Origin and types of waste

WASTE MANAGEMENT AND TECHNOLOGY

Martin Kubal

Institute of Chemical Technology in Prague

What is waste ?

Words to describe waste

three categories of terms:

1) loss / uselessness

(déchet, refuse, garbage, rifiuti, residuo, Abfall)

2) dirty or repulsive nature of material

(immondice, immondizia, ordure)

3) material that makes up the waste

(boues, spazzatura, Müll, Schmutz, rubish)

Earliest civilizations

- Both total and unit amounts of wastes produced by human

population were generally very small (low population densities,

insignificant exploitation of natural resources).

- Common wastes produced: ashes, human + animal + agricultural

wastes (all biodegradable) → minimum environmental impact.

- Principles of today´s waste treatment processes already known in

the urbanized areas (landfills, incineration, composting, recycling).

- Principles of modern waste management already known and

applied.

Ancient Rome

Ancient Rome was the first civilization to create an organized waste collection. To handle the piles of waste left on the streets, teams of sanitation workers shoveled the materials into horse-drawn wagons. The collection team transported the refuse to a pit located either outside the city gates or at some distance from the community.

Rome was a victim of plagues in 23 BCE and 65, 79 and 162 CE. The Romans did not yet fully grasp the connection between waste and infection deseases.

The population of Rome grew to over 1.25 million. At this point municipal wastes could no longer be handled adequately. Some historicians have suggested that the intense odor of these wastes may have driven the aristocracy from the city resulting in decentralization of power.

Imperial Rome was supplied with large quantities of high quality water. Waste was

frequently emptied into street-side openings to the Roman sewers. The sewers

carried off sewage, urban runoff, and drainage water together.

Middle age period

With the fall of the Roman Empire came the collapse of any semblance of

order and discipline that had been instituted by the imposition of laws and

the presence of an organized, active military. Equally significant were the

loss of technical knowledge and the science of basic hygiene. As a result,

from the Dark Ages through the Renaissance, no organized method of

waste disposal is documented, with street dumping among the most

common practices.

As the population in Europe swelled and became urbanized, the impact of

wastes became more acute.

In London each household established its own waste „heap“ outdoors. It

was unsafe to burn wastes within the city - wastes remained in place.

Paris and some German cities required that wagons, which had brought

goods into the city must depart with a load of wastes to be deposited in the

countryside.

- Total and unit amounts of waste, as well as types of waste, practically the same as in antique.

- Quality of waste management in urbanized localities much lower compared to antique period*.

- Poor waste management in many big cities → significant reduction in population through widespread diseases (plague, cholera, typhoid fever).

* Craig Taylor: The Disposal of Human Waste: A comparison between Ancient

Rome and Medieval London (Past Imperfect, Vol. 11, 2005, pp.53-72)

Middle age period

City residents disposed of waste in one of two ways - they dumped it onto the

unpaved city streets, or contained it in cesspits at the lower level of buildings. One of

three things subsequently happened to it. Much of what ended upon the street was

eaten by the pigs and other livestock that freely roamed the city. A good deal of it

was simply absorbed into the earth, creating a rich and fragrant mud. The excess

waste from cesspits, as well as some of the rich mud, was collected and used as

fertilizer, both within and outside the city.

Renaissance and baroque period

- Total and unit amounts of wastes similar to prior periods.

Structure of waste practically unchanged.

- Development in natural and technical science provided deeper

view into the relationship between waste management and human

health or mortality → new requirements for cities development and

expansion.

Industrial revolution

- Amount of waste significantly increased due to more intensive

processing of raw materials and demographic growth.

- New type of waste from industry.

- Urban organic waste became valuable fertilizers for growing

agriculture production.

- Demolition waste required for urban development.

Elevation of the ground level resulting from accumulation of urban waste. Muddy

areas were changed into developable land by deposition of demolition rubble and

other solid waste.

modern

modern

modern

Contemporary definition of waste

Waste is an unavoidable by-product of most human

activity.

"Wastes" are substances or objects which are disposed of or

are intended to be disposed of or are required to be disposed

of by the provisions of national law. (Basel Convention)

"Waste" shall mean any substance or object in the categories

set out in Annex I which the holder discards or intends or is

required to discard (EU Council Directive 75/442/EEC).

Types of waste

according to origin:

- municipal waste

- industrial waste

- agricultural waste

- special types of waste (hazardous, mining, construction

and demolition, radioactive, clinical ….)

- Over 1.8 billion tonnes (1 800 000 000 t) of waste are

generated each year in Europe. This equals to 3.5 tonnes per

person.

Types of waste – municipal waste

Municipal waste is generated by households, commercial activities

and other sources whose activities are similar to those of

households and commercial enterprises.

Municipal waste is made up to residual waste, bulky waste,

secondary materials from separate collection (e.g., paper and

glass), household hazardous waste, street sweepings and litter

collections. It is made up of materials such as paper, cardboard,

metals, textiles, organics (food and garden waste) and wood.

Municipal waste represents approximately 14% of all waste

generated.

Types of waste – industrial waste

Industrial waste comprises many different waste streams arising

from a wide range of processes – such as production of basic

metals, food industry, wood processing, paper production.

About 40 million tonnes of industrial waste is generated in Europe

every year.

Waste from the manufacturing sector continues to rise, despite

national and international declarations to reduce waste from

manufacturing industry, to introduce cleaner technologies and other

waste minimisation initiatives and to work towards manufacturing

practices that are sustainable in the long term.

Types of waste – agricultural waste

Agricultural waste is composed of organic wastes (animal excreta

in the form of slurries and farmyard manures, spent mushroom

compost, soiled water and silage effluent) and waste such as

plastic, scrap machinery, fencing, pesticides, waste oils and

veterinary medicines.

There are a number of potential environmental impacts associated

with agricultural waste if it is not properly managed not least of

which is the run-off of nutrients to surface waters which can cause

over enrichment of the water body. Leaking and improper storage

of agricultural waste can also pose a serious threat to the

environment should the waste reach surface waters.

Special wastes – hazardous waste

Hazardous waste is a waste which may pose a substantial present or

potential hazard to human health or the environment when

impropoerly treated, stored or disposed of, or otherwise mismanaged

or cause or contribute to an increase in mortality, or an increase in

irreversible or incapacitating illness.

Hazardous waste represents approximately 1% of all waste

generated in Europe..

Hazardous waste is typically the subject of special legislation and

requires special management arrangements to ensure that

hazardous waste is kept separate from and treated differently to non-

hazardous waste.

Special wastes – minig waste

Mining waste arises from prospecting, extraction, treatment and

storage of minerals.

Mining and quarrying activities give rise to the single biggest waste

stream at 29% of the total quantity of waste generated in Europe. It

is made up of topsoil, overburden, waste rock, waste from the

processing of the ore body (tailings) which may also include process

water, process chemicals and portions of the remaining materials.

Large areas of land are used for depositing mining waste and this

activity has the potential to cause environmental pollution if not

properly controlled.

Special wastes – construction and demolition waste

It arises from activities such as the construction of buildings and civil

infrastructure, total or partial demolition of buildings and civil

infrastructure, road planning and maintenance.

Construction and demolition waste makes up approximately 25% of

all waste generated in the EU with a large proportion arising from

the demolition and renovation of old buildings. It is made up of

numerous materials including concrete, bricks, wood, glass, metals,

plastic, solvents, asbestos and excavated soil, many of which can

be recycled in one way or another.

Construction and demolition waste has been identified as a priority

waste stream by the European Union.

Questions for exam

- First recorded landfill?

- In which time period composting came into practice?

- First waste incinerator?

- Definition of waste?

- Total average amount of all the waste generated per person

and year in Europe?