Municipal waste is disposed of in three different ways. As of 2004 it is estimated that 71 percent is land filled, 16 percent incinerated, and 13 percent recycled. Other wastes that have to be disposed of are nuclear and hazardous wastes. The environmental effects of different waste management solutions will be discussed as well as ideal ways, in my opinion, to dispose of different forms of solid wastes.
Landfills are the most commonly used form of disposing wastes today. It is also a form of disposal that causes many environmental impacts that are in need of addressing. A major effect of landfills is Leachate, a contaminated liquid that percolates through the waste in a landfill and probably the most addressed issue. This contaminated liquid can soak into the ground and cause water contamination according to the Department of Agriculture and Life Sciences at NC State University. Another effect of landfills is air pollution. Not only can air pollution from landfills contribute to acid rain and green house gases but it can also have an impact on the citizens around it. Soil gas migration can cause a four-fold elevation of risk for bladder cancer and leukemia among women reported a study at the New York Health Department’s website.
The second form of waste disposal is incineration. This type of disposal releases many air pollutants to include admium, lead, mercury, dioxin, sulfur dioxide, hydrogen chloride, nitrogen dioxide, and particulate matter according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Gases such as sulfur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide contribute to acid rain and smog. The incinerators mainly contribute to air pollution but the ash left over from burning waste has to be buried in landfills thus contributing to ground pollution too.
The last waste management system is recycling. Recycling consists of processing used or abandoned materials for use in creating new products. This method was created to address issues created from the other two forms of waste management and has a positive impact on the environment. It helps to reduce the amount of waste needed for disposal by making a portion of it available for reuse.
Hazardous and Nuclear waste disposal is a very serious issue. It can cause soil contamin...
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By implementing these programs I feel that waste making it to our landfills will be greatly eliminated. This will allow waste management agencies to focus more energy and time studying other ways of controlling the negative effects of wastes that does make it to landfills. A recycle conscience society can preserve the earth for many generations to come.
Works Cited
Getis, Arthur et al. Introduction to Geography. New York: McGraw Hill, 2004.
New York State Department of Health. Health Department Releases Landfill Study. 21 Aug. 1998. 26 June 2005. < http://www.health.state.ny.us/press/ releases/1998/landfill.html>
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Summaries of Related Solid Waste Incineration Rules. 10 June 2002. 26 June 2005.
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Municipal Solid Waste. 3 June 2005. 25 June 2005.
Zaslow, Sandra. “Health Effects of Drinking Water Contaminants.” North Carolina Cooperative Extension. June 1995. North Carolina State University. 26 June 2005.
US Enviromental Protection Agency. (2010, December 13). Retrieved January 20, 2011, from US EPA Human Health: http://cfpub.epa.gov/eroe/index.cfm?fuseaction=list.listByChapter&ch=49
The problems of landfills have become a bit of an issue in our world today that needs to be addressed. “The U.S. alone there is 3,091
United States Environmental Protection Agency. United States Environmental Protection Agency, n.d. Web. 4 July 2011
b. Another myth about landfills is that they are poisoning the soil and our water supply. Even the EPA, the Environmental Protection Agency, says modern landfills pose little to no risk to humans. Modern landfills are built on a thick foundation of clay and plastic liners. Also, the methane gas produced in biodegradation is often...
The waste incineration benefits us because as we burn the waste it creates energy to heat our homes and generate electricity.
In old batteries, there is a toxic lead that is causing health problems for the Taiwan people who are disposing these batteries (Gay, 12). Space is becoming a landfill from the excess of space flights and the radioactive supplies from nuclear reactors, which could come to our atmosphere and explode (Gay, 13). When businesses run out of space to dump their toxic trash they go to poor nations because they do not have strict safety regulations (Gay, 31). The landfills on Earth are not the only place trash is getting put. The ocean is being trashed with plastic bags, soda can holders, and large fishnets, which are harming dolphins, turtles, sea lions, and others (Gay, 69). Military bases in the U.S have more hazardous waste and are responsible for contamination in soil and waters (Gay, 83). There are other hazards happening because we are throwing away so much stuff that companies have to remake all of those products. Incinerators are places where waste is burned to ashes and if we recycle these can go away. Incinerators cause sulfur dioxide, carbon m...
When we don’t recycle we are putting a bad impact on the environment. When we don’t recycle the landfills fill up and we have to create new landfills. A landfill is a built up mound where your trash is taken (Learn about Landfills). When landfills fill up, new landfills have to be made, which is taking space away from animals and their habitat. Five ways that recycling helps the environment. “1. Recycling reduces pollution. 2. Recycling helps preserve our natural resources. 3. Recycling gives green jobs. 4. Recycling helps create awareness. 5. Recycling saves expenses and resources” (5 Ways Recycling Helps the Planet).
Above all, air pollution is threatening all life on earth. Most of air pollution we cause results from the burning of fossil fuels, such as natural gas, coal, gasoline and oil. Factories contribute greatly to air pollution, factories burn fossil fuel which creates carbon dioxide, the most dangerous greenhouse gas. For example it is estimated that industry and electrical generating factories contribute slightly more than 50% of greenhouse gases. Another harmful gas created by the burning of fossil fuels is sulphur dioxide, when these gases meet up with water vapour in the atmosphere; they make sulphuric and nitric acid. The acid falls to earth in rain, snow, or fog. This rain can kill fish in rivers and lakes, burn leaves on trees and dissolve limestone in buildings. Factories also create ground level ozone problems by releasing harmful gases into the air; ozone is made from three oxygen atoms, which is one more oxygen atom than required for breathable oxygen, O2. Under certain conditions, some pairs of oxygen atoms break apart, and each atom joins another pair to make ozone, O3. Although ozone may be useful for fi...
Zaikowski, Lori (eds). Solid Waste Disposal Act and Resource Conservation & Recovery Act, United States. (2007). Retrieved on 22nd February 2010 from; http://www.eoearth.org/article/Solid_Waste_Disposal_Act_and_Resource_Conservation_&_Recovery_Act,_United_States
Another way used to dispose of waste is through incineration. This method requires very close monitoring, since the ashes and smoke can still be just as hazardous as its physical form.
amounts of hazardous materials. In sufficient treatment, storage and disposal have resulted in many uncontrolled contami-
Policy is needed to regulate which course of action should be taken and how it should be implemented. Because of this, many plans and policies revolving around the management of solid waste have been put in place. Sometimes however, a particular policy can have its shortfalls, potentially resulting in its negative aspects outweighing the positive ones. According to the Conference Board of Canada Report, “Canadians dispose of more municipal solid waste per capita than any other country” (2013). Solid waste management in particular, involves many aspects, ranging from packaging waste, food waste, etc. (White & Franke 1999), hence, the following analysis revolves around household and commercial waste – referred to as Municipal Solid Waste (White & Franke. 1999) – in the Greater Vancouver Regional District. Municipal waste is a major health and environmental concern as it contributes to numerous problems like habitat destruction, surface groundwater pollution, and other forms of air, soil, and water contamination. Waste disposal methods like incineration create toxic substances, and landfills emit methane, which contributes to global warming. According to the Zero Waste Objective Report, “The impact of climate change and the increasing awareness of the role of “waste” and “wasting” in the production of greenhouse gas emissions is a constant environmental pressure… (2009). This leads to an increasing limitation of government to prevent and control the volume and toxicity of products in the waste stream and a growing need to shift responsibility to the product manufacturer.
Traditional methods of waste disposal have proven to be ineffective and have caused harmful effects on the environment. The most popular and inexpensive way to get rid of garbage is burial, but burying your problems does not necessarily mean getting rid of them. Landfill sites pose as severe ecological threats as these mass garbage dump yards overflow with trash and frequently contaminate our air, soil and water with hazardous wastes. About 400 million tons of hazardous wastes are generated each year1. A large-scale release of these materials can cause thousands of deaths and may poison the environment for many years. For example many industrial companies around the world cannot afford to enforce the strict pollution regulations set by many developed countries. This usually forces these types of companies to move to developing countries where pollution regulations are very lenient. These developing countries knowingly accept environmentally hazardous companies usually because they are in desperate need of employment. The harmful effects of these companies were clearly illustrated in the 1960s and 1970s when residents living near Minamata Bay, Japan, developed nervous disorders, tremors, and paralysis in a mysterious epidemic. The root was later found to be a local industry that had released mercury, a highly toxic element, into Minamata Bay. The disaster had claimed the lives of 400 people1. Since 1970 you can bet that a lot more than 400 people have died as a result of waste disposal. If the type of waste disposal were cheaper and effective we wouldn’t have to deal with waste problems, which still plague mankind today.
...or lakes (Weber 2). When people just dump waste products instead of recycling, it is a misuse of the soil and can contribute to serious health conditions in animals, plants and humans.
New York has three common methods of getting rid of our waste. The three methods mention below some of the major ways that New York sanitation use to get rid of the garbage generated by households, corporations, hospitals and many other organizations.