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PubMed2003

Temporal-spatial trends in heavy metal contents in sediment-derived soils along the Sea Scheldt river (Belgium).

The aim of this study was to survey the alluvial plains of the Sea Scheldt river in Belgium for the presence of old sediment-derived soils, and to appraise the heavy metal contamination at these sites. Historically, sediments of periodical dredging operations have been disposed in the alluvial plain without concern for the potential presence of contaminants. Up to 96% of the areas that were affected by sediment disposal (ca. 120 ha) was found to be polluted by at least one of the metals Cd, Cr, Zn or Pb. Concentrations of Cd, Cr and Zn were, in 10% of the cases, higher than 14, 1400 and 2200 mg/kg DM, respectively. Based on the Flemish decree on soil sanitation, Cu and Ni concentrations were of less environmental concern on any site. The pollution in the Sea Scheldt alluvial plain nevertheless is lower than for the Upper Scheldt alluvial plain. The sediment-derived soils in the most upstream part near Ghent were used for disposal of sediments from dredging operations elsewhere. Metal concentrations were explored and both spatial and temporal trend were analysed. The pollution levels encountered warrant caution as most of the soils affected by historical dredged sediment disposal are currently in use for pasture.

Belgium↗

PubMed2003

Dealing with electronic waste: modeling the costs and environmental benefits of computer monitor disposal.

The importance of information technology to the world economy has brought about a surge in demand for electronic equipment. With rapid technological change, a growing fraction of the increasing stock of many types of electronics becomes obsolete each year. We model the costs and benefits of policies to manage 'e-waste' by focusing on a large component of the electronic waste stream-computer monitors-and the environmental concerns associated with disposal of the lead embodied in cathode ray tubes (CRTs) used in most monitors. We find that the benefits of avoiding health effects associated with CRT disposal appear far outweighed by the costs for a wide range of policies. For the stock of monitors disposed of in the United States in 1998, we find that policies restricting or banning some popular disposal options would increase disposal costs from about US dollar 1 per monitor to between US dollars 3 and US dollars 20 per monitor. Policies to promote a modest amount of recycling of monitor parts, including lead, can be less expensive. In all cases, however, the costs of the policies exceed the value of the avoided health effects of CRT disposal.

Conservation of Natural Resources↗

PubMed2000

Solidification and stabilization of asbestos waste from an automobile brake manufacturing facility using cement.

Currently, the generated brake lining waste dust, which contains asbestos as its major component, is disposed of into a secure landfill without any additional treatment. As an alternative to this, solidification/stabilization (S/S) disposal of the dust was investigated using Portland cement alone and Portland cement mixed with activated carbon (AC), as the binders. Toxicity Characteristics Leaching Procedure (TCLP) results on the solidified matrix showed that cement was able to immobilize the heavy metals, Ba, Zn, Cr, Pb, Cu and Fe, to within the limits set by the US EPA for TCLP. Addition of AC to the cement reduced the leaching of heavy metals by an additional 4-24% compared to cement alone. The pH of the TCLP leachate extracted from virgin cement, and from dust treated with cement with or without AC was found to increase to 10.9-12.5 as opposed to an initial value of 4.93 for the TCLP extract for the untreated dust. Results of ANS 16.1 (modified) leach protocol revealed that Ba in cement-treated samples showed the highest leach rate, followed by Zn, Pb, Cr, Cu and Fe. The leach rate of heavy metals decreased with progress in time. Cement mixed with AC exhibited similar leach characteristics, however, the leach rate was lower. The linear relationship between the cumulative fraction leached (CFL) and the square root of leaching time in all cement-based samples indicate that a diffusional process is the controlling transport mechanism for the leaching of the heavy metals. The obtained Leachability Indices (L(i)) of 7.6-9.1 and 8.3-9.5 for cement and cement with AC, respectively, were low but exceeded the guidance value of 6, which clearly indicates that all the heavy metals studied are retained well within solid matrices. Cement-based S/S hardening times increased from 30 to 96 h as the dust content increased from 40 to 70 wt.%. The resulting solid matrices exhibited a compressive strength ranging from 1 to 12 MPa, which was well above the specified limit of 414 kPa for such matrices. An economic analysis indicates that the disposal costs for the dust in the only available secure landfill would increase by 40.3% if one were to go for the cement S/S option. Addition of AC to the cement would escalate this by an additional 43.8%. Although the S/S of brake lining dust using cement effectively immobilized the heavy metals of concern, cost considerations may hinder the commercial adaptation of this technique for waste disposal unless new regulatory demands are implemented.

Asbestos↗

PubMed1990

Public policy impacts on the generation and disposal of hazardous waste in New York State.

A number of policies adopted by the federal government and the state have been designed to promote waste reduction or influence the choice of waste disposal technologies employed by generators of hazardous waste. Graphic analysis of smoothed time series data for hazardous wastes manifested in New York State for the period between June 1982 and February 1987 suggests that some of these policies have had the intended effects. Significant shifts in manifested waste volumes are evident that coincide with the following policy interventions: (1) increased state waste-end tax rates; (2) state and federal landfill bans; (3) federal restrictions on burning hazardous wastes and waste oils for energy recovery; and (4) changes in the federal regulatory definition of hazardous waste. Other changes in waste generation and management appear to be attributable to such factors as state and regional economic conditions and changes in instate treatment and disposal facility capacity. Analysis of the management of specific waste types supports evidence from the graphic analysis that waste generators changed from land disposal to "higher" waste handling technologies in response to several policy interventions.

Hazardous Waste↗

PubMed2001

Clean-up and disposal process of polluted sediments from urban rivers.

In this paper, the discussion is concentrated on the properties of the polluted sediments and the combination of clean-up and disposal process for the upper layer heavily polluted sediments with good flowability. Based on the systematic analyses of various clean-up processes, a suitable engineering process has been evaluated and recommended. The process has been applied to the river reclamation in Yangpu District of Shanghai City, China. An improved centrifuge is used for dewatering the dredged sludge, which plays an important role in the combination of clean-up and disposal process. The assessment of the engineering process shows its environmental and technical economy feasibility, which is much better than that of traditional dredging-disposal processes.

Cities↗

PubMedDate not supplied

[Disposal of waste glass in sanitary departments: a sample survey in the Lazio region].

As a result of Italian law, DPR 15/7/2003 n. 254, about hospital waste, and given that little has been written about recycling waste glass in hospitals, a survey of 28 health departments in Lazio was performed. The objectives were: to estimate the mean quantity of clear vitreous waste in one year, to estimate how vitreous waste is administered, to estimate the extent of the use of plastic instead of glass, to analyse the costs and benefits of glass use and/or plastic use and to evaluate staff training about hospital waste disposal. The average production of clear vitreous waste was 0.28 kilogram per day per hospital bed occupied. (This would be the theoretical maximum quantity of glass to be recycled). Among the 28 departments studied, 82% separated waste products but only 36% disposed of glass in accordance with the law. The estimated possible savings on glass phleboclysis in 2002 year were 35,000 euro. Staff training could avoid this conspicuous waste of money. Fifteen departments also used plastic phleboclysis; of these, in 2 departments plastic waste is separated in the wards, but unfortunately this material is later disposed of in the bins for general solid urban waste. The other thirteen hospitals dispose of waste plastic as infectious material. Using glass phleboclysis instead of plastic phleboclysis would save about 680,000 euros per year. The disposal of glass waste material in practice was not found to follow the principles taught in the training courses. Theoretic data about glass production, estimated in this survey, refers only to clear glass and it is an underestimate of that of all glass used in departments. The quantity of glass actually recycled has been about 0.14 kilogram per day per hospital bed occupied and thus only 50% of the theoretical quantity (0.28 kilogram per day per hospital bed occupied). This percentage could be improved by effective training. Ideally, the disposal of waste glass would follow the legal requirements and be monitored locally.

Data Collection↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Management of intravenous hazardous materials and hazardous wastes in the work environment.

Exposure to hazardous materials and hazardous wastes has become a critical issue. There is now a greater awareness of the potential health risks associated with these substances. Because intravenous nurses encounter hazardous substances on a daily basis, they must adhere to appropriate precautionary measures. Mandatory compliance, however, is not enough. The I.V. nurse needs to understand the rationale for these measures and the basis for the federal and professional regulations regarding the handling of hazardous materials and wastes. This article focuses on the definitions of hazardous substances, the regulations governing these substances, and the principles concerning the handling and disposal of hazardous materials in the practice setting.

Hazardous Substances↗

PubMed2005

Assessment of sanitary landfill leachate characterizations and its impacts on groundwater at Alexandria.

The total amount of solid waste generated in Alexandria is 2820 tons/d which increases to 3425 tons/day during summer. In the past, 77% of the collected solid wastes was open dumped. The open dumping sites did not have the minimum requirements for pollution control. Following the exacerbation of the problem, the Alexandria Governorate contracted a company to carry out the solid waste management. The contracted company transferred 75% of the daily generated solid wastes to a new constructed sanitary lanfill. The site receives a daily average of 1910 tons. The landfilling is performed by trench method in the form of cells. The produced leachate is discharged into two lined aerated lagoons. The biogas formed from biodegradation of landfilled solid wastes is burned and the produced heat is used for drying the lagoons leachate. The remaining residues are relandfilled. The study aims at assessment of the solid waste sanitary landfill leachate characterization and its impacts on the groundwater. The analysis of the collected data confirms that leachates from the landfill are severely contaminated with organics, salts, and heavy metals. The fluctuations in concentration levels of the different parameters were attributed to aging and thickness of waste layers, stage of decomposition, and re-landfilling of the concentrated residues from the drying lagoons. The concentrations of NH4-N (600 mg/l) indicated that the process of stabilization was still in the initial stages and attributed to the compaction process. The high BOD5 results (28,833 mg/l) indicated that the process of stabilization was in the initial stages which were very slow. The high COD results (45,240 mg/l) can be attributed to the compaction of the wastes which also retards the degradation of the solid wastes. The BOD and COD values indicated clearly severe contamination. The BOD5/COD ratio measured in the current study (0.64) indicated that the leachate of the present study was biodegradable and unstabilized, and required time and favourable conditions for anaerobic biodegradation. Heavy metals were lower compared with what have been observed in other countries. Re-landfilling of the residue after drying the leachate in lagoons and the short time of biodegradation in the landfill site were factors which effected the high strength of most of the parameters concentrations of the leachate. Assessment of groundwater contamination through piezometer wells around the active cells indicated that there was no contamination from the leachate to the groundwater surrounding the site. The study recommended emphasizing the importance of adjusting the biodegradation factors, the monitoring program, the prohibition of disposing heavy metals, determination of the leachate generation rate, and treatment of leachate.

Egypt↗

PubMed1991

Treatment and disposal of clinical and laboratory waste.

There are no entirely satisfactory definitions of clinical waste; nor are there methods in general use that are safe and environmentally acceptable for the storage, transport and final disposal of the ever-increasing volume of such waste that is generated by the health services. Hazardous, potentially infectious and aesthetically objectionable waste has been found on beaches and exposed on domestic refuse landfill sites, causing public disquiet about health hazards and environmental pollution. Landfill is officially discouraged, where not illegal, and many older-type incinerators can not now be used because their effluent pollutes the atmosphere. Modern and efficient incinerators are expensive and the parochial nature of health service management and accounting mitigates against their installation and use. Laboratory waste, however, can be rendered safe and unobjectionable, aesthetically and environmentally, if the requirements and recommendations of the several Codes of Practice and technical advice, which are simple and inexpensive, are implemented by laboratory and hospital managers.

Hazardous Waste↗

PubMed1982

Procedures for RIA I-125 waste disposal.

I-125 can be effectively removed from coated tubes and plastic beads used as solid-phase separators by a 50% household bleach solution. This technique enables the user to dispose of these separators into common trash.

Iodine Radioisotopes↗

PubMed1973