Solid and Hazardous

Waste

• Any solid unwanted material

• U.S. produces 11,000,000,000 tons per yr.

The Solid Waste ProblemThe Solid Waste Problem

• Open dumps

• Ocean Dumping

• Landfills

• Exporting

• Incinerating

Options for Disposal

Open Dump• Common in developing countries,

Illegal in developed countries.• Drop off trash

Dump in Chimalhuacán , Mexico

Kids working in a dump in Tegucigalpa , Honduras

Problems with Open Dumps

• Disease!• Rodent problems

• Groundwater pollution• Organisms eat trash sick

Sanitary Landfills

1) Dig a giant hole2) Line hole with plastic liner3) Place solid waste in hole

4) Cover each day with 6” soil.• Only NEWER ones have lining

(15%)• Possible leakage to

groundwater if liner rips.

• Bacteria break down solid waste methane.

• Pipes suck out methane and is burned to create electricity.

Disposal by Incineration• AKA “Waste-to-Energy”

• Trash is burned heat is used to generate electricity

• 1000 plants in world (110 in US)

Incinerator Problems

• CO, PM, & heavy metals released• Control devices must be installed;

scrubbers/electrostatic precipitators, $$$• Ash produced landfills

Ocean Dumpi

ng

• 55,000,000 lbs of trash are dumped in sea every yr.

• 300,000 lbs of fishing gear.

Pacific Trash Gyre-Urban

Runoff

Resource Conservation and

Recovery Act

• Federal law in U.S. governing the disposal of solid and hazardous

wastes.

• “Cradle to grave” tracking on hazardous materials.

Integrated Waste Management

• Variety of methods to minimize waste (3 R’s= Reduce, Reuse,

Recycle)

Reducing Waste

• Reduce consumption

• Reduce packaging

• Trash taxes

• Photo/biodegradable plastics

• Refillable Bottles • Use fabric bags for groceries• Reuse car parts, motor oil etc.

Reuse

5 cents off/ bag

TJ’s: Bring bags back

25 $ raffle

Corona Factory, Mexico

Recycle• Turning discarded

materials into new materials.

• Pros: reduces virgin resource use, frees up landfill space,

less deforestation,

less habitat loss

• Cons: Expensive for cities to start, trucks create CO2, more expensive

products. Recycling plants create CO2 Global Warming

GIRL ALERT!• M.A.C make-up

• Bring in 6 old M.A.C containers and receive 1 free lip gloss, lipstick, or eye shadow!

Recycled Materials

• Glass bottles

• Aluminum Cans (2/3 are recycled, non-renewable resource)

• Paper

–Low grade

–Requires bleach to de-ink