This document provides an introduction to solid waste management. It defines solid waste and discusses why waste management is important from public health and environmental perspectives. It also outlines the key components of waste management systems, including generation, collection, processing, disposal and planning. The document discusses current issues in waste management and different approaches to addressing these issues, such as applying the waste hierarchy and principles of sustainability.

1. Introduction to Waste Management
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Copyright Anders Damgaard & Morton A. Barlaz, NC State University
• What is solid waste
• Why manage it
• Material flows
• Waste management systems
• Issues in waste management
• Approaches in waste management

2. What is solid waste
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Copyright Anders Damgaard & Morton A. Barlaz, NC State University
• No universally accepted definition exists
• A useful definition:
“Waste is a left-over, a redundant product or material of no or
marginal value for the owner and which the owner wants to
discard” (Solid Waste Technology and Management)
• The definition suggests that waste depends on time (e.g. new
products, war/shortage), location (e.g rural/small town vs. urban,
climatic differences), culture (e.g food-wise), and social
conditions (e.g. poor vs. rich)
• Focus on municipal waste in this class

3. Definitions – Other wastes
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Copyright Anders Damgaard & Morton A. Barlaz, NC State University
• Construction wastes:
– From work on individual residences and
commercial/industrial buildings
• Demolition wastes:
– Dirt, stones, concrete, bricks, plastics, lumber, pipes,
shingle from razed buildings
• Agricultural wastes:
– Wastes from agricultural sources

4. Why manage it?
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• We generate over 350 million tons per year
• Every governmental unit must address solid
waste management
• Waste will cause public health problems if not
managed properly

5. Naples, July 2007
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6. The current state of
solid waste management
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• New landfills and waste-to-energy facilities are difficult
to site
• Public interest in landfill diversion is high and is thought
to represent a solution to waste problems
• The perceived risks associated with any waste
management facility are high

7. The current state of
solid waste management
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• Solid waste is an area where the technical and
political processes must work together.
• Solid waste is a local issue, not something that
just occurs in industrial areas.

8. Material Flow and Waste - 1
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ref. Vesilind et al 2002

9. Material Flow and Waste - 2
Brunner and Rechberger, 2004
Solid:
12-18
Solid:
Ca. 6
∆ stock
6-12
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Vienna,
Austria

10. Waste and Economy
Danish EPA, 2005
Denmark
Copyright Anders Damgaard & Morton A. Barlaz, NC State University 10

11. Waste Management Systems
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Copyright Anders Damgaard & Morton A. Barlaz, NC State University

12.  GENERATION  STORAGE
 COLLECTION  TRANSPORT
 PROCESSING  DISPOSAL
 POST-DISPOSAL MONITORING
 PLANNING  FINANCING
 PERMITTING  PUBLIC RELATIONS
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Copyright Anders Damgaard & Morton A. Barlaz, NC State University
Waste management areas

13. • Generation
– Categories
– Types
– Quantities
– Composition
• Material fractions
• Substances
• Treatment
– Mechanical
• Air classifier, magnet
– Thermal
• Incineration
• Pyrolysis/gasification
– Biological
• Composting
• Anaerobic Digestion
• Collection and transport
– Source segregation
– In-house collection
– Collection stations (drop-off)
– Collection
– Transfer stations & transport
• Recycling Utilization and Disposal
– Recycling
• Paper, plastic, metal, glass –
Utilization
• Compost as soil amendment
• Bottom ash in roads
• RDF in cement kilns
• Energy –
Landfilling
• Ash monofill vs. MSW
• Gas recovery for energy

14. 14
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15. Copyright Anders Damgaard & Morton A. Barlaz, NC State University
Current waste management in the US
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Based on The State of Garbage in USA 2010
100%
90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
District
of
Columbia
Oklahoma
Alaska
Mississippi
Georgia
North
Dakota
Tennessee
Montana
Colorado
Nevada
Idaho
Illinois
Nebraska
Wyoming
Utah
New
Mexico
Michigan
Arizona
Louisiana
Rhode
Island
Alabama
Indiana
North
Carolina
West
Virginia
South
Dakota
Missouri
Arkansas
Ohio
Kentuckys
Texas
Kansas
Florida
Wisconsin
Delaware
South
Carolina
New
Hampshire
Iowa
Vermont
Washington
Virginia
Minnesota
Hawaii
New
Jersey
Oregon
Pennsylvania
New
York
Maryland
California
Massachusetts
Maine
Connecticut
Recycled Composted To WTE Landfilled

16. Issues in solid waste: 1
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Copyright Anders Damgaard & Morton A. Barlaz, NC State University
• Volume - space: Needs to be actively taken away.
Does not disappear by itself
• Nuisances: Odours, flies, etc. Waste being spread by
dogs, wind etc. becomes un-esthetical
• Public health issues: Pathogens (bacteria, virus,
protozoan, intestinal worm eggs, fungi) in the waste are
spread by vectors (flies, rats, etc.) or infected or
transmitting vectors are attracted by the waste

17. Issues in solid waste: 2
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• Economy: The scale of waste generation makes
economy an important issue
• Contamination of the environment: Waste
components transferred to air, water or soil may cause
contamination
• Resource issues: Waste contains resources that
should be used in order to save on other resources

18. Waste management criteria: 1
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The ideal waste management system:
• Provide a customised and robust handling of all waste
with a minimum of effort for the customer
• Result in the lowest possible load on the environment in
terms of noise and contamination of air, water and soil
• Provide a maximum of resource recovery from the
waste while minimising use of resource in the waste
handling

19. Waste management criteria: 2
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• Provide only little impact on the city with respect to
traffic, vehicle exhaust, noise, traffic accidents and spill
of waste
• Include architectural considerations in establishing
waste collection and treatment facilities

20. Waste management criteria: 3
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• As a minimum enforce current laws, regulations and
code of practice
• Economically acceptable!
• Ultimately, understanding the economics of waste
management will lead to an understanding of why
material flows in the way that it does

21. Approaches to management: 1
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• Common sense strategy: Some issues should meet defined
minimum standards (occupational health, level of service,
compatibility with regulations, etc.), while the balancing of the other
issues is a matter of discussion/ policy
• Waste hierarchy (3-5 levels):
- waste minimization and cleaner technology
- waste reuse and recycling (definition is partly political)
- incineration with energy recovery
- landfilling

22. Approaches to management: 2
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• Sustainability: World Commission on Environment and
Development, 1987 (The Brundtland-report: Our Common Future)
defines: Development that meets the needs of the present without
compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own
needs.
• Not many direct suggestions, but a way of thinking: long term
issues should receive more attention, each generation solves its
own problems, local responsibility, etc.

23. Approaches to management: 3
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• Life-cycle assessment (LCA) is a common tool used in evaluation
and minimising the environmental impact of industrial products, but
still fairly new in waste management:
• LCI: Life cycle inventory is the basis: account of all mass flows and
emissions as well as energy use and production. We will do some
in this class.
• LCIA: Life cycle impact assessment: converts LCI to potential
impacts and compares these, e.g., Global Warming

24. Nicaragua Recycling and Landfill
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25. Drop-Off Recycling in Delaware
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26. A Landfill in Virginia
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