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ENVS 195 EXAM > Municipal Waste Management > Flashcards

Municipal Waste Management Flashcards

1
Q

What is waste?

A

A leftover redundant product or material of no/marginal value for the owner in which they want to discard

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2
Q

What does defining waste depend on?

A
  • time (of new products & shortages)
  • location (urban vs. rural facilities)
  • culture (food-wise, what is waste?)
  • social (income - rich can afford to replace working things for aesthetics)
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3
Q

What is solid waste?

A

Mainly solids, including sludge and chemicals. They are distinct from wastewater and airborne waste.

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4
Q

What are the available waste management systems?

A
  • in-house waste handling (burning own garbage)
  • littering/unmanaged handling (illegal dumping)
  • return to retailer system (i.e., beer bottles)
  • municipal management (residential/commercial)
  • industrial management (large scale)
  • hazardous management (toxics carefully dealt with)
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5
Q

How should we look at waste management systems?

A

As a cycle instead of a straight path ending in a landfill! We should look to increase reuse and reduce extraction/disposal

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6
Q

What is the problem with packaging?

A
  • many cases have excessive packaging

- ON produces 250kg of waste per capita annually (2008)

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7
Q

What are the solutions to excess waste & packaging?

A

Enhance policies to reduce waste

  1. Pay as you throw - per bag, limited number of bags, weight, tags, etc.
  2. Extended producer responsibility (EPR) - producer responsible for dealing with product waste through out full process of item (i.e., ink, tires). Producer stewardship - all users have shared waste responsibility
  3. Combo of 1 & 2 (ex, Germany, locked cans do only owner can put waste in, garbage man unlocks & weighs, then owner pays for weight)
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8
Q

What is the problem with waste diversion?

A

Developed countries divert less materials
Toronto: diverts 60% of materials from single family houses (40% ends up in landfills)
Cambodia: 100% waste diversion

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9
Q

What are the solutions to waste diversion?

A
  • reusing goods
  • recycling
  • composting and mulching yard waste
  • green bin organics
  • household hazardous waste
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10
Q

What is an some examples of waste diversion solutions?

A
  • The Waterloo landfill has goodwill and habitat restore before the landfill to try to divert materials. They have recycled bicycle store and hazardous household wastes drop off.
  • Waste picking should be implemented
  • Indonesian tsunami: reused cement in buildings & wood to make furniture
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11
Q

What is the problem with a lack of knowledge of waste systems?

A

People don’t know where things go, so they don’t sort them properly

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12
Q

What are the solutions to a lack of knowledge of waste systems?

A

Better signage and education

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13
Q

What is an Eco Industrial Park (EIP)?

A

It integrates self cycling industrial clusters that share/reuse waste, energy and resources more efficiently & effectively than factories could do on their own.

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14
Q

What are the advantages of an EIP?

A
  • converts waste into reusable sources
  • more efficient than factories alone
  • saves lots of money
  • reduces material demands
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15
Q

What are the disadvantages of an EIP?

A
  • difficult to implement
  • large investments
  • geographically limited
  • yet to be reproduced (only one functioning globally)
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16
Q

What is sustainable urban development?

A

It is the enhanced well being of urban regions, including integrated economic, ecological and social components that maintain the quality of life for future generations

17
Q

What are the four key factors that must be combatted for sustainable development?

A
  1. Urban form
  2. Transportation
  3. Energy use
  4. Waste management
18
Q

What is urban form and what is the issue with it?

A

It refers to the type and distribution of infrastructure and is a key factor in influencing the quality of the environment (ex., roads and buildings impact energy use - both contribute to GHGs). Urban sprawl also issue.

19
Q

Why is urban sprawl an issue and what is a possible solution?

A

It causes the loss, disruption and degradation of land, sensitive areas, natural habitats, and water and air quality. A compact urban form would reduce sprawl; thus, is more desirable.

20
Q

Why is transportation an issue?

A

Low-density urban development causes car dependent cities and environmental impacts. The variables that affect the amount of energy used are: distance, vehicle weight, vehicle type, density, urban structure, mixed land use and street patterns

21
Q

What problem does low density areas cause for transportation?

A

it is difficult to provide high quality public transit

22
Q

How should we reduce energy use in cities?

A
  • facilitate teleservices to reduce travel time
  • ensure parking arrangements encourage reduced car usage
  • ride share programs
  • transit pass programs
  • encourage bicycle usage
23
Q

Why is energy use an issue?

A

Energy is most often used for heating water and spaces as well as cooling spaces. 80% of the energy usage is in residential buildings.

24
Q

What are some solutions to energy use?

A
  • promoting green design, construction and operation of buildings to cut GHGs
  • townhouses and apartments more efficient than detached houses
  • green buildings are far more efficient but few exist
25
Q

Why is waste management an issue?

A

The factors that influence the per capita waste generated are demographics, dwelling unit, location, an time of year. Energy recovery is hard b/c involved incinerating waste but NIMBY makes it hard to find landfill and incinerator locations

26
Q

What are some solutions to waste management?

A
  • apartments produce much less waste (no yard waste)

- reduce, reuse and recycle & biological, thermal and land treatment

27
Q

What is the urban island heat effect?

A

It is due to increased temperatures in core urban areas relative to surrounding areas. The temp in cities is often 2-6 degrees warmer in urban areas than rural. Also, ozone and smog can reduce agricultural productivity, increase health risks and trigger tornados/storms.

28
Q

What are some solutions to the urban island heat effect?

A
  • effect is reduced by integrating green space as it has a natural cooling effect that reduced the need for a/c
  • encourage green roofing technology can lower GHGs and reduce local flooding
  • building orientation, light-coloured surfaces and vegetated surfaces help to mitigate
29
Q

What are brownfields?

A

They are inactive industrial sites often with contaminated soil due to LUST (leaking underground storage tank) that contaminates water, can get into food and increases health issues (ex., Kitchener coal tar in soil)

30
Q

What is a solution to brownfields?

A
  • increase recycling facility abilities

ENVS 195 EXAM (10 decks)

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