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Title: Solid and Hazardous Waste


1
Chapter 22
  • Solid and Hazardous Waste

2
Chapter Overview Questions
  • What is solid waste and how much do we produce?
  • How can we produce less solid waste?
  • What are the advantages and disadvantages of
    reusing recycled materials?
  • What are the advantages and disadvantages of
    burning or burying solid waste?
  • What is hazardous waste and how can we deal with
    it?

3
Chapter Overview Questions (contd)
  • What can we do to reduce exposure to lead and
    mercury?
  • How can we make the transition to a more
    sustainable low-waste society?

4
Updates Online
  • The latest references for topics covered in this
    section can be found at the book companion
    website. Log in to the books e-resources page at
    www.thomsonedu.com to access InfoTrac articles.
  • InfoTrac Computer waste can be a toxic mess. St.
    Louis Post-Dispatch (St. Louis, MO), June 8,
    2006.
  • InfoTrac The Greening of America. Newsweek
    International, August 14, 2006.
  • InfoTrac Unwanted electronics. Tam Harbert.
    Electronic Business, April 2006 v32 i4 pS-6(5).
  • Department of Health and Human Services ToxFaqs
  • Electronics Recycling
  • Science Daily Ashes To Ashes, Dust To Dust
    Litter Made To Degrade

5
Video The Throw-Away Society
  • This video clip is available in CNN Today Videos
    for Environmental Science, 2004, Volume VII.
    Instructors, contact your local sales
    representative to order this volume, while
    supplies last.

6
Core Case Study Love Canal There Is No Away
  • Between 1842-1953, Hooker Chemical sealed
    multiple chemical wastes into steel drums and
    dumped them into an old canal excavation (Love
    Canal).
  • In 1953, the canal was filled and sold to Niagara
    Falls school board for 1.
  • The company inserted a disclaimer denying
    liability for the wastes.

7
Core Case Study Love Canal There Is No Away
  • In 1957, Hooker Chemical warned the school not to
    disturb the site because of the toxic waste.
  • In 1959 an elementary school, playing fields and
    homes were built disrupting the clay cap covering
    the wastes.
  • In 1976, residents complained of chemical smells
    and chemical burns from the site.

8
Core Case Study Love Canal There Is No Away
  • President Jimmy Carter declared Love Canal a
    federal disaster area.
  • The area was abandoned in 1980 (left).

Figure 22-1
9
Core Case Study Love Canal There Is No Away
  • It still is a controversy as to how much the
    chemicals at Love Canal injured or caused disease
    to the residents.
  • Love Canal sparked creation of the Superfund law,
    which forced polluters to pay for cleaning up
    abandoned toxic waste dumps.

10
WASTING RESOURCES
  • Solid waste any unwanted or discarded material
    we produce that is not a liquid or gas.
  • Municipal solid waste (MSW) produce directly
    from homes.
  • Industrial solid waste produced indirectly by
    industries that supply people with goods and
    services.
  • Hazardous (toxic) waste threatens human health
    or the environment because it is toxic,
    chemically active, corrosive or flammable.

11
WASTING RESOURCES
  • Solid wastes polluting a river in Jakarta,
    Indonesia. The man in the boat is looking for
    items to salvage or sell.

Figure 22-3
12
WASTING RESOURCES
  • The United States produces about a third of the
    worlds solid waste and buries more than half of
    it in landfills.
  • About 98.5 is industrial solid waste.
  • The remaining 1.5 is MSW.
  • About 55 of U.S. MSW is dumped into landfills,
    30 is recycled or composted, and 15 is burned
    in incinerators.

13
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14
Electronic Waste A Growing Problem
  • E-waste consists of toxic and hazardous waste
    such as PVC, lead, mercury, and cadmium.
  • The U.S. produces almost half of the world's
    e-waste but only recycles about 10 of it.

Figure 22-4
15
INTEGRATED WASTE MANAGEMENT
  • We can manage the solid wastes we produce and
    reduce or prevent their production.

Figure 22-5
16

Second Priority
Last Priority
First Priority
Primary Pollution and Waste Prevention
Waste Management
Secondary Pollution and Waste Prevention
Treat waste to reduce toxicity
Change industrial process to eliminate
use of harmful chemicals
Reuse products
Repair products
Incinerate waste
Bury waste in landfills
Recycle
Purchase different products
Compost
Release waste into environment for
dispersal or dilution
Buy reusable recyclable products
Use less of a harmful product
Reduce packaging and materials in products
Make products that last longer and are
recyclable, reusable, or easy to repair
Fig. 22-5, p. 523
17
Solutions Reducing Solid Waste
  • Refuse to buy items that we really dont need.
  • Reduce consume less and live a simpler and less
    stressful life by practicing simplicity.
  • Reuse rely more on items that can be used over
    and over.
  • Repurpose use something for another purpose
    instead of throwing it away.
  • Recycle paper, glass, cans, plasticsand buy
    items made from recycled materials.

18

What Can You Do?
Solid Waste
  • Follow the five Rs of resource use Refuse,
    Reduce,
  • Reuse, Repurpose, and Recycle.

Ask yourself whether you really need a
particular item.
Rent, borrow, or barter goods and services when
you can.
Buy things that are reusable, recyclable, or
compostable, and be sure to reuse, recycle, and
compost them.
Do not use throwaway paper and plastic plates,
cups and eating utensils, and other disposable
items when reusable or refillable versions are
available.
Refill and reuse a bottled water container with
tap water.
Use e-mail in place of conventional paper mail.
Read newspapers and magazines online.
Buy products in concentrated form whenever
possible.
Fig. 22-6, p. 524
19
REUSE
  • Reusing products is an important way to reduce
    resource use, waste, and pollution in developed
    countries.
  • Reusing can be hazardous in developing countries
    for poor who scavenge in open dumps.
  • They can be exposed to toxins or infectious
    diseases.

20
How People Reuse Materials
  • Children looking for materials to sell in an open
    dump near Manila in the Philippines.

Figure 22-2
21
Case Study Using Refillable Containers
  • Refilling and reusing containers uses fewer
    resources and less energy, produces less waste,
    saves money, and creates jobs.
  • In Denmark and Canadas Price Edwards Island
    there is a ban on all beverage containers that
    cannot be reused.
  • In Finland 95 of soft drink and alcoholic
    beverages are refillable (Germany 75).

22
REUSE
  • Reducing resource waste energy consumption for
    different types of 350-ml (12-oz) beverage
    containers.

Figure 22-7
23

Aluminum can, used once
Steel can, used once
Recycled steel can
Glass drink bottle, used once
Recycled aluminum can
Recycled glass drink bottle
Refillable drink bottle, used 10 times
Energy (thousands of kilocalories)
Fig. 22-7, p. 525
24
How Would You Vote?
  • To conduct an instant in-class survey using a
    classroom response system, access JoinIn Clicker
    Content from the PowerLecture main menu for
    Living in the Environment.
  • Do you support banning all beverage containers
    that cannot be reused as Denmark has done?
  • a. No. Reused containers may be unsanitary.
  • b. Yes. A ban will save energy, money, and
    resources and result in a cleaner environment.

25
Solutions Other Ways to Reuse Things
  • We can use reusable shopping bags, food
    containers, and shipping pallets, and borrow
    tools from tool libraries.
  • Many countries in Europe and Asia charge shoppers
    for plastic bags.

26
How Would You Vote?
  • To conduct an instant in-class survey using a
    classroom response system, access JoinIn Clicker
    Content from the PowerLecture main menu for
    Living in the Environment.
  • Should consumers have to pay for plastic or paper
    bags at grocery and other stores?
  • a. No. Instead, give discounts to people who
    bring their own bags.
  • b. Yes. Making consumers buy their bags will
    reduce waste.

27

What Can You Do?
Reuse
Buy beverages in refillable glass containers
instead of cans or throwaway bottles.
Use reusable plastic or metal lunchboxes.
Carry sandwiches and store food in the
refrigerator in reusable containers instead of
wrapping them in aluminum foil or plastic wrap
Use rechargeable batteries and recycle them
when their useful life is over.
Carry groceries and other items in a reusable
basket, a canvas or string bag, or a small cart.
Use reusable sponges and washable cloth
napkins, dishtowels, and handkerchiefs
instead of throwaway paper ones.
Buy used furniture, computers, cars, and other
items.
Give or sell items you no longer use to others.
Fig. 22-8, p. 526
28
RECYCLING
  • Primary (closed loop) recycling materials are
    turned into new products of the same type.
  • Secondary recycling materials are converted into
    different products.
  • Used tires shredded and converted into rubberized
    road surface.
  • Newspapers transformed into cellulose insulation.

29
RECYCLING
  • There is a disagreement over whether to mix urban
    wastes and send them to centralized resource
    recovery plants or to sort recyclables for
    collection and sale to manufacturers as raw
    materials.
  • To promote separation of wastes, 4,000
    communities in the U.S. have implemented
    pay-as-you-throw or fee-per-bag waste collection
    systems.

30
How Would You Vote?
  • To conduct an instant in-class survey using a
    classroom response system, access JoinIn Clicker
    Content from the PowerLecture main menu for
    Living in the Environment.
  • Should households and businesses be charged for
    the amount of mixed waste picked up but not
    charged for pickup of materials separated for
    recycling?
  • a. No. It would encourage illegal dumping and
    burning of wastes.
  • b. Yes. Consumer source separation saves money
    and makes consumers more conscientious.

31
RECYCLING
  • Composting biodegradable organic waste mimics
    nature by recycling plant nutrients to the soil.
  • Recycling paper has a number of environmental
    (reduction in pollution and deforestation, less
    energy expenditure) and economic benefits and is
    easy to do.

32
RECYCLING
  • Recycling many plastics is chemically and
    economically difficult.
  • Many plastics are hard to isolate from other
    wastes.
  • Recovering individual plastic resins does not
    yield much material.
  • The cost of virgin plastic resins in low than
    recycled resins due to low fossil fuel costs.
  • There are new technologies that are making
    plastics biodegradable.

33
How Would You Vote?
  • To conduct an instant in-class survey using a
    classroom response system, access JoinIn Clicker
    Content from the PowerLecture main menu for
    Living in the Environment.
  • Should we place much greater emphasis on
    recycling with the goal of recycling at least 60
    of the municipal solid waste that we produce?
  • a. No. Recycling programs should be market driven
    rather than setting unrealistically high goals
    that will either fail or require support from
    already overtaxed citizens.
  • b. Yes. High recycling rates will reduce
    pollution and save energy.

34
RECYCLING
  • Reuse and recycling are hindered by prices of
    goods that do not reflect their harmful
    environmental impacts, too few government
    subsidies and tax breaks, and price fluctuations.

35
How Would You Vote?
  • To conduct an instant in-class survey using a
    classroom response system, access JoinIn Clicker
    Content from the PowerLecture main menu for
    Living in the Environment.
  • Should governments pass laws requiring
    manufacturers to take back and reuse or recycle
    all packaging waste, appliances, electronic
    equipment, and motor vehicles at the end of their
    useful lives?
  • a. No. These regulations would increase prices
    for consumers.
  • b. Yes. The regulations would promote the
    manufacturing of more environmentally friendly
    products and further protect the environment.

36

Trade-Offs
Recycling
Disadvantages
Advantages
Reduces air and water pollution
Does not save landfill space in areas with ample
land
Saves energy
Reduces mineral demand
May lose money for items such as glass and most
plastic
Reduces greenhouse gas emissions
Reduces solid waste production and disposal
Reduces profits from landfills and incinerators
Helps protect biodiversity
Can save money for items such as paper, metals,
and some plastics
Source separation is inconvenient for some people
Important part of economy
Fig. 22-9, p. 529
37
BURNING AND BURYING SOLID WASTE
  • Globally, MSW is burned in over 1,000 large
    waste-to-energy incinerators, which boil water to
    make steam for heating water, or space, or for
    production of electricity.
  • Japan and a few European countries incinerate
    most of their MSW.

38
Burning Solid Waste
  • Waste-to-energy incinerator with pollution
    controls that burns mixed solid waste.

Figure 22-10
39

Electricity
Smokestack
Turbine
Steam
Crane
Generator
Wet scrubber
Furnace
Boiler
Electrostatic precipitator
Waste pit
Water added
Bottom ash
Dirty water
Conveyor
Fly ash
Conventional landfill
Waste treatment
Hazardous waste landfill
Fig. 22-10, p. 530
40

Trade-Offs
Incineration
Advantages
Disadvantages
Expensive to build
Reduces trash volume
Costs more than short-distance hauling to
landfills
Less need for landfills
Difficult to site because of citizen opposition
Low water pollution
Concentrates hazardous substances into ash for
burial or use as landfill cover
Some air pollution
Older or poorly managed facilities can release
large amounts of air pollution
Output approach that encourages waste production
Sale of energy reduces cost
Modern controls reduce air pollution
Can compete with recycling for burnable materials
such as newspaper
Some facilities recover and sell metals
Fig. 22-11, p. 531
41
How Would You Vote?
  • To conduct an instant in-class survey using a
    classroom response system, access JoinIn Clicker
    Content from the PowerLecture main menu for
    Living in the Environment.
  • Do the advantages of incinerating solid waste
    outweigh the disadvantages?
  • a. Yes. Incineration is a sanitary and effective
    method for eliminating infectious and organic
    wastes.
  • b. No. Incineration can generate toxic air
    pollution and ashes.

42
Burying Solid Waste
  • Most of the worlds MSW is buried in landfills
    that eventually are expected to leak toxic
    liquids into the soil and underlying aquifers.
  • Open dumps are fields or holes in the ground
    where garbage is deposited and sometimes covered
    with soil. Mostly used in developing countries.
  • Sanitary landfills solid wastes are spread out
    in thin layers, compacted and covered daily with
    a fresh layer of clay or plastic foam.

43

When landfill is full, layers of soil and
clay seal in trash
Topsoil
Electricity generator building
Sand
Clay
Methane storage and compressor building
Leachate treatment system
Garbage
Probes to detect methane leaks
Pipes collect explosive methane as used as fuel
to generate electricity
Methane gas recovery well
Leachate storage tank
Compacted solid waste
Groundwater monitoring well
Garbage
Leachate pipes
Leachate pumped up to storage tank for safe
disposal
Sand
Synthetic liner
Leachate monitoring well
Sand
Groundwater
Clay and plastic lining to prevent leaks
pipes collect leachate from bottom of landfill
Clay
Subsoil
Fig. 22-12, p. 532
44

Trade-Offs
Sanitary Landfills
Advantages
Disadvantages
Noise and traffic
No open burning
Dust
Little odor
Air pollution from toxic gases and volatile
organic compounds
Low groundwater pollution if sited properly
Releases greenhouse gases (methane and
CO2) unless they are collected
Can be built quickly
Low operating costs
Groundwater contamination
Can handle large amounts of waste
Slow decomposition of wastes
Filled land can be used for other purposes
Discourages recycling, reuse, and waste reduction
Eventually leaks and can contaminate groundwater
No shortage of landfill space in many areas
Fig. 22-13, p. 533
45
How Would You Vote?
  • To conduct an instant in-class survey using a
    classroom response system, access JoinIn Clicker
    Content from the PowerLecture main menu for
    Living in the Environment.
  • Do the advantages of burying solid waste in
    sanitary landfills outweigh the disadvantages?
  • a. No. Ultimately, landfills leak and pollute the
    environment.
  • b. Yes. They have relatively low operating costs,
    can store large amounts of waste, and are
    designed to prevent pollution.

46
Case Study What Should We Do with Used Tires?
  • We face a dilemma in deciding what to so with
    hundreds of millions of discarded tires.

Figure 22-14
47
HAZARDOUS WASTE
  • Hazardous waste is any discarded solid or liquid
    material that is toxic, ignitable, corrosive, or
    reactive enough to explode or release toxic
    fumes.
  • The two largest classes of hazardous wastes are
    organic compounds (e.g. pesticides, PCBs,
    dioxins) and toxic heavy metals (e.g. lead,
    mercury, arsenic).

48

What Harmful Chemicals Are in Your Home?
Cleaning
Gardening
Disinfectants
Pesticides
Drain, toilet, and window cleaners
Weed killers
Ant and rodent killers
Spot removers
Septic tank cleaners
Flea powders
Paint
Latex and oil-based paints
Paint thinners, solvents, and strippers
Automotive
Stains, varnishes, and lacquers
Gasoline
Used motor oil
Wood preservatives
Antifreeze
Artist paints and inks
Battery acid
General
Solvents
Dry-cell batteries (mercury and cadmium)
Brake and transmission fluid
Rust inhibitor and rust remover
Glues and cements
Fig. 22-15, p. 534
49
Hazardous Waste Regulations in the United States
  • Two major federal laws regulate the management
    and disposal of hazardous waste in the U.S.
  • Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)
  • Cradle-to-the-grave system to keep track waste.
  • Comprehensive Environmental Response,
    Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA)
  • Commonly known as Superfund program.

50
Hazardous Waste Regulations in the United States
  • The Superfund law was designed to have polluters
    pay for cleaning up abandoned hazardous waste
    sites.
  • Only 70 of the cleanup costs have come from the
    polluters, the rest comes from a trust fund
    financed until 1995 by taxes on chemical raw
    materials and oil.

51
How Would You Vote?
  • To conduct an instant in-class survey using a
    classroom response system, access JoinIn Clicker
    Content from the PowerLecture main menu for
    Living in the Environment.
  • Should the U.S. Congress reinstate the
    polluter-pays principle by using taxes from
    chemical, oil, mining, and smelting companies to
    reestablish a fund for cleaning up existing and
    new Superfund sites?
  • a. No. All taxpayers, not certain industries,
    should pay for cleaning up sites polluted in the
    past.
  • b. Yes. Funding for Superfund is needed and
    waste-generating industries rather than ordinary
    citizens should fund it.

52
DEALING WITH HAZARDOUS WASTE
  • We can produce less hazardous waste and recycle,
    reuse, detoxify, burn, and bury what we continue
    to produce.

Figure 22-16
53

Produce Less Waste
Manipulate processes to eliminate or
reduce production
Recycle and reuse
Convert to Less Hazardous or Nonhazardous
Substances
Chemical, physical, and biological treatment
Ocean and atmospheric assimilation
Land treatment
Thermal treatment
Incineration
Put in Perpetual Storage
Arid region unsaturated zone
Waste piles
Salt formations
Surface impoundments
Underground injection
Landfill
Fig. 22-16, p. 536
54
Conversion to Less Hazardous Substances
  • Physical Methods using charcoal or resins to
    separate out harmful chemicals.
  • Chemical Methods using chemical reactions that
    can convert hazardous chemicals to less harmful
    or harmless chemicals.

55
Conversion to Less Hazardous Substances
  • Biological Methods
  • Bioremediation bacteria or enzymes help destroy
    toxic and hazardous waste or convert them to more
    benign substances.
  • Phytoremediation involves using natural or
    genetically engineered plants to absorb, filter
    and remove contaminants from polluted soil and
    water.

56

Inorganic metal contaminants
Organic contaminants
Radioactive contaminants
Poplar tree
Brake fern
Willow tree
Sunflower
Indian mustard
Landfill
Oil spill
Polluted groundwater in
Polluted leachate
Decontaminated water out
Soil
Soil
Groundwater
Groundwater
Phytostabilization Plants such as willow trees
and poplars can absorb chemicals and keep them
from reaching groundwater or nearby surface water.
Rhizofiltration Roots of plants such as
sunflowers with dangling roots on ponds or in
green- houses can absorb pollutants such as
radioactive strontium-90 and cesium-137 and
various organic chemicals.
Phytoextraction Roots of plants such as Indian
mustard and brake ferns can absorb toxic metals
such as lead, arsenic, and others and store
them in their leaves. Plants can then be
recycled or harvested and incinerated.
Phytodegradation Plants such as poplars can
absorb toxic organic chemicals and break them
down into less harmful compounds which they
store or release slowly into the air.
57

Trade-Offs
Phytoremediation
Advantages
Disadvantages
Easy to establish
Slow (can take several growing seasons)
Inexpensive
Effective only at depth plant roots can reach
Can reduce material dumped into landfills
Some toxic organic chemicals may evaporate from
plant leaves
Produces little air pollution compared to
incineration
Some plants can become toxic to animals
Low energy use
Fig. 22-18, p. 538
58
How Would You Vote?
  • To conduct an instant in-class survey using a
    classroom response system, access JoinIn Clicker
    Content from the PowerLecture main menu for
    Living in the Environment.
  • Do the advantages of using phytoremediation to
    detoxify hazardous waste outweigh the
    disadvantages?
  • a. No. The process is often too slow and cannot
    remove contaminants below the root zones of the
    remediating plants.
  • b. Yes. Plants can be effective in removing
    organics, radionuclides, and inorganic
    contaminants from soil and water.

59
Conversion to Less Hazardous Substances
  • Incineration heating many types of hazardous
    waste to high temperatures up to 2000 C in
    an incinerator can break them down and convert
    them to less harmful or harmless chemicals.

60
Conversion to Less Hazardous Substances
  • Plasma Torch passing electrical current through
    gas to generate an electric arc and very high
    temperatures can create plasma.
  • The plasma process can be carried out in a torch
    which can decompose liquid or solid hazardous
    organic material.

61

Trade-Offs
Plasma Arc
Advantages
Disadvantages
Small
High cost
Produces CO2 and CO
Mobile. Easy to move to different sites
Can release particulates and chlorine gas
Can vaporize and release toxic metals and
radioactive elements
Produces no toxic ash
Fig. 22-19, p. 538
62
How Would You Vote?
  • To conduct an instant in-class survey using a
    classroom response system, access JoinIn Clicker
    Content from the PowerLecture main menu for
    Living in the Environment.
  • Do the advantages of using a plasma torch to
    detoxify hazardous waste outweigh the
    disadvantages?
  • a. No. Plasma torches are expensive and the
    combustion byproducts may be harmful to the
    environment and humans.
  • b. Yes. Plasma torches are convenient for
    disposing of hazardous wastes.

63
Long-Term Storage of Hazardous Waste
  • Hazardous waste can be disposed of on or
    underneath the earths surface, but without
    proper design and care this can pollute the air
    and water.
  • Deep-well disposal liquid hazardous wastes are
    pumped under pressure into dry porous rock far
    beneath aquifers.
  • Surface impoundments excavated depressions such
    as ponds, pits, or lagoons into which liners are
    placed and liquid hazardous wastes are stored.

64

Trade-Offs
Deep Underground Wells
Advantages
Disadvantages
Leaks or spills at surface
Safe method if sites are chosen carefully
Leaks from corrosion of well casing
Wastes can be retrieved if problems develop
Existing fractures or earthquakes can allow
wastes to escape into groundwater
Easy to do
Encourages waste production
Low cost
Fig. 22-20, p. 539
65
How Would You Vote?
  • To conduct an instant in-class survey using a
    classroom response system, access JoinIn Clicker
    Content from the PowerLecture main menu for
    Living in the Environment.
  • Do the advantages of deep-well disposal of
    hazardous waste outweigh the disadvantages?
  • a. No. The systems may leak and contaminate
    valuable soils, sediments, and groundwaters.
  • b. Yes. Deep injection wells can be designed to
    permanently remove hazardous wastes from surface
    and near-surface environments.

66

Trade-Offs
Surface Impoundments
Advantages
Disadvantages
Groundwater contamination from leaking liners (or
no lining)
Low construction costs
Low operating costs
Air pollution from volatile organic compounds
Can be built quickly
Overflow from flooding
Wastes can be retrieved if necessary
Disruption and leakage from earthquakes
Can store wastes indefinitely with secure double
liners
Promotes waste production
Fig. 22-21, p. 539
67
How Would You Vote?
  • To conduct an instant in-class survey using a
    classroom response system, access JoinIn Clicker
    Content from the PowerLecture main menu for
    Living in the Environment.
  • Do the advantages of storing hazardous wastes in
    surface impoundments outweigh the disadvantages?
  • a. No. The environment should not be openly
    exposed to liquid hazardous wastes.
  • b. Yes. Surface impoundments are inexpensive
    solutions for at least the temporary storage of
    liquid wastes.

68
Long-Term Storage of Hazardous Waste
  • Long-Term Retrievable Storage Some highly toxic
    materials cannot be detoxified or destroyed.
    Metal drums are used to stored them in areas that
    can be inspected and retrieved.
  • Secure Landfills Sometimes hazardous waste are
    put into drums and buried in carefully designed
    and monitored sites.

69
Secure Hazardous Waste Landfill
  • In the U.S. there are only 23 commercial
    hazardous waste landfills.

Figure 22-22
70

Topsoil
Bulk waste
Gas vent
Plastic cover
Earth
Impervious clay cap
Clay cap
Sand
Impervious clay
Water table
Earth
Leak detection system
Groundwater
Plastic double liner
Double leachate collection system
Reactive wastes in drums
Groundwater monitoring well
Fig. 22-22, p. 540
71

What Can You Do?
Hazardous Waste
Use pesticides in the smallest amount possible.
Use less harmful substances instead of
commercial chemicals for most household
cleaners. For example use liquid ammonia to clean
appliances and windows vinegar to polish metals,
clean surfaces, and remove stains and mildew
baking soda to clean household utensils,
deodorize, and remove stains borax to
remove stains and mildew.
Do not dispose of pesticides, paints,
solvents, oil, antifreeze, or other products
containing hazardous chemicals by flushing them
down the toilet, pouring them down the drain,
burying them, throwing them into the garbage, or
dumping them down storm drains.
Fig. 22-23, p. 540
72
Case Study Lead
  • Lead is especially harmful to children and is
    still used in leaded gasoline and household
    paints in about 100 countries.

Figure 22-24
73

Solutions
Lead Poisoning
Prevention
Control
Phase out leaded gasoline worldwide
Sharply reduce lead emissions from old and new
incinerators
Replace lead pipes and plumbing fixtures
containing lead solder
Phase out waste incineration
Test blood for lead by age 1
Remove leaded paint and lead dust from older
houses and apartments
Ban use of lead solder
Remove lead from TV sets and computer monitors
before incineration or land disposal
Ban use of lead in computer and TV monitors
Test for lead in existing ceramicware used to
serve food
Ban lead glazing for ceramicware used to serve
food
Test existing candles for lead
Wash fresh fruits and vegetables
Ban candles with lead cores
Fig. 22-24, p. 541
74
Case Study Mercury
  • Mercury is released into the environment mostly
    by burning coal and incinerating wastes and can
    build to high levels in some types of fish.

Figure 22-26
75


Solutions
Mercury Pollution
Prevention
Control
Sharply reduce mercury emissions from
coal-burning plants and incinerators
Phase out waste incineration
Remove mercury from coal before it is burned
Tax each unit of mercury emitted by coal-burning
plants and incinerators
Convert coal to liquid or gaseous fuel
Switch from coal to natural gas and renewable
energy resources such as wind, solar cells, and
hydrogen
Collect and recycle mercury-containing electric
switches, relays, and dry-cell batteries
Phase out use of mercury in all products unless
they are recycled
Require labels on all products containing mercury
Fig. 22-26, p. 543
76

AIR
PRECIPITATION
PRECIPITATION
WINDS
WINDS
Hg2 and acids
Hg2 and acids
Hg and SO2
Photo- chemical
Elemental mercury vapor (Hg)
Inorganic mercury and acids (Hg2)
Human sources
Inorganic mercury and acids (Hg2)
Coal- burning plant
Incinerator
Deposition
Runoff of Hg2 and acids
Deposition
WATER
Large fish
Vaporization
BIOMAGNIFICATION IN FOOD CHAIN
Deposition
Small fish
Deposition
Zooplankton
Phytoplankton
Bacteria and acids
Oxidation
Organic mercury (CH3Hg)
Inorganic mercury (Hg2)
Elemental mercury liquid (Hg)
Bacteria
Settles out
Settles out
Settles out
SEDIMENT
Fig. 22-25, p. 542
77
ACHIEVING A LOW-WASTE SOCIETY
  • In the U.S., citizens have kept large numbers of
    incinerators, landfills, and hazardous waste
    treatment plants from being built in their local
    areas.
  • Environmental justice means that everyone is
    entitled to protection from environmental hazards
    without discrimination.

78
Global Outlook International Action to Reduce
Hazardous Waste
  • An international treaty calls for phasing out the
    use of harmful persistent organic pollutants
    (POPs).
  • POPs are insoluble in water and soluble in fat.
  • Nearly every person on earth has detectable
    levels of POPs in their blood.
  • The U.S has not ratified this treaty.

79
Making the Transition to a Low-Waste Society A
New Vision
  • Everything is connected.
  • There is no away for the wastes we produce.
  • Dilution is not always the solution to pollution.
  • The best and cheapest way to deal with wastes are
    reduction and pollution prevention.
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