Deck 21: Solid and Hazardous Waste

Question 1

What is the key concept for this section What are the major advantages and disadvantages of using incinerators to burn solid and hazardous waste Distinguish between sanitary landfills and open dumps. What are the major advantages and disadvantages of burying solid waste in sanitary landfills

Answer 1

The key concept is that burying and incinerating solid waste are well-developed techniques, but they contribute to air, ground, and water pollution.
Incineration of solid waste, if done properly, does not pollute the air. It also generates electricity, and it keeps solid waste from being dumped in landfills. However, the toxins that are filtered from the process of incineration must be stored.
Another disadvantage to incineration is that a steady stream of waste must be supplied or the process becomes inefficient, and the motivation for reuse or recycling might be undermined.
A sanitary landfill has a double lining to protect the surrounding land from being encroached by the toxins present in the solid waste. Each day, a layer of trash is deposited, and each evening a containing layer of clay or plastic covers the trash layer to keep the material dry. This decreases the smell, the fire risk, and the accessibility to vermin.
An open dump is simply a hole in the ground into which solid waste is deposited. It is sometimes burned. It contributes to both air and water pollution and it is unsanitary, inviting spread of disease and presence of vermin.
Sanitary landfills are much preferable to open dumps, but there are still disadvantages to them over other means of solid waste treatment. They use valuable land resources, they emit gases such as methane, they are unsightly, and they still emit odors and attract vermin, even with the prevention measures that are taken to minimize these hazards.
However, they are a better solution to solid waste treatment than open dumps, because they take some precautions to treat the waste. They are cheap and can often be located close to the municipality whose trash must somehow be disposed of.

Question 2

List three ways in which you could apply Concept 21-6 to making your lifestyle more environmentally sustainable.

Answer 2

The concept of 16.6 suggests shifting to a low waste society. This requires less use of resources by individual and businessman, reuse of items and recycling of waste to create a low waste society.
As a member of the society the following activities should be taken care of to develop a low waste society. 1. Things like clothes, vegetables and other daily utility items should be purchased as per requirement only. 2. Use reusable cups, plates etc. instead of disposable items. 3. Use kitchen waste to prepare compost. If space is insufficient it can be directly mixed with the soil in pots, keeping a few potted plants. 4. Vehicles can be shared by family members and friends while going to office.

Question 3

Do you think that manufacturers of computers, television sets, and other forms of e-waste ( Core Case Study ) should be required to take their products back at the end of their useful lives for repair, remanufacture, or recycling in a manner that is environmentally responsible and that does not threaten the health of recycling workers Explain. Would you be willing to pay more for these products to cover the costs of such a take-back program If so, what percentage more per purchase would you be willing to pay for electronic products

Answer 3

Manufacturers of computers, television sets and other forms of e- waste should be required to take their products back at the end of the useful lives for repair, remanufacture or recycling in a manner that is environment friendly and without any health hazards for workers.
This provision will take care of the hazardous solid waste from electronic items. The e- waste should be converted into other useful products which should be available for under privileged people at affordable price. Every individual should be willing to pay for take back cost in the interest of the social health. 5% extra payment to fulfill social responsibility is not a big amount for any person who is capable of buying electronic items.

Question 4

What is the key concept for this section What are the priorities that scientists believe we should use in dealing with hazardous waste Summarize the problems involved in sending e-wastes to less-developed countries for recycling. Describe three ways to detoxify hazardous wastes. What is bioremediation What is phytoremediation What are the major advantages and disadvantages of incinerating hazardous wastes What are the major advantages and disadvantages of using plasma gasification to detoxify hazardous wastes

Question 5

Collect the trash (excluding food waste) that you generate in a typical week. Measure its total weight and volume. Sort it into major categories such as paper, plastic, metal, and glass. Then weigh each category and calculate its percentage by weight of the total amount of trash that you have measured. What percentage by weight of this waste consists of materials that could be recycled What percentage consists of materials for which you could have used a reusable substitute, such as a coffee mug instead of a disposable cup What percentage by weight of the items could you have done without Compare your answers to these questions with those of your classmates. Together with your classmates, combine all the results and do the same analysis for the entire class. Use these results to estimate the same values for the entire student population at your school. (If you wish, you could include food wastes in your research, but you would need to find a way to store it such that it won't become a nuisance or a health hazard.)

Question 6

Congratulations! You are in charge of the world. List the three most important components of your strategy for dealing with (a) solid waste and (b) hazardous waste.

Question 7

Researchers estimate that the average daily municipal solid waste production per person in the United States is 3.2 kilograms (4.34 pounds). Use the data in the pie chart below to get an idea of a typical annual MSW ecological

footprint for each American by calculating the total weight in kilograms (and pounds) for each category generated during 1 year (1 kilogram = 2.20 pounds). Use the table below to enter your answers.

Question 8

What are the major advantages and disadvantages of disposing of liquid hazardous wastes (a) in deep underground wells and (b) in surface impoundments What is a secure hazardous waste landfill List four ways to reduce your output of hazardous waste. Summarize how laws in the United States regulate hazardous wastes. What is a brownfield

Question 9

Within the GREENR database, go to the E-Waste topic portal. Research and find statistics on how rapidly the world's production of e-waste ( Core Case Study ) is growing and how rapidly e-waste production is growing in the United States. Write a brief report on what the United States and one other country of your choice are doing to deal with this growing waste problem. Compare the two approaches in terms of how successful they are.

Question 10

What is the key concept for this section How has grassroots action improved solid and hazardous waste management in the United States What is environmental justice and how well has it been applied in locating and cleaning up hazardous waste sites in the United States What are three factors that discourage recycling What are three ways to encourage recycling and reuse Give three examples of how people are saving or making money through reuse, recycling, and composting. Describe regulation of hazardous wastes at the global level through the Basel Convention and the treaty to control persistent organic pollutants (POPs).What is biomimicry What is an industrial ecosystem

Question 11

Explain how and why electronic waste (e-waste) has become a growing solid waste problem.

Question 12

What are this chapter's three big ideas Explain how we could deal with the growing problems of e-waste and other wastes ( Core Case Study ) by applying the six principles of sustainability.

Question 13

Find three items that you regularly use once and then throw away. Are there other reusable items that you could use in place of these disposable items For each item, calculate and compare the cost of using the disposable option for a year versus the cost of using the reusable alternative. Write a brief report summarizing your findings.

Question 14

What are the two key concepts for this section Distinguish among solid waste , industrial solidwaste , municipal solid waste (MSW) , and hazardous (toxic) waste , and give an example of each. Summarize the types and sources of solid waste generated in the United States and explain what happens to it. What is garbology

Question 15

Do you think that you could consume less by refusing to buy some of the things you regularly buy If so, what are three of those things Do you think that this is something you ought to do Explain your reasoning.

Question 16

What is the key concept for this section Distinguish among waste management , waste reduction , and integrated waste management. Summarize the priorities that prominent scientists believe we should use for dealing with solid waste and compare them to actual practices in the United States. Distinguish among refusing , reducing , reusing , and recycling in dealing with the solid wastes we produce. Why are the first three Rs preferred from an environmental standpoint What is composting List six ways in which industries and communities can reduce resource use, waste, and pollution.

Question 17

A company called Changing World Technologies has built a pilot plant to test a process it has developed for converting a mixture of discarded computers, old tires, turkey bones and feathers, and other wastes into oil by mimicking and speeding up natural processes for converting biomass into oil. Explain why this recycling process, if it turns out to be technologically and economically feasible, could lead to increased waste production.

Question 18

What is the key concept for this section Explain why refusing, reducing, reusing, and recycling are so important and give examples of each. List five ways to reuse various items.

Question 19

Would you oppose having (a) a hazardous waste landfill, (b) a waste treatment plant, (c) a deepinjection well, or (d) an incinerator in your community For each of these facilities, explain your answer. If you oppose having such disposal facilities in your community, how do you believe the hazardous waste generated in your community should be managed

Question 20

Distinguish between primary (closed-loop) recycling and secondary recycling. What are three important steps that must occur for any recycling program to work What are some benefits of composting What is the benefit of having households and businesses separate their trash into recyclable categories What is the fee-per-bag approach Explain how paper and some plastics are being recycled. What are bioplastics What are the major advantages and disadvantages of recycling

Question 21

How does your school dispose of its solid and hazardous wastes Does it have a recycling program How well does it work Does your school encourage reuse If so, how Does it have a hazardous waste collection system If so, describe it. List three ways in which you would improve your school's waste-reduction and management systems.