Solid waste management

Waste management 16-Jan Introduction A waste can be defined as any item that is no longer needed or used (Lemann, 2008). Waste is unusable material that is intended to be disposed. To enhance sustainability in any given state or city, it is important for them to effectively manage their waste to prevent destruction of the environment. The waste levels have increased globally due to lack of appropriate ways to dispose this waste. Most of this waste therefore ends up in land fill sites causing pollution of the environment. Poor waste disposal techniques have local, natural and global consequences. Methods of managing waste could vary from depending on the geographical location and conditions of the area (Kreith & George, 2002).
Some of the most common and efficient methods of waste disposal that could be used include reusing of goods to extend their lifespan, decreasing the amount of waste from industries (Ghosh, 2003). Waste management has become of importance in all cities across the world due to the growing population and high consumerism. The urbanization, growth and development in developed and some developing countries have also attributed increased wastes. Most of these countries however lack a proper way of managing this waste to prevent environmental pollution. The destruction of the environment can also be attributed to use of hazardous materials that produce toxic waste such as paints batteries, fluorescent lights, and other material which emit toxic chemicals (Kreith & George, 2002). Mismanagement of hazardous waste poses a threat to the environment as well as endangering human health.
Solid waste from factories has attributed to the release of industrial waste that could be hazardous to human beings. Most of these factories have unfortunately not implemented ways to manage the waste they produce. Appropriate management of waste should however be approached systematically in logical steps. The first important step to waste management is to identify the type of waste since there is diverse range of waste of which each has different ways of disposal (Lemann, 2008). For instance waste can be identified to be organic, toxic, recyclable or soiled waste.
The second step of waste management is to evaluate the waste. Evaluation is done to examine the characteristics of the waste in terms of hazard levels, physical characteristics. Evaluation also helps come up with how best the identified waste can be managed without destroying the environment. Upon evaluation, it is determined whether the waste is hazardous or non hazardous. The process of evaluation should also include the process of pollution prevention and waste minimization. During the evaluation process, questions that are to be answered include why the waste is being generated, can the waste be eliminated and can the waste amount be reduced?
The third step towards effective waste management is the actual management of the waste in reference to the evaluation outcomes. This should however be carried out in accordance to the related waste management laws. After effectively managing the resources, disposal of the waste is done according to the identified type of waste (Vaughn, 2009). However if the waste is found to be hazardous, it could be replaced with non hazardous material.
Government establishments have a responsibility to take part in efficient management of waste to prevent pollution through implementing policies that ensure proper disposal of waste (Farmer, 1997). This means that legal action should be taken against factories that dispose their waste irresponsibly. The individual factories and homesteads should also take responsibility of how they dispose their waste without destroying the environment.
List of references
Kreith, F & George, T 2002, Handbook of Solid Waste Management, McGraw Hill Professional, New York.
Lemann, M 2008, Waste Management, Peter Lang, Bern.
Vaughn, J 2009, Waste Management: A Reference Handbook, ABC-CLIO, California.
Ghosh, A 2003, Natural Resource Conservation and Environment Management, APH Publishing, New Delhi.
Farmer, A 1997, Managing Environmental Pollution, Psychology Press, East Sussex.