Waste Management Flashcards
What does the waste pyramid look light right now?
What do we want it to look like?
Right now:
Prevention- top (last resort)
Minimize
Reuse
Recycling
Energy Recovering
Disposal - bottom (first resort)
We want to invert this pyramid!
- prevention/ reduction should be the top priority, disposal should be a last resort
T/F
wealthy countries have the highest total waste
false
- wealthy countries make the most waste per capita, but developing countries have more waste in total b/c rich countries export their waste there
The most effective way to reduce waste is:
minimize the amount of material that goes into products
Municipal waste=
waste produced by consumers, public facilities, and small businesses
municipal wastewater=
water that has been used by people in some way
inc:
- sewage
- water from showers sinks, washing machines, etc
____ are the most common disposal system
landfills
What are the 2 types of landfill systems?
- Bottom Liner System:
- layers of impermeable materials seal off waste from contact with soils/ water - Cap System
- pipes at the bottom collect residues and methane which is used for energy
methane gas from landfills is a ___ energy source, but not ___
green (naturally occuring)
not clean (has emissions)
What’s the Freshkills Park Project?
New York City
- landfill was here, and closed in 2001 because it reached its limit
- city built a park over it, now has many uses
landfills are another example of the ____ movement
what’s their solution?
Not in my backyard (NIMBY)
they export their waste to less wealthy areas
The ___ ____ of _____ (date) was a treaty on control of transboundary movements of hazardous wastes and their disposal
Basel Convection of 1992
wanted to stop movement of waste around the world, esp to poorer countries without regulations
What’s e-waste?
Why is it so hard to deal with?
electronic waste (phones, fridges, etc)
contains metals
- can be toxic
Give 2 examples of unregulated or illegal sites where e-waste is sent to
- Guiyu, China
- recognized disposal site, but not regulated - Accra, Ghana
- illegal site where they burn electronics
lots of mercury and lead poisoning in these areas
How do incinerators work to dispose of waste?
- combust it at very high temps
- reduces its volume by up to 90%
- metals (which can be recycled) are removed before incineration
what’s the biggest problem with incinerators?
produce a lot of air pollution and secondary pollutants