Aspects and Management of Hazardous Waste - Assignment Example

Aspects and Management of hazardous waste Introduction Hazardous waste can be defined as any waste that is potentially harmful or dangerous to the health of human beings as well as the surrounding environment (Wilson et al, 2002). Hazardous waste can be in form of liquids, gases, solids or even sludge. These may include commercial products that have been discarded such as pesticides or cleaning agents, by products of manufacturing industries and health-care waste. Such waste is produced in the course of normal operation of commercial, industrial or institutional operation. Due to the chemical, biological and physical properties present, some waste can cause more harm than others and as such is referred to as hazardous. Such waste requires special handling and disposal to avoid causing harm to human health as well as the environment. Hazardous waste can cause damage if there is improper storage, during transportation, treatment or even in the process of disposal. Improper waste handling can also lead to contamination of surface and ground water supplies. People living near old and abandoned waste disposal sites particularly may be vulnerable to hazards caused by such waste. To remedy existing hazards and reduce cases such as this in the future, most governments closely monitor and regulate practices of hazardous waste management (Wilson et al, 2002). Aims of this report This report aims at explaining the aspects that relate to handling, managing and transporting hazardous waste as well as how it can be stored such that it does not generate into non- reversible risks to the humans and the environment. Characteristics of hazardous waste As mentioned in the introduction, hazardous waste is classified according to the chemical, biological and physical properties present. The properties are likely to generate materials that are reactive, toxic, corrosive, ignitable, radioactive or even infectious. Toxic wastes no matter how small traces of it are extremely poisonous. Such waste may have serious effects that lead to death or a violent illness (Hoffman et al, 2007). It may also manifest itself in the human body causing chronic effects that eventually cause irreparable damage. Some of the properties are cancer causing agents that may present after a long period of exposure. Other properties might be mutagenic, in the long run causing observable biological changes in the offspring of exposed humans as well as animals. Reactive waste can react violently with water or air since they are chemically unstable. They end up causing toxic vapours and even explosions. They could also cause immediate fire hazards because ignitable waste burns at a relatively low temperature. Corrosive wastes on the other hand destroy solid material and living tissue if they come into contact through chemical reaction. These may be alkaline or acidic substances. Infectious wastes are substances such as material from hospitals such as bandages, used needles or materials from biological research facilities. Scholars posit that radioactive waste emits energy that is harmful to living organisms. Some of the radioactive material can persist in the environment for many years before it can fully decay, as such, it is not the responsibility of local municipals to handle such waste due to the complexity and scope of the problem (Hoffman et al, 2007). This is usually considered an engineering task and in particular, nuclear fission waste. Management To effectively manage hazardous waste whether on site or within the premises of waste generator, it requires that there be an integrated process of efficient segregation and characterisation of the residue waste after using recyclables and immobilisation of waste through necessary treatment, destroying through incineration if appropriate before the waste is discarded to reduce its effect on the environment. Research shows that the major hindrance in waste management in many countries is more often behavioural and institutional rather than technical (Martin et al, 2002). Hazardous waste is seldom put aside from other forms of waste therefore increasing the amounts of waste as well as the treatment cost. This deprives people of the possible use of recoverable items to reduce investment on raw materials. Most of the waste currently generated is mostly accounted for by manufacturing industries in the small and medium scale sectors. Due to lack of common disposal sites or facilities, waste generators have been given temporary permission to store waste in their premises in some countries. This has further led to mushrooming of illegal dumpsites especially in the developing world since most of the small and medium enterprises lack adequate spaces to store such waste in their premises. In England, the government has laid out guidelines to ensure that hazardous waste is handled in a manner that does not cause harm to people, animals as well as the environment. According to Great Britain Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (2007), It is mandatory that businesses should ensure that the waste they produce causes no harm or damage, with responsibilities referred to as duty of care where a business has to meet extra requirements depending on whether one produces or stores waste, collects or transports waste or consignee meaning one receives waste for recycling or disposal. The government also considers waste hazardous if it contains asbestos, chemicals, batteries, pesticides and solvents, oils, equipment that contains ozone depleting substances as well as hazardous waste containers. Transport of hazardous waste Transporting Hazardous waste is an area of concern since packaging and modes of transportation greatly determine the likelihood of a spillage or an accident. Moreover, proper and fast identification of a spilled substance will influence how safely and effectively the situation can be contained. The risk of spillage is high during loading, transportation and when unloading. As such, transportation of hazardous waste needs to be regulated. Hazardous waste that is generated at a given site requires transport to a treatment storage facility that has been approved or a disposal facility (TSDF) as the article Materials/Chemicals Handling 2010 asserts. Due to the potential threats it poses to the well being of the public and to the environment, transportation is given special attention by the relevant authorities. Besides the occasional accidental spill, hazardous waste has in the past been deliberately abandoned or spilled at random locations in an exercise referred to as midnight dumping. This illegal exercise has been reduced greatly by introducing laws that require proper labelling, transport and tracking of all waste considered hazardous. Transportation of this waste is usually done by trucks over public highways. Only a small percentage of such waste is transported by rail and almost zero is transported via air or inland water way. Highway shipment is the most popular since road vehicles can gain access to most industrial sites and the approved waste disposal facilities (Moses & Lindstrom, 2012). Rail road trains are only suitable for very large waste shipments and require very expensive siding facilities. Hazardous waste can also be shipped in tank trucks that are made from aluminium alloy or steel with large capacities of up to 9,000 gallons. These can also be put in a container allowing shipping of 200 litre gallons. These specifications and standards for cargo tank trucks as well as the shipping containers are set regulations by the government in the US (NATO CCMS Symposium on Hazardous Waste Disposal, 2013). The USA authorities have come up with a system of regulations pertaining to the transportation of hazardous waste (Godbole, 2011). The manifest system monitors the journey of such waste from the point where it is generated to where it is finally disposed. This system helps in curtailing the notorious problem of midnight dumping. It is also vital for it determines the type and quantity of hazardous waste that is generated and the set emergency procedures in the event that an accidental spillage occurs. A manifest is a document where records are kept by the generator of the hazardous waste for example a biological research institute. The generator of the waste in this case is entrusted with the responsibility to ultimate dispose the waste and is mandatory to give the manifest together with the generated waste to a licensed waste transporter. The system requires that a copy of the manifest be delivered to the recipient of the waste by the transporter at an approved disposal site, (TSDF). A copy of the manifest must be signed every time the hazardous waste changes hands. The system also stipulates that a copy of the manifest must be retained by each party involved and additional copies must be delivered or sent to the regulatory environmental agencies. If a leakage or spillage occurs during transport, the transporter is expected to take immediate and appropriate actions including notifying local authorities of the accident. The area might need to be condoned off to allow appropriate removal of waste that could be harmful to people or to the environment. Treatment The most desirable waste management process is to minimise the quantity of waste and its source or recycling materials for other productive use. Unfortunately, reduction and recycling are not the final solution to the problem of hazardous waste disposal no matter how desirable they may seem. Further procedures of waste disposal, treatment or storage will always be required. Barth et al, 2002 says that hazardous waste is treated by thermal, biological, chemical or physical methods. Ion exchange, oxidation and reduction, precipitation and neutralisation constitute chemical treatment. Thermal methods include incineration in high temperatures which destroys or detoxifies certain organic wastes. There are certain types of thermal equipments used to burn waste in any form such as liquid or solid. However, this method has a potential for air pollution. Land-farming is a biological method of treating waste such as that from petroleum industry. This technique entails mixing the waste with surface soil on a selected tract of land. Microbes are then added to metabolise the waste along with nutrients. Food growing is avoided on such land. Microbes are also used to stabilize the waste on previously contaminated sites in a process referred to as bioremediation. The treatment processes change the molecular form of the hazardous waste but the physical method solidifies, concentrates, and reduces the volume of the waste. These methods include sedimentation, filtration, flotation and evaporation. Solidification on the other hand entails encapsulating the waste in concrete, plastic or asphalt such that a solid mass that is resistant to leaching is produced (Barth et al, 2002) . To form solid cement like product, waste can be mixed with lime, fly ash and water. Storage In the article, The treatment, recovery, recycling and safe disposal of waste electrical and electronic equipment 2007, some hazardous wastes are not destroyed by the treatment processes and need to be disposed off properly. For such wastes, land disposal seems like the most viable option despite the inherent environmental risks it poses. There are two basic methods of land disposal being underground injection and land-filling. Before land disposal, containment systems or surface storage are normally used though temporarily. Storage facilities used for temporary storage are open waste ponds or lagoons. New waste piles are often created over an impervious base and it is a must that they comply with regulations set similar to those of landfills. The regulations require that the piles be protected from erosion or wind dispersion. Monitoring and control systems should be provided if leachate is generated. Non containerised and non flowing waste is stored in a new waste pile and should be land filled if the waste becomes unmanageable. A lagoon is an open pit or a holding pond that offers temporary storage for hazardous liquid waste. To protect ground water, new lagoons are lined with impervious clay soils as well as flexible membrane liners (Baba & Garba, 2012). Open lagoons do not provide treatment of waste. They only provide some amount of sedimentation, a little surface aeration and evaporation of volatile organics. As such sludge that accumulates over time must be periodically removed and handled further as hazardous waste. Land filling of hazardous waste is faced with tougher regulations than other solid waste. Liquid waste can also be disposed through deep well injection which entails pumping liquid waste in to a porous layer or limestone through a steel casing. High pressures are then applied such that the liquid is forced into the fissures and pores of the rock. This process is not expensive and does not require pre treatment of waste (Cabaniss, 2008). This method however is potentially dangerous as it can leak hazardous waste polluting the subsurface water supplies. Conclusion Hazardous waste should be handled with utmost care as it can cause irreparable damage as well as death to living organism and affect the environment in the long term. Hazardous waste should only be handled by people who have had prior training in hazardous waste management such as engineers in the event of nuclear waste. People also need to be sensitized on the potential risks associated with hazardous waste and especially inhabitants of old waste facilities and people living near the mentioned institutions that are likely to produce such waste. References Baba, M. T., & Garba, I. (October 01, 2012). Evaluation of moisture content of Yola municipal solid waste for energy production. Journal of Emerging Trends in Engineering and Applied Sciences, 3, 5, 770-773. Barth, R. C., George, P. D., Hill, R. H., & American Industrial Hygiene Association. (2002). Environmental health and safety for hazardous waste sites. Fairfax, Va: American Industrial Hygiene Association. Cabaniss, A. D. (2008). Handbook on household hazardous waste. Lanham, Md: Government Institute/Scarecrow Press. Hoffmann, G., Schirmer, M., Bilitewski, B., & Kaszás, S. M. (January 01, 2007). Thermal treatment of harzardous waste for heavy metal recovery. Journal of Hazardous Materials, 145, 3, 351-7. Great Britain. Dept. for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. (2007). Waste strategy for England 2007. London: The Stationery Office. Great Britain. (2007). The treatment, recovery, recycling and safe disposal of waste electrical and electronic equipment. London: TSO. Godbole, N. (January 01, 2011). E-Waste Management. Martin, W. F., Lippitt, J. M., & Webb, P. J. (2000). Hazardous waste handbook for health and safety. Boston: Butterworth-Heinemann. Materials/Chemicals Handling. (January 01, 2010). 3-86. Moses, L. N., & Lindstrom, D. (2012). Transportation of Hazardous Materials: Issues in Law, Social Science, and Engineering. Boston, MA: Springer US. MARTIN, W. I. L. L. I. A. M. F. (1993). Protecting Personnel at Hazardous Waste Sites. Elsevier Science. NATO CCMS Symposium on Hazardous Waste Disposal, Lehman, J. P., & North Atlantic Treaty Organization. (2013). Hazardous waste disposal. New York: Plenum Press. Wilson, D., Balkau, F., Thurgood, M., International Solid Waste Association. United Nations Environment Programme & Secretariat of the Basel Convention. (2002). Training resource pack for hazardous waste management in developing economies. Paris, France: United Nations Environment Programme, Division of Technology, Industry and Economics Read More