Transcript Document

Disposal of Non-hazardous,
Hazardous and Nuclear Waste
• 1965 Solid Waste Disposal Act
– Attempt by Congress to encourage better disposal of
solid waste through grants to the states.
• 1976 Resource Conservation and Recovery Act
RCRA
– Designed to primarily manage hazardous waste
management, though solid waste is addressed as well.
– Amended several times since 1976, most significantly
in 1984.
• 1984 Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments
HSWA
– Significantly expanded the scope and requirements of
RCRA
RCRA Goals
• Protect human health and the environment
from the potential hazards of waste disposal
• Conserve energy and natural resources
• Reduce the amount of waste generated
• Ensure that wastes are managed in an
environmentally sound manner
RCRA Programs
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Solid waste management
Hazardous waste management
Underground tank management
Medical waste
RCRA Responsibilities For
Hazardous Waste
• The generator is responsible for the material
from cradle to grave
• Tracked using a uniform hazardous waste
manifest
• Monitored by the EPA using generator ID
numbers and permits
• Restricted from land disposal (under
HSWA)
Hazardous Waste
• A subset of solid waste
• Often generated by industrial processes
• Possess one or more of these characteristics
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Ignightability
Corrosivity
Reactivity
Toxicity
• Or may be on a Source-Specific List
Cradle to Grave
• EPA regulations address
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Generation
Transportation
Treatment
Storage
Disposal
TSD facilities
• Treatment
• Storage
• Disposal
Hazardous Waste Generators
• Hazardous waste generation is divided into
separate categories
– Large quantity generators >2,200 lbs/month
– Small quantity generators <2,200 lbs/month
– Can only hold waste for 90 days
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Need permit to generate hazardous waste
Transporters, permit required
TSD facilities, permit required
If generate <220 lbs/month then no permit
required
Hazardous Waste Manifests
• To track waste, EPA requires generators to prepare
a Uniform Hazardous Waste Manifest
• Manifests must accompany waste where ever it
travels
• This form, and its multiple copies, ties generator,
all transporters, storage facilities, and disposal
facilities with the waste
• Each individual handler must sign and mail copies
of the manifest to EPA or authorized state
authority
The Solid Waste Problem
• Our per capita waste generation is over
double that of any other country
• Current methods of managing and disposing
are not expected to be adequate for
anticipated future volumes
• Primary methods are landfilling, recycling
and incineration
Solid Waste Problem cont.
• We have a throw-away economy.
• Things are built to become obsolete
• Packaging amounts to half of all household
waste
• We generate about 4-5 pounds of solid
waste a day
Incineration
• Possible alternative to landfills
• What are some advantages and
disadvantages?
Solid Waste Problem cont.
• Largest generators are industry, mining and
agriculture
• Although agricultural and mine waste are
usually disposed of on site, the is a potential
for pollution of groundwater and surface
runoff
NIMBY Implications
• It is difficult to find sites for new landfills,
materials recovery facilities and recycling
centers
• There is a trend toward fewer and bigger
landfills
• All are heavily regulated
NIMBY Implications cont.
• Moving to rail based regional landfills
– Examples Seneca Meadows for NYC
– Utah for Los Angeles
– http://www.lacsd.org/swaste/Facilities/MRF_TS/PHMRF/
WastebyRailProgram.htm
• Largest landfill is in LA County, Puente
Hills landfill in the San Gabriel valley
Seneca Meadows Landfill,
Waterloo NY
Puente Hills Landfill, LA County
Medical Waste
• Any solid material generated in the
diagnosis, treatment, or immunization of
human beings or animals, in related
research, biologicals production, or testing
Radioactive Materials and Waste
• Nuclear energy and medical facilities are the
largest users of radioactive materials
• Practically every industry uses radioisotopes in
some form
• EPA and DOE are involved in regulation
• Atomic Energy Act regulates the management and
disposal of radioactive materials
• Exposure increases the risk of cancer and genetic
defects
Radioactive Waste
High level waste – high radioactivity, long
half-life, low volume
Low level waste – low radioactivity, short
half-life, high volume
Transuranic waste – low radioactivity, long
half-life, low volume
High Level Radioactive Waste
• Plutonium and uranium from energy plants,
defense industry, and defense department
• Requires heavy shielding and long term isolation
• DOE is in the process of constructing a long term
depository at Yucca Mountain
• DOD is in the process of constructing a long term
depository (WIPP) in Carlsbad, New Mexico
• The 70 nuclear power plants in the US had
generated 20,000 metric tons of spent fuel by 1990
• Currently being stored at generation sites