lead in plumbing

Progress is being made in reducing lead Progress is being made in reducing lead

Case Studies: MercuryCase Studies: Mercury

Vaporized elemental Mercury Vaporized elemental Mercury

Fish contaminated with methylmercury Fish contaminated with methylmercury

Natural inputs Natural inputs

Emission control Emission control

Prevention of contamination Prevention of contamination

Case Studies: DioxinsCase Studies: Dioxins

Potentially highly toxic chlorinated hydrocarbons

Potentially highly toxic chlorinated hydrocarbons

Waste incineration Waste incineration

Fireplaces Fireplaces

Coal-fired power plants Coal-fired power plants

Paper production Paper production

Sources of DioxinsSources of Dioxins

Sewage sludge Sewage sludge

Hazardous Waste Regulation in the U.S.Hazardous Waste Regulation in the U.S.

• What is RCRA?

• What is Superfund?

Hazardous Waste Regulation in the United StatesHazardous Waste Regulation in the United States

Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)

Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)

Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (Superfund)

Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (Superfund)

National Priority List National Priority List

Polluter-pays principle Polluter-pays principle

RCRARCRA 1976 Passed By Congress: amended 1984

1) ID Hazardous Waste and set standards

2) Companies that deal with Haz. Waste over 220 lbs. must get permits

3) Cradle to Grave tracking and submit proof to EPA

CERCLACERCLA Commonly called Superfund

• Passed in 1980 (NJ Congressman leaders)

• Established tax on on chemicals to

1) ID abandoned dumps sites

2) Clean up groundwater

3) Establish NPL list for cleanups

http://www.scorecard.org/env-releases/land/

Why do you think NJ has so many?

CERCLACERCLA • Responsible parties must pay

• If no party can be found clean ups down using $ from tax on oil and chemical companies (tax expired 1995)

• 1,250 NPL sites…113 in NJ

• About 72% clean up underway avg. $20 million per site

CERCLACERCLA

• Some estimates 10,000 sites could cost $1 trillion…pollution prevention cheaper?

• Toxic Release Inventory www.epa.gov/tri

Polluter Pays PrinciplePolluter Pays Principle

• Who should pay for cleanup when responsible parties can not be found?

• Currently tax payers• 1 in 4 Americans live

within 4 miles of Superfund NPL site