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.
Further, “In 2008, nearly 13 tonnes of waste were generated by Canadian households. Of this, more than 8.5 million tonnes were disposed of in landfills or incine...
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...Metro Vancouver’s New Waste Plan. Solid Waste and Recycling. 13 (2), p 8. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.proxy.lib.sfu.ca/docview/212419630
Toxics Action Center, 2012 (n.p.): The Problems With Waste. Toxics Action Center. Retrieved from: http://www.toxicsaction.org/problems-and-solutions/waste
White, P. & Franke, M., 1999: Integrated solid waste management: a lifecycle inventory. Gaithersburg, Md.: Aspen.
Zero Waste Challenge (n.d., n.p.): Metro Vancouver’s Zero Waste Challenge. Surrey. Retrieved from: http://www.surrey.ca/city-services/8684.aspx
Zero Waste Objective Report, 2009: Environmental Life Cycle Assessment of Waste Management with a Zero Waste Objective: Study of the Solid Waste in Metro Vancouver, British Columbia. Recycling Council of British Columbia. Retrieved from: http://www.rcbc.ca/files/u7/ement_for_ZeroWaste_Objective_ReportJune2009.pdf
A very important issue tied to Canada’s future sustainability is that of recycling. There is currently a shortage of suitable landfill spaces in Canada, and the current landfills produce harmful emissions (Statistics Canada, 2008). Using methods to divert as many of these wastes away from landfills will help to slow their growth and improve Canada’s future outlook. Recycling is one such method.
Since the industrial revolution the United States has experienced tremendous change. This change has created a consumer culture that has resulted in the creation of mass amounts of waste. According to reports, in the year 2003 Americans produced almost 500 million pounds waste. Alone the U.S consumes 30% of the world’s resources and produces 30% of all waste (Conquest, 2). These numbers attest to a consumer culture that has created an undesirable waste problem that is yet to be resolved. However, not everyone is affected proportionately by waste, as predominantly low-income communities live in close proximity to waste related sites. In this paper I will discuss how low-income communities are disproportionately subjected to the detrimental health effects caused by waste, and I will argue that low-income communities have historically and are currently responding to counter the effects of waste to protect their communities.
In British Columbia, municipal districts have established solid waste management plans to meet diversion targets. The Greenest City 2020 Action Plan is a strategy that addresses Vancouver’s environmental challenges in hopes of becoming a more sustainable city and aligns with Metro Vancouver’s regional waste plan (Integrated Solid Waste and Resource Management Plan). Similar to VSB’s plan, one of the Greenest City Plan’s goal areas is zero waste, specifically to “reduce solid waste going to the landfill[s] or incinerator[s] by 50% from 2008 levels.” As shown through the graph in Figure 3, there has been a 23% decrease in solid waste sent to landfills and incinerators since 2008.
Florida International University recognizes its contribution to the accumulation of waste considering that it produces about seven million pounds of waste each year (Figueroa, 2010). Unlike other universities that still remain adamant in investing on green practices, FIU has, “governed by the State of Florida under Florida Statute 403.714 and The Florida Solid Waste Management Act of 1988” (FIU, 2011), established its own internal ‘green machine’ or solid waste and environmental protection system via the FIU Custodial Services Office. The university’s efforts in ensuring efficient solid waste management even “far exceeds the minimum standards” (FIU, 2011) required by law. What makes the solid waste management efforts of the university one-of-a kind is the establishment of a “single stream recycling program which means that all recyclable items can be placed into one bin and do not have to be sorted” (FIU, 2011). Nevertheless, despite the use of single recycle bins, proper labeling has to accompany each bin to ensure that only materials that are recyclable are placed in the bins. There are also different sized of bins which are placed stra...
Outer islands have dumpsters that are used for trash generated by workers. Most outer island work is occasional and involves few individuals; therefore waste generation is minimal. Dumpsters from Illeginni, Legan and Carlos are replaced at least quarterly, and more frequently if barge transportation is available. Wastes are shipped to the Kwajalein Solid Waste Management Yard for segregation, incineration, and/or landfilling as needed. Dumpsters from Gagan are transported to Roi-Namur for disposal. When special projects take place on these or other outer islands, additional dumpsters and waste receptacles are delivered and used as needed. Wastes from construction projects are removed from the islands at the conclusion of the projects or during the project as needed. No wastes are disposed on these islands with the exception of green wastes which are left to decompose naturally.
What is municipal solid waste (MSW)? Well, MSW is trash that consists of everyday things that we throw away. These come from Schools, hospitals, homes, and other businesses. Prior to Industrialization waste was dealt with by dumping it in a landfill people would dig holes and cover the garbage with dirt. Others would just dump their garbage in a designated area away from the city or designate someone to take the garbage to that land fill. This process as not very safe because back then nobody understood how diseases worked so animals that rummaged through that landfill ended up causing outbreaks of the plague.
Wilson, D. C., Shienberg, A., & Casanova, L. (2012). Solid Waste Management in the world's cities. Netherlands: UN-HABITAT.
As a top solid waste producing country, collecting, mining, pumping, and processing resources in Canada greatly contributes to environmental issues such as species extinction, climate change and pollution. The goal of zero waste is to reduce waste and keep resources in circulation.
This Memo is an information report regarding the Green Bin Program curbside collection, one of Canada’s solutions to the food waste problem in landfills. Since 1998 it’s been making its way across Canada. This year Brandon has adopted the program and Winnipeg may be next. I thought it would be informative for us to know the food waste problem in Canada, what this program is, and the progress it has made so far.
We are destroying the forests and killing the animals if we stop paying attention to our waste. It is essential for us to prevent all the factors listed above from progressing. The mandatory recycling program in Saskatoon is a great idea to strive towards; because it just isn't helping the earth but also our future generations and at the same time it can make our
Throughout history, human advancement has been inherently tied to the management of waste because of its effects on the public and Environmental health. Waste management has severely altered human history in various ways just the way it will in the near and far future. The waste management industry has come a long way and with techniques as recycling and other advances, the future seems quite promising.
Solid Waste management is activities that deal with waste before and after it is produced, including its minimization, transfer, storage, separation, recovery, recycling and final disposal (quizlet.com). It deals with the control of generation, storage, collection, transfer and transport, processing, and disposal of solid wastes in a manner that conforms to the best principles of living (Monney, I.2014). It is a solution in response to the world's stinking and escalating problem (Foray, J.J.2012)
As humanity develops new technology, the magnitude and severity of waste increases. When computers were developed, it widely was believed that the need for paper would be eliminated. On the contrary this was widely proven false and we are now utilizing more paper than ever. Canada is not an exception as the typical Canadian generates an average of three pounds of solid waste each day1. This alone shows what a careless species we have become- using and disposing materials without even considering the damage we are causing. With half a trillion tones of waste around the world, only 25% may be reused for a second or third time and less than 5% can be renewed limitlessly1. These facts are true only in developed countries. Since these traditional waste reduction methods have been proven inefficient, we must endorse new innovative technology to arrive at a solution.
The United States produces “about 8.25 billion tons of solid wastes each year” (Russell 1). People do not realize the impact they have on our planet and environment. When people throw anything in the trashcan, they are contributing to the destruction of our planet. The number landfills in the United States are decreasing, but the amount and volume of waste being thrown into the new landfills is increasing (Russell 4). Because of this escalating amount of garbage, Methane which contributes to global warming is an outcome of these landfills (Russell 7). As a result, our planet is suffering because of this epidemic. The garbage being put in the landfills could be recycled, but not enough businesses, ...
The solid wastes are produce not only by households; it’s contributed by hospitals and corporations. Hospitals throw away bandages, use needles and latex gloves, these items hospitals throw away daily all the time because they can’t be reuse for the safety of its patients. Corporations throw away a lot of waste as well such as papers that they use whether in writing or in projects. All of these leftovers after consumptions are waste that is produced by our daily actions.