Transcript Chapter 22 - Solid and Hazardous Waste

Solid and Hazardous Waste
Chapter 22
Solid waste
 Most
solid waste in the US is produced by industry
 75%
mining
 13% agriculture
 9.5% industrial
 1% sludge
 Only
1.5% of waste is household waste
That’s a lot of trash
solid waste – household waste averaged
about 1500 pounds per person in the US
 Municipal
 This
is two to three times other developed
countries
Hazardous Waste
 The
legal definition:
 Contains
one of 39 toxic, carcinogenic, mutagenic,
or teratogenic compounds above EPA limits
 Catches fire easily
 Reactive or unstable
 Capable of corroding metal containers
Hazardous Waste
 What
is not defined as hazardous
 Radioactive
 Household
toxic chemicals
 Mining waste with heavy metals
 Oil drilling waste
 Liquid waste with organic hydrocarbon compounds
 Cement dust
 Small business hazardous waste if under 100 kilograms
per month
Hazardous!!
 It
is estimated that of the 5.5 billion metric tons
produced each year, only 6% is defined as
hazardous and monitored correctly
 94%
is discarded by homes and industry not
defined as hazardous and is therefore not regulated
Two options
management – develop methods for storing
and neutralizing waste
 Waste
prevention – find ways to decrease
amount of waste produced
 Pollution
 This
is the four “R’s”
Waste prevention
 Reduce
 Reuse
 Recycle
 Rot
(compost)
 Redesign
 These
are listed in order of increasing energy
required
Our new goal
 Reduce
waste pollution
 Reuse as much as possible
 Recycle/compost as much as possible
 Chemically treat/incinerate the rest
 Bury the remaining material in a sanitary landfill
Producing less waste best choice
 Save
energy and virgin resources
 Reduce environmental impact of acquiring
material
 Improve worker health and safety
 Decrease pollution control/waste management
costs
 Less long term costs associated with cleanup
Ways to produce less waste
Decrease consumption
 Redesign manufacturing to use less virgin material
 Redesign products to be less polluting
 Redesign manufacturing to be more efficient
 Use less hazardous products at home
 Design products to last longer (non-disposable)
 Reduce packaging
 Trash tax – pay by the pound

Power plant
Steam
Smokestack
Turbine Generator
Crane
Electricity
Wet
scrubber
Boiler
Electrostatic
precipitator
Furnace
Conveyor
Water
Waste pit
Bottom
ash
Conventional
landfill
Dirty
water
Waste
treatment
Fly
ash
Hazardous
Waste
landfill
Fig. 21.10, p. 536
Slide 10
When landfill is full,
layers of soil and clay
seal in trash
Electricity
generator
Methane storage
and compressor
building
Topsoil
Sand
building
Leachate
treatment system
Clay
Garbage
Methane gas
recovery
Pipe collect explosive
methane gas used as fuel
to generate electricity
Leachate
storage tanks
Compacted
solid waste
Groundwater
monitoring
well
Leachate
monitoring
well
Leachate pipes
Garbage
Leachate pumped up
to storage tanks for
safe disposal
Sand
Synthetic liner
Sand
Clay
Subsoil
Groundwater
Clay and plastic lining
to prevent leaks; pipes
collect leachate from
bottom of landfill
Fig. 21.12, p. 537
Slide 12
Waste
transporter
Elevator shaft
Hazardous waste
Support
column
Inspector
Fig. 21.17, p. 540
Slide 17
Lead in air
from industrial
incineration
and past auto
emissions
Lead glaze
on ceramics
Lead in food
Lead in
soil and
in streets
Lead in
paint
Toy and
floor dust
Lead in water
from pipes,
fixtures, and
service lines
Lead in dust
Water
service
main
Service line
Underground
pump
or well
or
Fig. 21.18, p. 542
Slide 18