Source waste reduction

Phelps, D., Schnell, J., and Shah, A. (2002) California Pharmaceutical Industry Hazardous Waste Source Reduction 2002 Assessment Report. California Environmental Protection Agency, Sacramento, CA, 96-110. 

Sellers, Veronica R. 19B6. "Waste Management Alternatives for Electroplating and Printed Circuit Board Manufacturing Operations." 4th Massachusetts Hazardous Waste Source Reduction Conference Proceedings. Massachusetts Department of Environmental Management, Boston, Massachusetts. 

Chaaban, M.A. (2001) Hazardous waste source reduction in materials and processing technologies, Journal of Materials Processing Technology 119, 336-343. 

Hunniball, K. Aspects of Design Responsibility— Waste Source Reduction. Proceedings, IDSA Conference on Design Education, pp. 82-85, 1989. 

Fig. 6. An iategrated approach to the management of municipal soHd waste (MSW), advocated by the U.S. EPA, that links source segregation, recycling, waste-to-energy (WTE), and landfilling ia a single system. Source segregation refers to the separation of compostable and recyclable components from the balance of the trash at the poiat where MSW is collected. In source reduction (not shown), another action to reduce waste to landfills, changes are made ia...

Many of these techniques involve source reduction— the preferred option on the EPA s hierarchy of waste management (24). Others deal with on-and off-site recycling. The best way to determine how these general approaches can fit a particular company s needs is to conduct a waste minimization... 

As discussed in the introduction, the hierarchy set forth by the USEPA in the Pollution Prevention Act establishes an order to which waste-management activities should be employed to reduce the quantity of waste generated. The preferred method is source reduction, as indicated in Fig. 25-1. This approach actually precedes traditional waste management by addressing the source of the problem prior to its occurrence. 

Waste minimization generally considers all of the methods in the EPA hierarchy (except for disposal) appropriate to reduce the volume or quantity of waste requiring dispos (i.e., source reduction). The definition oi source reduction as applied in the Pollution Prevention Act, however, is any practice that reduces the amount of any hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant entering any waste stream... 

The treatment of waste is the third element of the hierarchy and should be utilized only in the absence of feasible source reduction or recychng opportunities. Waste treatment involves the use of chemical, biological, or physical processes to reduce or eliminate waste material. The incineration of wastes is included in this categoiy and is considered preferable to other treatment methods (i.e., chemical, biological, and physical) because incineration can permanently destroy the hazardous components in waste materials (Ref. 4). It can also be employed to reduce the volume of waste to be treated. 

Managerial information environmental policies and procedures prioritization of waste-management concerns automated or computerized waste-management systems inventory and distribution procedures maintenance schediiling practices planned modifications or revisions to existing operations that would impact waste-generation activities and the basis of source reduction decisions and policies... 

It would obviously be desirable to eliminate the generation of waste. Practical alternatives are to minimize it by reduction at source or to recycle it. Table 16.7 illustrates the hierarchy of waste minimization practices. Source reduction includes increased process efficiency economies in the use of energy are also relevant, e.g. it may result in a decrease in the consumption of fossil fuels ... 

Elimination Source reduction Complete elimination of waste Avoidance, reduction or elimination of waste, generally within the confines ... 

Waste Minimization source reduction, certain types of recycling and reclamation. Waste minimization does not include recycling activities whose uses constitute disposal and burning for energy recovery. 

Waste Reduction The term has been used by the Congressional Office of Technology Assessment and INFORM to mean source reduction. On the other hand, many different groups have used the term to refer to waste minimization. Therefore, care must be employed in determining which of these different concepts is implied when the term "waste reduction" is encountered. 

Source reduction includes any in-plant actions to reduce the quantity or the toxicity of the waste at the source. Examples include equipment modification, design and operational changes of the process, reformulation or redesign of products, substitution of raw materials, and use of environmentally benign chemical reactions. 

The various waste-management options namely, source reduction, recycle/reuse, treatment, and disposal. 

There are significant opportunities for industry to reduce or prevent pollution at tlie source tlirough cost-effective changes in production, operation and raw materials use.. . . The opportmiities for source reduction are often not realized because existing regulations, and tlie industrial resources tliey require for compliance, focus upon treatment and disposal, rather tliaii source reduction.. . . Source reduction is fundamentally different and more desirable tlian waste management and pollution control. 

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