Solid Waste Management

Solid Waste Management

Solid waste management (SWM) continues to be a profound concern due to the growing world’s population. Furthermore, the rise in consumerism and fast fashion has worsened the problem, given the implications of waste products on the environment (Marshall & Farahbakhsh, 2013). Considering this aspect, the best solid waste management methods should take into account both environmental and health implications (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), 2019). This analysis compares two solid waste management approaches, incineration (burning) and salvaging (sorting out and reusing wastes), in terms of their human health and environmental implications, including whether they support sustainability and recovery of resources.

Incineration vs. Salvage Process

One of the elements or drivers of SWM is the environment. As Marshall and Farahbakhsh (2013) noted, landfills continued to be the principal or main method of disposing of waste after the world wars. However, this problem would be escalated by the increased consumption in the 1960s, with larger municipal waste streams having larger plastic content. Yet, it was out of the environmental movement and lobbying in the 1970s that increased the focus on waste disposal to be regarded as a serious political agenda (Marshall & Farahbakhsh, 2013). Therefore, concerning the environment, a proper SWM process should focus on reducing air, land, and water contamination.

One of the SWM methods in consideration is solid waste incineration, a technique reportedly effective for combustible refuse (Wissing et al., 2017). This is the best approach or method for managing solid waste in crowded cities, like in the current case, whereby the landfill space or sites is declining. However, its limitations include the high costs of construction and operations and its environmental impacts. In terms of environmental consequences, incineration, when not properly controlled, releases acidic gases and particulate matter that may compromise water and air quality, thereby exposing humans to health risks of respiratory diseases. On the other hand, the energy generated from this method can be used to generate electricity to power the city.

Recently, there have been methods that have improved the overall removal of mercury and dioxins (Wissing et al., 2017). Some incinerators have also set nitrogen emission limits. For instance, in European countries, governments have introduced strict regulations for SWM through incineration involving the use of several particulate-control devices (Wissing et al., 2017). In so doing, the emissions levels have been greatly reduced. Therefore, this method has been improved over time to increase its efficiency in removing acidic gases, particulate, mercury, and dioxin released into the environment.

In comparison, the salvaging process or method is about sorting out the wastes and recycling or reusing some whose life cycle can still serve a purpose (Ross, 2020). This method or approach embraces recycling and reuses as an alternative method for SWM. Unlike the incineration method, it does not produce emissions while equally, it ensures that material wastes have been recycled for other purposes. For instance, waste plastics are recycled and formed into new plastics or repurposed into new applications (Ross, 2020). Recycling and reuse is an aspect of environmental sustainability that limits the overall implications that solid wastes or materials have on the environment. Human health is not compromised with no emissions, as people are less exposed to hazardous gases released from burning solid wastes. In so doing, this is the best method that can ensure that the materials are injected back into the production system without compromising the integrity of the environment. In addition, this approach ensures that resources are recycled and reused to avoid more exploitation or exploration of resources.

The salvage process addresses the scarcity of resources, more so with the reuse of consumer goods. Furthermore, it addresses the expanding population of the city to which resources are depleted with increased consumption (Marshall & Farahbakhsh, 2013). In comparison to the incineration method, this is the best approach to ensure proper resource conservation and recovery. Recovery and reuse are aligned with sustainability, which means that salvaging is more sustainable than incineration, which does away with reusable resources or materials.

Public health is an important aspect of any SWM approach and has continued to influence environmental management policies and incentives. This is because urban areas have been facing great challenges with sanitation (Marshall & Farahbakhsh, 2013). With these emerging challenges, incineration and salvaging can be compared with regard to their role in safeguarding public sanitation. Burning in incinerators ensures that dangerous and hazardous wastes are handled, while salvaging implies that solid wastes that can be reused are injected back into the production system (Wissing et al., 2017). However, for dangerous or hazardous materials that cannot be reused or recycled, the salvage process will have to be coupled with another SWM method, like landfills, which could be detrimental to public health through poor sanitation. Therefore, incineration would be a more effective method in ensuring proper sanitation is safeguarded.

On the downside, incineration leaks hazardous gases into the atmosphere, including chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT), which are detrimental to public health (Tait et al., 2020). Besides, incineration releases pollutants from heavy metals despite their harmful health effects. This problem has been long-established by reports on increased lung cancer incidences as well as overall linear mortality increase, primarily emerging from cardiovascular diseases. Another concern with incineration is the reports on lung cancer among adults and other types of cancers within the surrounding incinerators (Wissing et al., 2017). This is further established by studies documenting the direct impacts of cardiac illnesses from incinerators.

Recommendation

The salvage process should be considered for this city due to the declining space for landfills; reusing and recycling wastes is a sustainable and environmentally friendly approach to SWM. Compared to the incineration process, this method does not pollute the air or release heavy metals into the atmosphere, with profound health implications for the surrounding communities. Therefore, it is best to consider a salvage process where resources are recovered or conserved, public health is safeguarded, the environment is protected, and a sustainable approach to managing waste is employed.

References

Marshall, R. E., & Farahbakhsh, K. (2013). Systems Approaches Integrated Solid Waste Management In Developing Countries. Waste Management, 33(4), 988-1003.

Ross, S. M. (2020). Re-Evaluating Heritage Waste: Sustaining Material Values Through Deconstruction And Reuse. The Historic Environment: Policy & Practice, 1-27.

Tait, P. W., Brew, J., Che, A., Costanzo, A., Danyluk, A., Davis, M., … & Bowles, D. (2020). The Health Impacts Of Waste Incineration: A Systematic Review. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health, 44(1), 40-48.

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). (2019). Land, waste, and cleanup topics. Retrieved from https://www.epa.gov/environmental-topics/land-waste-and-cleanup-topics

Wissing, F., Wirtz, S., & Scherer, V. (2017). Simulating Municipal Solid Waste Incineration With A DEM/CFD Method–Influences Of Waste Properties, Grate And Furnace Design. Fuel, 206, 638-656.

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Module 4 – Case

PHYSICAL AND EMERGING HAZARDS

Assignment Overview

Solid Waste Management

You are employed by a local municipality as environmental health officer and are placed in charge of solid waste disposal and management.

Case Assignment

Currently the county disposes of their municipal solid wastes in a landfill. The landfill’s capacity will end in a few years and a new option is being considered to manage solid waste management in the county for the next 50 years. Write a paper in which you:

• Compare and contrast two alternatives for the county’s solid waste disposal (for example landfill versus incineration). Examples of factors to consider in your analysis may include:
  • environmental impacts,
  • human health impacts,
  • resource conservation or recovery,
  • occupational hazards for operators and
  • sustainability.
• Select the best method for solid waste disposal in this scenario setting and explain your rationale.

Assignment Expectations

Use information from your module readings/articles as well as appropriate research to support your paper.

Length: The Case Assignment should be 3-5 pages long (double-spaced).