Solid Waste

A material that we discard, that is not liquid or gas

Municpal Solid Waste(MSW)
o Solid waste from home or office
Industrial Solid Waste:
o Solid waste produced from Mines, Agriculture or Industry
Hazardous waste
o is a waste with properties that make it dangerous or potentially
harmful to human health or the environment
Ignitability - Ignitable wastes create fires under certain
conditions or are spontaneously combustible
Corrosivity - Corrosive wastes are acids or bases (pH less than
or equal to 2 or greater than or equal to 12.5) that are capable
of corroding metal containers
Reactivity - Reactive wastes are unstable under "normal"
conditions. They can cause explosions, toxic fumes, gases, or
vapors when mixed with water.
Toxicity - Toxic wastes are harmful or fatal when ingested or
absorbed (e.g., containing mercury, lead, etc.). Toxicity is
defined through a laboratory procedure called the Toxicity
Characteristic Leaching Procedure (TCLP).
o Major types: Organics and Heavy Metals, Radioactive wastes
Methods to deal with Municipal Waste
o On-site(at home)
o Open Dump
Unsanitary, draws pests and vermin, harmful runoff and
leachates, toxic gases
Still accounts for half of solid waste
Several thousand open dumps in the USA
o SWanitary Landfill
Layer of compacted trash covered with a layer of earth once a
day and a thicker layer when the site is full
Require impermeable barriers to stop escape of leachates: can
cause problem by overflow
Gases produced by decomposing garbage needs venting
Methane Production
Avoid:
Swampy area/ Flood plains /coastal areas
Fractures or porous rocks
High water table
Prefer:
Clay layers
Heads of gullies
o Incineration
Solves space problem but:
produces toxic gases like Cl, HCl, HCN, SO
2

High temp furnaces break down hazardous
compounds but are expensive ($75 - $2K/ton)
Heat generated can be recovered: % of waste burnt
North Little Rock, AK saving $50K in heating cost and
reducing landfill requirement by 95%
o Ocean Dumping
Out of sight, free of emission control norms
Contributes to ocean pollution
Can wash back on beaches, and can cause death of marine
mammals
Ocean Dumping Ban Act, 1988: bans dumping of sewage
sludge and industrial waste
Dredge spoils still dumped in oceans, can cause habitat
destruction and export of fluvial pollutants
o Reducing Waste
Recycling and Reusing
Incineration, compacting
Hog feed: requires heat treatment
Composting: requires separation of organics from glass and
metal