Waste VocabHigh waste approachUnavoidable product of economic growthdealt with by burying, burning, or shippingWASTE MANAGEMENT

Low waste approachWaste can be potential resourceHarmful substances shouldnt be usedWASTE PREVENTION

LandfillsLeachate

Methane gas recovery

Liners

ReuseDrink containers

Lunch bags

Grocery bags

Tupperware

ReducePay as you throwPay for the amount of trash you throw away instead of a monthly/annual feeRecycling is taken away free

3M Pollution Pays ProgramRedesign equipment, fewer hazardous materials, recycled chemical outputs, made nonpolluting productsSaved over $750 million in waste disposal costs

ReducePackaging

Make products last longer

Precycling do I really need this?

RecyclePrimary Closed loopCreates products of the same type

SecondaryOpen loopConverted into new products

CompostRich in organic matter and soil nutrientsMicroorganisms break down waste

MRFs materials recovery facility

Separates trash from materials that can be recycledRecycles or burns remaining combustible wasteProblems:ExpensiveEnergy to separate trashMust have large input of garbageToxic pollutants

http://www.recyclebank.com/recycling

Source separation

Separate trash from recyclables at home or business

Advantages:Little pollutionModerate operating costs and more jobsLess energyProblems:Rely on people to correctly separateHard to compete with MRFs

Plastics

VersatilityFlexible or rigid; transparent or opaque.

Look like leather, wood, or silk.

Made into toys or heart valves.

The basic raw materials for plastic are petroleum and/or natural gas. These fossil fuels are sometimes combined with other elements, such as oxygen or chlorine, to make different types of plastic.

What to do with my soda bottle?Throw it in the trash (Landfill)Recycle it and reuse it!Incinerate it for energy

1 PET Polyethylene Terephthalate Two-liter beverage bottles, mouthwash bottles, boil-in-bag pouches.

2 HDPE High Density Polyethylene

Milk jugs, trash bags, detergent bottles.

3 PVC Polyvinyl Chloride

Cooking oil bottles, packaging around meat

Burning PVC plastic, which contains 57% chlorine when pure, forms dioxins, a highly toxic group of chemicals that build up in the food chain.

4 LDPE Low Density Polyethylene Grocery bags, produce bags, food wrap, bread bags

5 PP Polypropylene

Yogurt containers, shampoo bottles, straws, margarine tubs, diapers.

6 PS Polystyrene

Hot beverage cups, take-home boxes, egg cartons, meat trays, cd cases.

7 OtherAll other types of plastics or packaging made from more than one type of plastic.

Not Economical In recent years, several plastics recycling companies have closed their doors. They claimed they could not sell their products at a price that would allow them to stay in business.Thanks to the relatively low cost of petroleum, the price of virgin plastic is so inexpensive that recycled plastic cannot compete. The price of virgin resin is about 40 percent lower than that of recycled resin.

Plastic Energy!Stored energy - made from fossil fuels.

Contain as much energy as petroleum or natural gasmuch more energy than other types of garbage.

an ideal fuel for waste-to-energy plants.

Because recycled plastic is more expensive, people arent exactly lining up to buy it. Surveys conducted by Procter & Gamble and others show that while most people expect their plastic to be recycled, they wont go out of their way or pay a few cents more to buy a bottle made of recycled plastic. Recyclers say plastics recycling wont be profitable until we close the loop by creating more demand for recycled plastics.

Paper or Plastic?20-40% less E to manufacture plastic1 truckload of plastic = 7 truckloads of paper

http://www.eia.doe.gov/kids/energyfacts/saving/recycling/solidwaste/plastics.html 8/24/08*Poly(ethylene terephthalate) can be made in the laboratory from the monomers ethylene glycol and terephthalic acid. However, the polymer is often made industrially using dimethyl terephthalate instead of terephthalic acid. In this case, the by-product of the reaction is methanol rather than water. *