Solid Waste

Ecological Issues

Winter 2007

Mobro 4000• March 22, 1987 – 3,168 tons of garbage

refused as landfill in Islip, NY

• Transferred onto the barge Mobro 4000, headed for North Carolina

• Refused there, traveled 6,000 miles, five states, 3 countries

• Eventually incinerated in Brooklyn in July, 1987

Municipal Solid Waste

• MSW – (mostly) non-hazardous waste generated in households, commercial establishments and institutions

• Does not include industrial process wastes, agricultural wastes, mining wastes, and sewage sludge

MSW

• We throw away over 200 million tons of MSW each year

• Average of 4.5 pounds per person, per day

• http://www.epa.gov/msw/facts.htm

MSW Management

• Source Reduction/Reuse

• Recycling

• Composting

• Landfills

• Combustion-to-Energy

Source Reduction• Altering the design, manufacture, or use of

products and materials to reduce the amount and toxicity of what gets thrown away

• Grasscycling, backyard composting, transport packaging reduction

• Prevents emissions of greenhouse gases, reduces pollutants, saves energy

• Other ways????

Recycling

• Diverted 79 million tons of material away from disposal in 2005

• About 32% of our MSW is recycled, up from 6.5% in 1960!!!!

• Materials are recycled through curbside pick-up, drop-off programs, buy-back programs and deposit centers

http://www.epa.gov/msw/facts-text.htm

Recycling Benefits

• Prevents emission of greenhouse gases• Saves energy and resources• Creates jobs• Conserves resources• Reduces need for new landfills and

combustors

• recycling benefits

Composting• Compost is organic material that can be

used as a soil amendment or as a medium to grow plants.

• Created by combining organic wastes (e.g., yard trimmings, food wastes, manures) in proper ratios

• High temperatures destroy weed seeds and pathogens

Landfills

• Number of landfills is steadily decreasing – down from 8,000 in 1988 to 1,654 in 2005

• New landfills are much larger

• New landfills are called “sanitary landfills” and are different than “dumps”

Combustion/Incineration

• Burning MSW can generate energy while reducing amount of waste by up to 90%

• Scrubbers must be used to clean emissions

• Ash must still be disposed of – often contains high levels of toxic materials

Public Education

• You must take the responsibility to use and dispose of products you buy properly

• Solid Waste Disposal Act – 1965– First Federal law to require safeguards

• Resource Conservation and Recovery Act -1976– Protect human health and environment

– Conserve energy and natural resources