APES- chapter 16: waste generation & waste disposal
khian sea cruiser
this ship left philadelphia with 1300 metric tons of HW from incineration; some was dumped in HAITI, other in the ocean
aerate, layer green and brown material
2 tips to improve COMPOST
e-waste
2% of our waste stream; often containing lead, mercury, and cadium
60%; 40%
____ of MSW is from residencies and _____ is from commercial/institutional facilities
tipping fee
a fee charged for disposing of material in a landfill or incinerator
reduce, reuse, recycle
a popular phrase promoting the idea of diverting materials from the waste stream (1990's)
life-cycle analysis
a process that attempts to identify the effect a product has on resources and pollution over its entire lifetime -from the procurement of raw materials through their manufacture, use and disposal
waste-to-energy
a system in which heat generated by incineration is used as an energy source rather than being released into the atmosphere
integrated waste management
a variety of coordinated strategies for both waste disposal and waste reduction -attempt to reduce the environmental impact of MSW
CERCLA (comprehensive environmental response, compensation, and liability act)
the formal name for the SUPERFUND ACT
hazardous and solid waste amendments (HSWA)
an addition to the RCRA; encouraged waste minimization and phased out hazardous waste disposed on land
source reduction
an approach to waste management that seeks to cut waste by reducing the use of potential waste materials in the early stages of design and manufacture -i.e, encasing CDs in less plastic
sanitary landfill
an engineered ground facility designed to hold MSW with as little contamination of the surrounding environment as possible
cradle-to-grave analysis
another name for LIFE-CYCLE ANALYSIS
brownfields
contaminated industrial or commercial sites that may require environmental cleanup before they can be redeveloped or expanded -assists state and local gov'ts in cleaning up sites without superfund status
composting
creation of organic matter (HUMUS) by decomposition under controlled conditions to produce an organic-rich material that enhances soil structure, cation exchange capacity, and fertility
resource conservation and recovery act (RCRA)
expanded previous solid waste laws; created provisions for "cradle to grave" tracking
one year
how long does it take for a LARGE SCALE MUNICIPAL COMPOSTING SYSTEM to produce finished compost?
38 million tons
how much HAZARDOUS WASTE does the US generate in a year?
227 million metric tons
how much MSW did the US generate in 2011?
1.2 pounds
how much MSW per person per day do people in DEVELOPING COUNTRIES generate (on average)?
2.4 pounds
how much MSW per person per day do people in JAPAN generate?
4.4 pounds
how much MSW per person per day do people in the US generate?
$70
how much is the average TIPPING FEE for INCINERATION in the US?
$50
how much is the average TIPPING FEE in american landfills?
35%
how much material that ends up in a landfill is RECOVERED?
54%
how much of MSW is DISCARDED?
12%
how much of MSW is INCINERATED?
75%
how much of MSW is combustible?
148 million tons
how much of our MSW actually ends up in a landfill or incinerator?
28%
how much of our MSW does ORGANIC WASTE MATERIAL make up?
30%
how much of our MSW does PAPER WASTE make up?
13%
how much of our MSW does PLASTIC WASTE make up?
6%
how much of our MSW does WOOD make up?
1/3
how much of our MSW is recycled?
1/4
how much of the volume of PRE COMBUSTION MATERIAL does ASH typically occupy in an incinerator?
stayed the same
in the last 15 years, MSW in the US has
to recycle
is it more expensive to recycle electronics or send them to a landfill?
leachate
liquid that contains elevated levels of pollutants as a result of having passed through MSW or contaminated soil
hazardous waste
liquid, solid, gaseous, or sludge waste material that is harmful to humans or ecosystems
methane gas
low oxygen in LANDFILLS causes organic material to decompose anaerobically, resulting in this gas
waste
material outputs from a system that are not useful or consumed
1.7 million tons
of the HAZARDOUS WASTE that the US generates, how much is produced by INDIVIDUAL HOUSEHOLDS?
waste stream
the flow of solid waste that is recycled, incinerated, placed in a solid waste landfill, or disposed of in another way
closed-loop recycling
recycling something back into the same product
open-loop recycling
recycling something into a new product
municipal solid waste (msw)
refuse collected by municipalities from households, small businesses, and institutions -this does not include agricultural or industrial waste
bottom ash
residue collected at the bottom of the combustion chamber in a furnace
fly ash
residue collected from the chimney or exhaust pipe of a furnace
hydrogen chloride
results from the incineration of plastics; recovered in a scrubber, neutralized, and then disposed of
cleaners, batteries, fertilizers
sources of HAZARDOUS WASTE in households
NIMBY (not in my backyard)
the attitude where people don't want things like landfills to be put where they live
love canal, NY
the best known superfund site; was a hazardous waste landfill; previously used for schools and housing, but cancer-causing agents caused the city to have to be evacuated
superfund act
the common name for the comprehensive environmental response, compensation, and liability act (CERCLA); a US 1980 federal act that imposes taxes on the chemical and petroleum industries, funds the cleanup of abandoned & non-operating hazardous waste sites, and authorizes the federal gov't to respond direcctly to the release or threatened release of substances that may pose a threat to human health or the environment
china
the country where most of our E-WASTE is sent
siting
the designation of a landfill location, typically through a regulatory process involving studies, written reports, and public hearings
throw away society
the human society strongly influenced by consumerism -the US adopted this structure after WWII, leading to increased MSW
seattle's gasworks park
the most well-known brownfield site; was a gasification plant, is now a park
recycling
the one of the three R's that requires more time, processing, cleaning, transporting, and modification and therefore more energy than the other two
leachate collection systems
the part of this diagram used to capture toxic liquid that has run through MSW
recycling
the process by which materials destined to become MSW are collected and converted into raw material that is then used to produce new objects
incineration
the process of burning waste materials to reduce volume and mass, sometimes to generate electricity and heat
ash
the residual inorganic material that does not combust during incineration
structure, cation exchange capacity, fertility
the three factors that COMPOSTING improves in soil
aluminium & copper
two materials that should never go into a landfill
national priorities list (NPL)
under superfund, the EPA keeps this list of contaminated sites that are eligible for cleanup funds
reuse
using a product or material that was intended to be discarded
new jersey; 113
what US STATE has the most sites on the NATIONAL PRIORITIES LIST? how many do they have?
disposed of in a landfill, used for road construction, cement
what are the POSSIBILITIES FOR ASH if weak acid tests deem it NON-TOXIC (incineration)?
CO2, H2O, ash
what are the PRODUCTS of incineration?
rainfall
what factor must be limited in a SANITARY LANDFILL in order to reduce anaerobic respiration -and therefore, methane generation
north dakota
what is the ONLY STATE without a site on the NATIONAL PRIORITIES LIST?
>50%
what is the RECYCLING RATE in JAPAN?
waste reduction
when we choose to consume less and throw away less waste -includes source reduction, recycling, and compost
reduction
which is the most environmentally beneficial of the three R's?
packaging
which of the following contributes most to the weight of MSW
30:1
while composting, what should be the ratio of CARBON:NITROGEN?