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Solid waste 4.50

Migration

4.50: Solid waste
Solid waste: produced by humans, non-toxic, results of civilization

Bozeman science:
Full listing:
Solid waste:

  • Primitive societies had no solid waste: they used everything, or it degraded naturally (dispersed, not concentrated)
  • The "disposable society" meant buying instead of repairing: post WWII (affluence)
  • MSW: Municipal (e.g. city) Solid Waste, 60% residential, 40% commercial
  • Solid waste per capita (per head) 2 kg/person per day in progressUS, 
  • In lesser developed countries (LDC) the number is 0.5 kg/person per day
  • why?
  • Definition of waste stream: everything-landfill, recycling etc.
  • Electronic waste "ewaste": new problem: heavy metals, don't degrade, toxic, growing with IPAT
MSW destinations:

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Landfills: used to be piled up on surface, then dug into ground, leachate (liquid) flowed into water table, gases (methane, CH4) into atmosphere
Sanitary landfill: liner catches leachate, surface is covered and methane captured for use as fuel

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  • "Tipping" fee: very high in Hawaii (limited space), even higher on other islands (San Juan Is. = $6 per bag)
  • Another option: incineration-can be for energy (H-power on Oahu) or others
  • Japan uses plasma incineration for medical waste: completely ionizes viruses
  • Fly ash is toxic, banned for use in EU (heavy metals)
  • Ocean dumping was common, now largely illegal (still done though)
Hazardous waste: different category: toxic and hazardous are too general
  • Toxic hazardous waste: e.g. fly ash, heavy metals
  • Flammable hazardous waste: burns
  • Reactive hazardous waste: chemically active, e.g. oxidizers
  • Radioactive hazardous waste: just like it sounds
Superfund: created in 1980, as CERCLA
Comprehensive  Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act
  • Comprehensive: covers everyone
  • Environmental: like is sounds
  • Response: they respond to environmental situations
  • Compensation: they pay victims
  • Liability: they go after the polluters
Superfund example: Love canal
Hooker chemical, toxic waste, cancer in kids
Superfund is paid for by tax on chemical and other factories

Another law: 
RCRA: resource conservation and recovery act
RCRA tracks solid waste, "cradle to grave" responsibility

Brownfields: behind the elab is an example, so is the train yard in Portland (e2: sense of place)
Contaminated industrial or commercial sites

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