Choose your type of waste and best way to deal with it
Choose your type of waste and best way to deal with it
The composting process turns organic waste into fertilizer that can be used to nourish plants. Most food waste can be composted, and even unsafe organic items can be turned into safe composting. Compost is then added to soil to provide nutrients and encourage growth.
Find a landfill that accepts asbestos Some landfills accept either domestic or commercial asbestos. Others accept both commercial and domestic asbestos. For households, you don’t need waste transport certificates when you transport asbestos to landfills in your own vehicle.
When waste is sent to a landfill, it is confined to a small area, compacted when necessary, and then buried in the earth. As the waste decomposes, it releases gases that can be converted to natural gases used for power and fuel.
The composting process involves microorganisms feeding on organic material and consuming oxygen.The process generates heat, drives off moisture, and reduces bulky organic waste into a beneficial soil-like material containing nutrients, humus and microorganisms in just a few months..
Recently, a cutting-edge technology has broken into the waste management scene. Rapid thermophilic digestion can convert organic wastes into organic fertilizer in just 24 hours. This technology adopts the aerobic digestion system, meaning that the microorganisms inside the waste break down with the presence of oxygen from the atmosphere.
The double leachate collection system consists of a network of perforated pipes placed above each liner. The upper system prevents the accumulation of leachate trapped in the fill, and the lower serves as a backup. Collected leachate is pumped to a treatment plant. In order to reduce the amount of leachate in the fill and minimize the potential for environmental damage, an impermeable cap or cover is placed over a finished landfill.
This is the burning of your hazardous waste into an incombustible residue. Hazardous wastes are placed in enclosed devices and burned. It is generally used in areas where there is minimal space for landfills, as this can drastically reduce the volume of waste. The waste is first detoxified to reduce the release of toxic gases into the atmosphere. Incineration is an ideal option for waste minimization and detoxification, although its operating expenses are high.
Over time, the radioactivity of nuclear material does decay, so storing this material until it is no longer radioactive is another way to deal with proper nuclear waste disposal. This process, called radioactive decay, depends on the amount of materials and the radioactivity level. Therefore, storage is typically only done with radioactive waste that has a shorter half-life, or the amount of time it takes for the material’s radioactivity to be reduced by half.
For some radioactive material, such as previously used fuel, certain radioactive elements can be processed or extracted for reuse. Uranium and plutonium elements have long lives, so they can be separated and recycled.
Recently, a cutting-edge technology has broken into the waste management scene. Rapid thermophilic digestion can convert organic wastes into organic fertilizer in just 24 hours. This technology adopts the aerobic digestion system, meaning that the microorganisms inside the waste break down with the presence of oxygen from the atmosphere.
Since biodegradable or organic wastes like vegetable peels, waste food, leaves, dead flowers, and egg shells can be recycled, they are converted into manure by burying them in compost pits. Recycling of organic wastes like vegetable peels, waste food, leaves, etc., by burying them in compost pits is called composting. Composting is a simple and almost effortless process of recycling. The biodegradable wastes are degraded by the action of small organisms like bacteria and fungi.
Some non-biodegradable waste like used rubber tires and plastic can be burned at combustion facilities. Most of these facilities use the heat generated by incineration to make energy in the form of steam or electricity, which reduces their demand for other nonrenewable resources, including coal and petroleum
Separate glass, plastic and metal from other non-biodegradable waste for recycling. Many urban and suburban areas have curbside recycling programs; if such a program is not available, take recyclable materials to the nearest collection facility for processing. Recycling saves space in landfills and reduces the amount of virgin materials that must be mined or manufactured to make new products, saving energy and reducing global climate change in the process
Transmutation also poses a solution for long term disposal. It specifically involves converting a chemical element into another less harmful one. Common conversions include going from Chlorine to Argon or from Potassium to Argon. The driving force behind transmutation is chemical reactions that are caused from an outside stimulus, such as a proton hitting the reaction materials. Natural transmutation can also occur over a long period of time. Natural transmutation also serves as the principle force behind geological storage on the assumption that giving the waste enough isolated time will allow it to become a non-fissionable material that poses little or no risk
The process of geological disposal centers on burrowing nuclear waste into the ground to the point where it is out of human reach. There are a number of issues that can arise as a result of placing waste in the ground. The waste needs to be properly protected to stop any material from leaking out. Seepage from the waste could contaminate the water table if the burial location is above or below the water level. Furthermore, the waste needs to be properly fastened to the burial site and also structurally supported in the event of a major seismic event, which could result in immediate contamination. Also, given the half-life noted above, a huge concern centers around how feasible it would be to even assume that nuclear waste could simply lie in repository that far below the ground. Concerns regarding terrorism also arise.