Geological Aspect of Hazardous Waste Management

Municipal solid waste (MSW), commonly known as trash or garbage (US), refuse or rubbish (UK) is
a waste type consisting of everyday items that are discarded by the public. Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) is
useless or unwanted material discarded as a result of human or animal activity. Most commonly it is solids,
semisolids or liquids in containers thrown out of houses, commercial or industrial premises.
Municipal Solid Waste Management (MSWM) is the generation, separation, collection, transfer,
transportation and disposal of waste in a way that takes into account public health, economics,
conservation, aesthetics, and the environment, and is responsive to public demands.
Composition
The composition of municipal waste varies greatly from country to country and changes significantly with
time.

Biodegradable waste: food and kitchen waste, green waste, paper (can also be recycled).
Recyclable material: paper, glass, bottles, cans, metals,
certain plastics, fabrics, clothes, batteries etc.

Inert waste: construction and demolition waste, dirt, rocks, debris.

Electrical and electronic waste (WEEE) - electrical appliances, TVs, , computers, screens, etc.

Composite wastes: waste clothing, Tetra Packs, waste plastics such as toys.

Hazardous waste including most paints, chemicals, light bulbs, fluorescent tubes, spray
cans, fertilizer and containers
Toxic waste including pesticide, herbicides, fungicides

Medical waste.
The functional elements of solid waste
The municipal solid waste industry has four components: recycling, composting, landfilling, and waste-toenergy via incineration.[4] The primary steps are generation, collection, sorting and separation, transfer, and
disposal.
Waste generation
Activities in which materials are identified as no longer being of value and are either thrown out or gathered
together for disposal.
Collection
The functional element of collection includes not only the gathering of solid waste and recyclable materials,
but also the transport of these materials, after collection, to the location where the collection vehicle is
emptied. This location may be a materials processing facility, a transfer station or a landfill disposal site.

Geological Aspect of Hazardous Waste Management

Waste handling and separation, storage and processing at the source

Waste handling and separation involves activities associated with waste management until the waste is
placed in storage containers for collection. Handling also encompasses the movement of loaded containers
to the point of collection. Separating different types of waste components is an important step in the
handling and storage of solid waste at the source.
Separation and processing and transformation of solid wastes
The types of means and facilities that are now used for the recovery of waste materials that have been
separated at the source include curbside collection, drop off and buy back centers. The separation and
processing of wastes that have been separated at the source and the separation of commingled wastes
usually occur at a materials recovery facility, transfer stations, combustion facilities and disposal sites.
Transfer and transport
This element involves two main steps. First, the waste is transferred from a smaller collection vehicle to
larger transport equipment. The waste is then transported, usually over long distances, to a processing or
disposal site.
Disposal
Today, the disposal of wastes by land filling or land spreading is the ultimate fate of all solid wastes,
whether they are residential wastes collected and transported directly to a landfill site, residual materials
from materials recovery facilities (MRFs), residue from the combustion of solid waste, compost, or other
substances from various solid waste processing facilities. A modern sanitary landfill is not a dump; it is an
engineered facility used for disposing of solid wastes on land without creating nuisances or hazards to
public health or safety, such as the breeding of insects and the contamination of ground water.
Energy generation
Municipal solid waste can be used to generate energy. Several technologies have been developed that
make the processing of MSW for energy generation cleaner and more economical than ever before,
including landfill gas capture, combustion, pyrolysis, gasification, and plasma arc gasification.While older
waste incineration plants emitted high levels of pollutants, recent regulatory changes and new technologies
have significantly reduced this concern. United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulations
in 1995 and 2000 under the Clean Air Act have succeeded in reducing emissions of dioxins from waste-toenergy facilities by more than 99 percent below 1990 levels, while mercury emissions have been by over
90 percent. The EPA noted these improvements in 2003, citing waste-to-energy as a power source with
less environmental impact than almost any other source of electricity .
How does MSW affect us?
Improper disposal of MSW has serious results for the environment and human health. Problems can
spread over a wide area. For example disposal of wastes into nallahs, canals and rivers can pollute the
water supply along the whole length of the watercourse. Infections and diseases can spread from dump
sites into the general population.
Health Hazards
Skin and eye infections are common
Dust in the air at dumpsites can cause breathing problems in children and adults
Flies breed on uncovered piles of rotting garbage and spread diseases like diarrhea, dysentery, typhoid,
hepatitis, and cholera. Mosquitoes transmit many types of diseases like malaria and yellow fever

Geological Aspect of Hazardous Waste Management

Dogs, cats and rats living around refuse carry a variety of diseases including plague and flea born fever
Intestinal, parasitic and skin diseases are found in workers engaged in collecting refuse.
Ground water pollution
The most serious problem is groundwater contamination. As water filters through any material, chemicals in
the material may dissolve in the water, a process called leaching. The resulting mixture is called leachate.
As water percolates through MSW, it makes a leachate that consists of decomposing organic matter
combined with iron, mercury, lead, zinc, and other metals from rusting cans, discarded batteries and
appliances. It may also contain paints, pesticides, cleaning fluids, newspaper inks, and other chemicals.
Contaminated water can have a serious impact on all living creatures, including humans, in an ecosystem.
Air pollution
When waste is burnt heavy metals like lead, toxic gases and smoke spreads over residential areas. The
wind also carries waste, dust and gases caused by decomposition. Putrefaction of waste in sunlight during
daytime results in bad smells and reduced visibility.
The solution
There is an urgent need to manage MSW from the time it is created to its safe disposal. The public and
local municipal authorities need to work together. It is important to create awareness about the
consequences of pollution so that people become conscious of the need to deal with this problem.
Legislation
According to a World Bank report, Pakistan has responded to its environmental problems by developing
laws, establishing Government agencies and accepting technical assistance from donors, including the
World Bank. Despite this, the response remains fragmented and environmental institutions, laws, and other
initiatives do not solve the whole problem.
Environmental legislation is still not well developed in Pakistan, especially in comparison to the developed
world. For example, there are no national quality standards for MSW.
Install waste disposal facilities:
Currently, individuals dispose off wastes by throwing away plastic bags, wrappers, fruit peels, cigarette
butts, etc. in public places. Littering spreads pollution and ends up clogging drains and causing sanitation
problems. This can be controlled by making roadside dustbins or proper disposal of waste at home. If
proper waste management is practiced, this waste could be converted into useful products.
Reduce The best way to reduce waste is not to produce it in the first place. Everyone should try to reduce
his/her consumption of goods as much as possible. For example, choose products with minimum
packaging and instead of accepting plastic bags when shopping, use cloth bags.
Reuse
Items should not just be thrown away after use if they can be used again. Doing this results in a reduction
in waste and better conservation of resources. Items, which can be re-used, include glass jars and bottles,
and plastic bags.
Recycle
Recycling means creating new things from used items. Almost 20-30 per cent of MSW contains materials
which could be recycled. For instance:
Paper can be re-pulped and reprocessed into recycled paper, cardboard and other paper products.
Broken glass can be crushed, re-melted and made into containers.

Geological Aspect of Hazardous Waste Management

Some forms of plastic can be re-melted and fabricated into carpet fiber or cloth.
Food wastes and yard wastes can be composted to produce fertilisers and soil conditioners.