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606 Chapter 19 • Study Guide

Lesson 3 hazardous Waste• Waste that is ignitable, corrosive, chemically reactive, or

toxic is considered to be hazardous waste.• Both industry and the private sector produce hazardous

wastes. Organic compounds and heavy metals are particu-larly hazardous because they remain toxic for long periods of time. The amount of e-waste is growing rapidly.

• There are three main ways to dispose of hazardous wastes—landfills, surface impoundments, and injection wells.

• Radioactive waste is particularly dangerous to human health and is persistent in the environment.

• Hazardous waste is regulated and monitored, but illegal dumping is a problem. The two main laws that govern haz-ardous waste are the Resource Conservation and Recov-ery Act (RCRA) and the Comprehensive Environmental Response Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA), otherwise known as the Superfund.

e-waste (598) surface impoundment (600) deep-well injection (600) radioactive waste (601) Superfund (602)

InquIry LABs And ActIvItIes• Where Waste Goes What gets recycled, reused, or removed? Use your

town’s guidelines for disposal to create your own household recommendations.

• Overpackaging Single-serving packs may be convenient, but do they

make ecological or environmental sense? Use area and volume to find out what they really cost.

• Observing a Compost Make your own compost container from a 2-liter

plastic bottle. Predict what will happen as materials decompose.

Lesson 1 Municipal and Industrial Waste• The three main categories of waste include municipal solid

waste, industrial waste, and hazardous waste. Municipal solid waste is nonliquid waste that comes from homes, institutions, and small businesses. Industrial waste is waste that comes from the production of consumer goods, mining, agriculture, and petroleum extraction and refin-ing. Hazardous waste is solid or liquid waste that is toxic, chemically reactive, flammable, or corrosive.

• Current solid waste disposal methods are based on ancient practices of dumping, burying, or burning waste. In sanitary landfills, waste is buried in the ground or piled up in large mounds. Incineration is a controlled process in which mixed garbage is burned at very high temperatures.

waste (582) municipal solid waste (582) industrial waste (582) hazardous waste (582) sanitary landfill (585) leachate (585) incineration (587)

Lesson 2 Minimizing Solid Waste• One of the best ways to manage solid waste is to reduce

the amount we generate. One way to reduce the amount of solid waste we generate is to consume less. Other strate-gies include using less packaging, banning certain plastics, and designing goods that last longer.

• The amount of waste can also be reduced by composting and recycling. Composting is the conversion of organic waste into mulch or humus through decomposition. Recycling is the collection of materials that can be broken down and reprocessed to make new items.

source reduction (589) biodegradable (590) composting (592) recycling (593) material recovery facility (MRF) (594)

Lesson 2 What is the best way to manage

our solid waste?

Lesson 1 How does our current waste dis-posal impact our environment?

Lesson 3 How can we best reduce the impact of hazardous waste?

How do our choices as consumers and waste producers

affect our environment?

STUDY RESOURCES

Chapter 19 Self Test • Chapter 19 Worksheets • Chapter 19 Overview Presentation (for PowerPoint)

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The Central Case in this chapter looked at what happened to a landfill in one our nation’s largest cities. Ultimately, all landfills meet their capacity. Based on what you have learned about reducing the waste stream, would you advocate federal regulations mandating recovery (reuse, recycle, compost)? Use information from the Central Case and the lesson to support your stand.

7. Heavy metals a. are less hazardous after incineration. b. are only harmful when radioactive. c. pose no threat after repeated exposure. d. bioaccumulate in animal tissues.

8. Which of the following represents the largest source of unregulated hazardous waste?

a. farms c. industries b. households d. utility companies

9. E-wastes, such as the discarded computer parts below, are a source of

a. radioactive materials. b. heavy metals. c. compostable organic compounds. d. corrosive acids.

10. All of the following are methods of disposal of solid wastes EXCEPT

a. landfills. c. incineration. b. open dumping. d. recovery.

Modified True/FalseWrite true if the statement is true. If it is false, change the underlined word or words to make the statement true.

11. Plant materials can be put into a compost pile instead of municipal garbage.

12. The waste management practice of recycling involves burning garbage at high temperatures.

13. In the United States, a large portion of municipal solid waste comes from packaging and nondu-rable goods.

Review Concepts and Terms 1. Which of the following produces the largest

amount of hazardous waste? a. farms c. industries b. households d. utility companies

2. To safeguard against groundwater contamination, sanitary landfills are

a. located far from populated areas. b. lined with plastic and clay. c. covered with cement. d. located on slopes so that water runs downhill.

3. Which item should you NOT put in your com-post pile?

a. food scraps c. coffee grinds b. autumn leaves d. plastic

4. U.S. industrial waste a. is mostly wastewater. b. excludes mining waste. c. is shipped overseas. d. is regulated the same as municipal waste.

5. Items that are not easily broken down in nature are

a. biodegradable. c. toxic wastes. b. nonbiodegradable. d. corrosive.

6. Substances that can eat through metals are a. ignitable. c. corrosive. b. toxic. d. reactive.

ANSWERS

Chapter Assessment For answers to the Chapter Assessment, see page A–31 at the back of the book.

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608 Chapter 19 • Assessment

14. Currently in the United States plastic products are the largest component of municipal solid waste.

15. The law that helps identify and clean up hazard-ous waste sites is CERCLA (Superfund).

Reading ComprehensionRead the following selection and answer the questions that follow.Our society’s “throwaway” mentality has fueled the demand for paper and plastic goods. It has also added to our waste disposal problem. Recycling has value as long as the recycling loop is closed. It works when people purchase the recycled items. From recycled paper, we can make paper towels and paperboard for packaging cereal, shoes, and toys. From recycled plastic, we can make carpets, pillows, and new bottles.

In order for recycling to be profitable, there can be no cross-contamination. For example, adding food, plastic, or paperboard to the paper collection reduces the paper’s value. Even glass bottles must be sorted by color.

Plastic grocery bags (recycling symbol #4, LDPE) are the most widely used plastic, but not the most recycled plastic. The most widely recycled plastics are beverage bottles (#1, PET and #2, HDPE). Con-tainers for toxic substances, such as motor oil and pesticides, are not included in recycling due to contamination risks. Styrofoam is not collected with other plastics because it is also a contaminant.

16. LDPE is the a. most widely recycled plastic. b. toxin found in plastics. c. plastic used to make grocery bags. d. only plastic that cannot be recycled.

17. Closing the recycling loop means that we must a. avoid contaminating collected materials for

recycling. b. find ways to compost biodegradable plastics. c. purchase items made from recycled goods. d. stop making disposable goods.

Short Answer 18. What is the best solution for reducing the solid

waste problem? 19. Why were the first bottle bills introduced and

passed into law? 20. What is a WTE facility? Explain what it does and

what WTE means. 21. What is composting and what are its advantages? 22. Describe the growing problem with e-waste. 23. What are the three parts of a successful recycling

program? 24. What four criteria are used to define hazardous

wastes? 25. Why are heavy metals and synthetic organic com-

pounds particularly dangerous?

Critical Thinking 26. Explain How can we reduce the amount of mate-

rial that ends up in landfills? 27. Form an Opinion Some nations make manu-

facturers responsible for reducing e-waste. Companies must recover used and discarded elec-tronic equipment that they sell to consumers. Do you think this is a good idea? Would you support it? Why or why not? If you do not support it, offer an alternate means of reducing e-waste.

28. Draw Conclusions The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act requires large generators of hazardous waste to track hazardous materials “from cradle to grave.” Explain what this means.

29. Apply Concepts U.S. households generate a great deal of hazardous waste. Most of this waste ends up in ordinary landfills or incinerators. What sort of policies do we need in place to ensure safer waste management?

Ecological Footprints

Municipal Solid Waste Trends (in millions of tons)

Recycling

Composting

Incineration

Land�ll

Total Waste

5.6

*

0.0

82.5

88.1

8.0

*

0.4

112.7

121.1

14.5

*

2.7

134.4

151.6

29.0

4.2

29.7

142.3

205.2

52.8

16.5

33.7

135.3

238.3

58.6

20.6

33.4

135.6

248.2

1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2005Activity

Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Facts and Figures for 2006.

*Negligible amount

You

Your class

Your state

United States

1 7.56 2760

U.S. Average(lb)

Day Year

2.64 963.6

Day Year

1.47 536.5

Day Year

Average of High–income Nations (lb)

World Average(lb)

Population Per Person MSW Generation RatesGroups Generating Municipal Solid Waste

Data from Simmons, P., et al. 2006. The State of Garbage in America. BioCycle. 47:26.

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The town’s landfill will hold up to 1 million tons of MSW. How many years will it take to fill the landfill? To calculate, use the average amount of MSW generated in the U.S. What other assumptions are you making in your calculations?

2. Suppose your town of 50,000 people generated the same amount of MSW as the world average. How many tons of MSW would the town generate per day? per year? How much longer would a landfill of the same capacity serve the town?

Read the information below. Copy the table into your notebook, and record your calculations. Then, answer the questions that follow.

The “State of Garbage in America” survey shows how much municipal solid waste (MSW) U.S. residents generate. Results vary from state to state. In 2006, the daily average was 7.56 pounds MSW per person. By com-parison, other high-income nations generate 2.64 pounds of waste a day. The world average is 1.47 pounds per day. Calculate the amount of MSW generated in 1 day and in 1 year by each of the groups if they generated waste at the rate of the U.S., other high-income nations, and the world average. For the U.S., convert the pounds of MSW to tons. (Hint: Divide pounds by 2000.) 1. Suppose you are a town manager in a

town of 50,000 people. The council wants to have a landfill built nearby.

Analyze DataThe graph below shows trends in managing municipal solid waste from 1960 to 2005. Use the data to answer the questions.

30. Compare and Contrast Look at trends in municipal solid waste (MSW) from 1960 to 1990. How does landfill use compare to incinerator use? What happened from 1990 to 2005?

31. Interpret Tables What activities show an upward trend after 1990?

32. Draw Conclusions How do you account for the slight decline in incinerated MSW from 2000 to 2005? Was this due to declining MSW overall? Explain.

Write About It 33. Description Speculative fiction is based on pro-

jecting from current trends and facts. Describe two possible scenarios for waste management in the year 2040. Base one on the current trend of ever-increasing waste per person. Base the other on the assumption that people will generate less waste in the future.

34. Apply the BIGQUESTION The choices we make as consumers affect our environment. How we handle the waste we produce also affects our environment. When it comes to managing waste, what do you think are the most important issues? Pick one and develop a Web page that supports that issue.