Transcript Document 7159314

Announcements – Nov 8
Nov. 13 (next Monday) - review
Nov. 15 (next Wednesday) - Exam 3
Nov. 17 (next Friday) - no class
Rocket fuel chemical found in water, produce
December 1, 2004
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The government has found traces
of a rocket fuel chemical in organic milk in Maryland,
green leaf lettuce grown in Arizona and bottled spring
water from Texas and California. Sufficient amounts of
perchlorate can affect the thyroid, potentially causing
delayed development and other problems. But
Environmental Protection Agency official Kevin Mayer called
for calm, saying in an interview Tuesday: "Alarm is not
warranted. That is clear." Asked whether that level of
chemical in milk was worrisome, Mayer, the EPA's regional
perchlorate coordinator for Arizona, California, Hawaii and
Nevada, said, "The answer is, we don't know yet."
BBC
10 September, 2004
UN warns of pesticide 'time-bomb’
Stockpiles have built up as pesticide products
have been banned. The UN has warned that
huge stockpiles of toxic chemical waste from
obsolete pesticides are a "time bomb" for East
Europe and the developing world. Its Food and
Agriculture Organization has urged assistance
for the disposal of the chemicals, which it says
are often stored at unmanaged sites. Such
stockpiles threaten the health of rural
communities, says the FAO.
Solid/Hazardous
Wastes
Lecture Objectives:

What do we do with our garbage?

What are the problems with hazardous waste?

What happened at Love Canal?
Introduction to Waste
Management

Solid Waste – objects
or particles that
accumulate on the site
where they are
produced.

Municipal Solid Waste
(Garbage) amounts to
230 million tons in U.S.
annually (equivalent to 3
billion humans!!).
US Domestic Waste
Disposable Decades

Mid-1950s – emphasis on a
disposable lifestyle



Wave of the future
Way to reduce household duties.
Convenience was sold to
prosperous post-war (WWII)
consumers.


Convenience quickly changed to
necessity.
TV dinners first marketed in 1953.
Nature of the Problem

U.S. volume of garbage has
increased more than 50%
since 1960 (although
stabilized since 1990) .

Countries with higher
standard of living produce
more waste.

Traditional Methods
(dumping and burning) are
no longer accepted.

Urban areas running out of
places to put garbage
Methods of Waste Disposal





Landfills
Incineration
Source reduction
Composting
Recycling
Landfilling



Most municipal solid waste
in US is deposited in
landfills
Source of groundwater
pollution
Number of municipal
landfills is declining.


Some closed for violations,
other because full
New landfills costly and
often resisted - NIMBY
Sanitary Landfills
Reducing the Number of Landfills
Incineration

Prior to 1940,
incineration was
common in North
America and western
Europe.
Many
incinerators were eliminated because of foul
odors and gritty smoke
Currently,
about 15% of U.S. municipal solid waste
is incinerated.
Incinerator Types

Refuse-Derived Fuel - Refuse is sorted to
remove recyclable and unburnable materials.


Mass Burn - Everything smaller than major
furniture and appliances loaded into furnace.


Higher energy content than raw trash.
Creates air pollution problems.
Reduces disposal volume by 80-90%.

EPA has found alarmingly high toxin levels in
incinerator ash.
Incineration
Pros:


Reduce volume 90%, weight 75%
Heat from burning converted to electricity
Cons:



Create air pollution
Concentrates toxins in ash
More costly than landfills, as long as space
available
Composting

Harnessing natural decomposition
to transform organic material into
compost

About 3800 composting facilities
currently in use in the United
States.

Landscape Recycling Center
1210 E. University Ave., Urbana
344-LEAF (5323)
www.city.urbana.il.us
Source Reduction

Most fundamental method of reducing waste
is to prevent it from being produced (Waste
Prevention).

Reduce and reuse – Individuals and Industry



Saves natural resources.
Reduces waste toxicity
Reduces costs
Recycling

Recycling initiatives have grown rapidly in US

By 2000, 9,000 U.S. cities had implemented
curbside recycling programs.
 Urbana’s curbside program began in 1986
http://www.ci.champaign.il.us/public_works/index.php

Bottle Bills (10 states)

Mandatory recycling laws
(15 states)
Recycling Benefits

Resource Conservation

Pollution Reduction

Crushed glass reduces energy required to
manufacture new glass by 50%.

One Sunday edition of N.Y. times consumes 62,000
trees.

Only 40% of North American paper is recycled.

Over 60% of aluminum cans recycled.
Recycling

Benefits



Saves money, raw materials, and land.
Encourages individual responsibility.
Reduces pressure on disposal systems.

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
Japan recycles about half of all household and
commercial wastes.
Lowers demand for raw resources.
Reduces energy consumption and air pollution.
US Recycling Rates
Recycling Concerns

Plastics are recyclable, but technology
differs from plastic to plastic.


Industry is researching new technologies.
Economics are of concern.

demand for products must keep pace with
growing supply
What Can You Do?

Buy durable items and repair them

Buy recycled goods and recycle them

Buy beverages in refillable containers

Rechargeable batteries

Reduce junk mail

Lobby for trash separation and recycling

Choose items with minimal packaging & reduce
number of bags used

Compost yard and food waste
http://www.city.champaign.il.us/public_works/pwrhp.html
http://www.city.urbana.il.us/
http://www.ci.urbana.il.us/
“quick links”
“recycling”
Hazardous Wastes

Hazardous Wastes – Dangerous byproducts of industrial, business, or
household activities for which there is no
immediate use.

Numerous types and forms:





Heavy metals
Organic wastes
Old Computers
Batteries
Liquids, solids, sludge
1) Ignitable?
2) Corrosive?
3) Explosive?
4) Toxic?
Defining Hazardous Waste

U.S. Resource Conservation and Recovery
Act (RCRA) 1976:

Cause or significantly contribute to an increase in
mortality or an increase in serious irreversible, or
incapacitating reversible, illness; or pose a
substantial present or potential hazard to human
health or the environment when improperly
treated, stored, transported, disposed of, or
otherwise managed.
Many chemical compounds have not been
tested adequately for adverse affects!!
Issues Involved in Setting Regulations


Identification of Hazardous &Toxic Materials
Setting Exposure Limits


Nearly all substances are toxic in sufficient
quantities.
Species-Specific Thresholds.
Acute
vs. Chronic Toxicity
Effects
of massive doses (acute) and small doses over
time (chronic) differ.
Synergism
Assessing
effects of chemical mixtures.
Most toxicity studies done on a single compound.
Environmental Problems Caused
By Hazardous Wastes

Because most hazardous wastes are disposed
on or in land, most serious effect is contaminated
groundwater.

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100,000 industrial landfill sites
180,000 surface impoundments
Nearly 2% of North America’s underground aquifers
could be contaminated.
Once polluted, prohibitively costly to restore water to
original state; often not even physically possible
Health Risks

Each year, roughly 1,000 new chemicals are produced
and distributed.
 70,000 already in daily use.

Main problem is often improper handling and disposal

IEPA household hazardous waste collection
(217) 782-6761

Mercury Thermostats/Thermometers, Antifreeze, Solvents, Metal
Polishes, Drain Cleaners, Cleaning Products, Paint Removers, Oil-Based
Paints (no water-based paints), Aerosol Paints, Paint Thinners,
Fluorescent Bulbs, Hobby Chemicals, Pool Chemicals, Fungicides,
Furniture Strippers, Used Oils, Insecticides, Herbicides, Pesticides, Weed
Killers, Lawn Chemicals, Old Gasoline, Used Motor Oil,
Household/Automotive Batteries, Propane Tanks (20 & 20 lb. cylinders),
and Fire Extinguishers
Hazardous Waste Dumps:
A Legacy of Abuse

Prior to 1976, hazardous waste was
essentially unregulated.

Most common disposal solution was to bury
or dump the wastes without concern for
environmental or health risks.
Hazardous Waste Dumps

When sites became full or unnecessary, they
were simply abandoned.
In
North America alone,
currently over 25,000
sites containing
hazardous waste.
U.S.
has highest number
of dumps needing
immediate attention.
Federal Legislation

Comprehensive Environmental Response,
Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA).

Modified in 1984 by Superfund Amendments and
Reauthorization Act.

Aimed at rapid containment, cleanup, or remediation
of abandoned toxic waste sites.

Toxic Release Inventory - Requires 20,000
manufacturing facilities to report annually on
releases of more than 300 toxic materials.
http://www.epa.gov/superfund/
EPA Superfund Sites (Since 1980)
Sites contaminated by hazardous
waste and identified by the
Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA) as a candidate for cleanup
because it poses a risk to human
health and/or the environment.
1,300 Superfund sites across the
country
In Illinois: 40 active, 5 proposed, 2
cleaned
http://www.epa.gov/superfund/sites/npl/il.htm
Superfund Sites

Total costs for hazardous waste cleanup in the
US are estimated between $370 billion and $1.7
trillion.


For years, most of the funding has gone to legal fees,
but this situation has improved over past several
years.
Studies of Superfund sites reveal minorities tend
to be over-represented in these neighborhoods.
http://www.epa.state.il.us/land/hazardous-waste/householdhaz-waste/index.html
Household Hazardous Waste Collections
The Illinois EPA coordinates one-day household hazardous
waste collections each year in the spring and fall.
Love Canal
1892 -- William T. Love
proposed a canal for
navigation and hydropower
 Only one mile of the canal built,
used for swimming and
recreation
1920 – land sold at public auction
became a municipal and chemical disposal site.
Hooker Chemical Company dumped over
20,000 tons of chemicals until 1953.
Including:
benzene -- causes
leukemia
dioxin – causes cancer
1953 - Hooker covered the site with dirt and clay
and sold the land to the Niagara Falls Board of
Education for $1.00
1955 - the 99th Street elementary school opened
and homes were built on the 16-acre rectangular
site
1960s-1970s repeated
complaints to city
1976 -- Calspan Corporation hired as consultant
April, 1978 – Report in newspaper about toxic chemicals
Aug. 2, 1978 - the NY State
Department of Health recommended
temporary relocation of pregnant
women and young children
Aug. 7, 1978, President Jimmy
Carter declared a federal
emergency at Love Canal
1980s -- Human Heath issues documented
Of 17 pregnancies in 1979 – 2 normal, 9
birth defects, 2 stillborn, 4 miscarriages
Broken chromosomes
Neurological Problems
1980 – Superfund Site
1990s – resettlement of area begins
Managing Hazardous Wastes

EPA pollution prevention hierarchy:
1. Reduce amount of pollution at the source.
2. Recycle wastes whenever possible.
3. Treat wastes to reduce hazard and/or
volume.
4. Dispose of wastes on land or incinerate them
as last resort.
Points to Know – Dec. 3
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
Know the 5 methods of waste disposal. Which is the
most common method in the US, and what are two
problems with this method?
What are some recycling initiatives in the US?
What can you do to help reduce the amount of solid
waste generated?
What are the environmental problems and health risks
caused by hazardous wastes? What is the main source
of these problems?
Know the general story of the Love Canal.