Sustainable Waste Management

Waste materials consist of exactly the same substances as useful raw materials and products, except that they are perceived as having no value. In fact, every kilogram of waste that we throw away represents a waste of valuable raw materials. It is now recognized that the Earth s resources are finite and there is a need to conserve them. The Earth s ability to assimilate wastes is limited, and going beyond these limits will damage natural systems and pose risks to individuals and populations. 

As well as reducing the quantity of waste, it is equally important to reduce its hazardous nature, since it is the nature as well as the quantity of waste that determines its potential for harming the environment. 

In order to bring about sustainable waste management, one of the obstacles is that we live in a throughput economy , where materials and energy are used to make products, which are eventually discarded. To be more sustainable, there is a need to change to d. circular economy hy closing the materials loop - to use waste as the input material for other processes or products, in order to reduce waste and reduce the need for virgin raw materials. This is exactly what happens in nature. In nature, there are no wastes all wastes are recycled by natural processes. 

---

The Earth is not infinite in its resources, nor in its ctq>acity to absorb the effects of highly polluting activities, and for ensured survival of the Earth and everything in or on it, these non-sustainable practices must be replaced with those that are sustainable and which will allow foture generations to use, enjoy, and benefit from the Earth s environment in the same way that we have been able to. The attainment of sustainable waste management, and the development of sustainable landfilling practises will be an important step in achieving this. 

Thus for waste management, and landfill disposal, the objectives are clear and apparently achievable, and in this way. Agenda 21 represents a step towards the attainment of common standards across the world, (in those aspects of landfill management that are specifically referred to), and which helps to ensure progress towards sustainable waste management. Whether or not landfill is truly sustainable is a moot point, and one which will be considered throughout this book. The concept of acceptable risk and the "nature and assimilative ctqracity of the receiving environment" are important factors in this discussion and are considered later. 

Sustainable waste management forms the basis of the 5th Environment Action Programme, and for municipal waste, the overall target is the "rational and sustainable use of resources", achieved through a hierarchy of management options. These are ... 

Before assessing the potential for landfill to be a sustainable waste management option, the following chapters will consider the pollution potential of landfill, and the associated risk, through examination of tte nature of landfill emissions, the means by which those emissions may reach sensitive receptors and the means for controlling these processes. 

Morrissey AJ, Browne J. Waste management models and their application to sustainable waste management. Waste Manage Oxf 2004 24(3) 297—308. 

Demonstrate that the use of natural resources and energy can be significantly reduced by harnessing the potential of the target waste streams, thereby achieving sustainable waste management. 

Industrial ecology is a recent concept in engineering and management, and is an attempt to manage an industrial unit as an ecosystem, with feedback loops and the minimal use of resources and production of waste [7]. Life cycle assessment, which was designed to take into account the environmental impact of waste, can help achieve cleaner production technologies and sustainable waste management practices which are all important aspects of... 

Provisions for sustainability, waste management, and minimum adverse environmental impacts... 

---