1. What does it mean?
2 Kinds of Waste
Throw Away
Society
Examples
Where does it go?
Nonbiodegradable
Biodegradable

2. Landfills
Regulations
Waste
Incinerators
Waste to Energy

3. The Throw Away Society
Holt Environmental Ch 12

4. What does it mean?
Every person produces 4.5lbs of trash per day (on average)
Each year, more than 10billion tons of solid waste is produced in
America
Solid waste is any discarded material that is not a liquid or gas.

5. The Mobro 4000 was a barge made infamous in 1987 for hauling the same load of trash along the east coast of North America from New York to Belize and back until a way was found to dispose of the garbage. During this journey, local press often referred to the Mobro 4000 as
the Gar-barge
It eventually went back to New York where the trash was incinerated

6. The Throw Away Society
Many products today are designed to be used once and then thrown away
Many products also have unnecessary or excess packaging

7. This graph shows the total amount of municipal solid waste per year in the US as well as a breakdown of the major waste components. The increase in waste is tied to an increasing dependence on disposable products.

8. All Wastes Are Not Equal
2 kinds of waste biodegradable and non-biodegradable
Biodegradable materials are materials that can be broken down by living organisms into simpler chemicals that can be consumed by living things
Non-biodegradable materials are made from synthetic materials and cannot be broken down

9. Non-biodegradable Materials
Plastics
Styrofoam
Metals
Circuit boards
Ceramic
Biodegradable Materials
Newspapers
Paper bags
Cotton fiber
Leather

10. Where does it go? About 32% of our trash is recycled
6% in 1970
25% in 2000
39% in 2009 (latest statistic)
The rest is sent to landfills or incinerated

11. Landfills About 56% of our waste ends up in landfills
Newer landfills are line with clay or plastic and have a system for treating leachate – water that contains toxic chemicals dissolved from wastes in a landfill
Methane is produced and can seep into basements through the ground- also is highly flammable

12. New landfills needs vents to carry methane out of the landfill
Safeguards for landfills increase the costs of building them
There are many objections to building landfills but many of the country’s landfills are expected to fill up and close in the next 10 years.
Items in a landfill take a very long time to break down

14. EPA Regulations These must be met in order to build a new landfill:
Installation of clay or plastic liners
Collecting and treating leachate
Monitoring ground water and surface water quality
Monitoring for escaping methane gas

15. Incinerators Much of our trash is burned
Waste incinerators are used to burn solid waste
About 14% of trash produced in the US is burned (30 million tons)
Japan and Switzerland burn more than half of their waste to create waste to energy plants
Cons: creates air pollution and water pollution
Plastics create dioxins which are carcinogens
The solid ash that is created is then dumped into a landfill
If the ash contains heavy metals it is hazardous and needs to be disposed of properly which increases the cost of running the incinerator

16. Waste to Energy Plants (Incinerators Pros)
Produce electricity or steam which can be used by industries or residential developments
These plants produce 2,816 Megawatts per hour

18. Questions
Why do non-biodegradable wastes cause waste-management problems?
What is one advantage of incinerating solid waste? What is one disadvantage?
Expand: Name one non-biodegradable product you use and think of a biodegradable substitute for it.