2. HOW DOES IT HAPPEN?
Waste disposal, in a society like ours,
also known as the "consumer society",
is one of the most serious problems to
be solved. Not only because it causes
environmental pollution but also
because of the waste of new materials
and the energy needed to produce
them.
Waste disposal can take place in
different ways depending on their
characteristics. Waste can be disposed
of in landfills; burned in incinerators;
treated in composting or other
specialized plants; recycled for a new
or different use.
3. DISPOSAL OF WASTE IN LANDFILLS
Landfills are the cheapest disposal system.
About five-sixths of the garbage collected in Italy still ends up in open landfills,
which are now completely full.
Today, landfills are controlled installations. They are in fact equipped with both
waterproofing systems and systems that recover the gas produced by the
fermentation of waste.
Despite this, landfilling remains
the worst solution. It is the worst
solution because it represents,
first of all, a great waste of
materials and energy and
secondly because landfills occupy
large spaces, and it is increasingly
difficult to find suitable places in
which to place them.
4. DISPOSAL OF WASTE AT INCINERATORS
The waste can also be taken to the few
incinerators, in which case the waste is incinerated
in special ovens, recovering the heat to produce the
steam that will run a turbine, or for heating
purposes.
These plants, called waste-to-energy plants, to
function well, must treat waste with a high calorific
value, that is, those that produce a lot of heat when
they burn, such as paper, wood and plastic, but not
organic waste. Furthermore, they must have
adequate fume purification systems.
5. RECYCLE WASTE
From an ecological point of view, recycling, or the process of transforming
waste into reusable materials, is the most advantageous alternative to
conventional waste disposal systems. In fact, recycling has numerous
advantages:
❖ the reduction of the extraction of non-renewable resources
❖ reduction of the exploitation of renewable resources
❖ the reduction of energy consumption
❖ reduction of atmospheric emissions of substances responsible for the
greenhouse effect
❖ the reduction of water consumption linked to production processes.
In recent years, public opinion has
begun to develop an ecological
awareness of respect for the
environment that has convinced
citizens of the need to collect waste
with criteria, dividing it according to its
nature: separate collection is the first
essential step to their recycling.
6. COMPOSTING PLANTS
Waste disposal can also be done in composting plants. Composting concerns the waste of organic
substances:
❖ household products, such as kitchen waste;
❖ products that come from markets and food shops, restaurants, canteens, etc .;
❖ plant material deriving from the maintenance of public and private parks and gardens;
❖ sludge from sewage treatment plants.
These organic substances, sent to landfills, contribute
significantly to the formation of biogas which must be
burned in order not to cause unpleasant odors. It also
produces very polluting waters, which form at the bottom of
landfills: it is for this reason that landfills must be lined with
waterproof material! The best solution for organic
substances therefore consists in a separate collection to
produce an organic fertilizer called compost.
7. REUSE
Reuse is understood as any operation through which products, which
are not yet real waste, are reused for the same purpose for which
they were designed. We are therefore talking about extending the life
of the product while maintaining its function of use. In this context, new
business opportunities are opening up: the used and secondary
materials markets, a turnover of tens of millions of euros, by no means
negligible, which is destined to grow with the crisis.
