TOPIC 9

MATERIALS AND WASTE MANAGEMENT

The Importance of Resources to
Society
Two types of resources:

1.Renewable resources – air, surface water, plants, animals, and some

energy sources (wind, solar)

2.Nonrenewable resources – soil, some groundwater, oil, coal, and

most minerals
What partially differentiates renewable from nonrenewable resources is
their availability in a human time framework

Air and water, along with biological resources such as fish and crops,
are regularly replenished as long as the processes that renew them
continue to operate at an adequate rate.

Nonrenewable resources, such as oil and minerals, even those that are
being replenished by Earth processes today, are not being replenished
in a time frame useful to people.

We can sustain water resources by careful water management,

but sustaining minerals or oil requires strategies linked more to
conservation, recycling, reuse, and substitution than to
management of next year’s supply delivered by Earth processes.
Materials Management: What It Is?
Materials management aiming to sustainable use of renewable and
nonrenewable resources by the following ways:

1. Eliminate subsides for extracting virgin materials such as minerals,

oil, and timber.

2. Establish “green building” incentives that encourage the use of

recycled-content materials and products in new construction.

3. Assess financial penalties for production that uses poor materials-

management practices.

4. Provide financial incentives for industrial practices and products that

benefit the environment by enhancing sustainability (for example by
reducing waste production and using recycled materials)

5. Provide more incentives for people, industry, and agriculture to

develop materials management programs that eliminate or reduce
waste by using it as raw material for other products.
Mineral Resources
Minerals can be considered a very valuable, nonrenewable heritage from
the geologic past. Although new deposits are still forming from Earth
processes, these processes are producing new deposits too slowly to
be of use to us today or anytime soon.
Mineral Deposits
Earth’s outer layer, or crust, is silica-rich, made up mostly of rock-forming
minerals containing silica, oxygen, and a few other elements.

Nine elements account for about 99% of the crust by weight

1. oxygen, O = 45.2%; 6. magnesium, Mg = 2.8%;
2. silicon, Si = 27.2%; 7. sodium, Na = 2.3%;
3. aluminum, Al = 8.0%; 8. potassium, K = 1.7%;
4. iron, Fe = 5.8%; 9. titanium, Ti = 0.9%
5. calcium, Ca = 5.1%;
Ocean water contains about 3.5% dissolved solids: mostly chlorine
(55.1% of the dissolved solids by weight)

Ocean Earth Crust

Zinc 2000 kg/km3 170,000,000 kg/km3
Copper 2000 kg/km3 86,000,000 kg/km3
Tin 800 kg/km3 5,700,000 kg/km3
Silver 300 kg/km3 160,000 kg/km3
Gold 10 kg/km3 5000 kg/km3

When magma containing small amounts of carbon is deeply buried and

subjected to very high pressure during slow cooling crystallization),
diamonds (which are pure carbon) may be produced
Diamond mine near Kimberley, South Africa. This is the largest hand-
dug excavation in the world.
What are the purposes of materials management?
How Mineral Deposits Are Formed
1. Transportation

Sediment transported mostly by wind, water, and glaciers.

As sediments are transported, running water and wind help segregate

them by size, shape, and density.

The best sand or sand and gravel deposits for construction, for
example, are those in which the finer materials have been removed by
water or wind. Sand dunes, beach deposits, and deposits in
stream channels are good examples.

The sand and gravel industry amounts to several billion dollars annually.
2. River and Stream Flow

Rivers and streams that empty into oceans and lakes carry
tremendous quantities of dissolved material from the weathering of
rocks.

Over geologic time, a shallow marine basin may be isolated by

tectonic activity that uplifts its boundaries, or climate variations,
such as the ice ages, may produce large inland lakes with no
outlets.

As these basins and lakes eventually dry up, the dissolved materials
drop out of solution and form a wide variety of compounds,
minerals, and rocks that have important commercial value.
3. Biological Process

Biological processes form some mineral deposits, such as phosphates and

iron ore deposits. The major iron ore deposits exist in sedimentary rocks
that were formed more than 2 billion years ago.

Organisms, too, form many kinds of minerals, such as the calcium

minerals in shells and bones.
4. Weathering

Weathering the chemical and mechanical decomposition of rock,

concentrates some minerals in the soil, such as native gold and
oxides of aluminum and iron.

If sufficiently concentrated, residual aluminum oxide forms an

ore of aluminum known as bauxite. Important nickel and cobalt
deposits are also found in soils developed from iron- and
magnesium-rich igneous rocks.
What are the medium of transportation for sediment and
small particles?
Figuring Out How Much Is Left
Mineral Resources and Reserves
Mineral resources are broadly defined as known concentrations of
elements, chemical compounds, minerals, or rocks. Mineral reserves
are concentrations that at the time of evaluation can be legally and
economically extracted as a commodity that can be sold at a profit.
Availability and Use of Our Mineral Resources
Earth’s mineral resources can be divided into broad categories
according to their use: elements for metal production and
technology, building materials, minerals for the chemical industry,
and minerals for agriculture.

Some minerals, such as salt (sodium chloride), are necessary for life.
Primitive peoples traveled long distances to obtain salt when it was not
locally available.

When the availability of a particular mineral becomes limited, there

are four possible solutions:

1. Find more sources.

2. Recycle and reuse what has already been obtained.
3. Reduce consumption.
4. Find a substitute.
Impacts of Mineral Development
1. Environmental Impacts
i. Large mining operations remove material in some areas and dump
waste in others, changing topography. In addition, dust may affect
the air quality, even though care is taken to reduce it by sprinkling
water on roads and on other sites that generate dust.

ii. A potential problem with mineral resource development is the

possible release of harmful trace elements into the environment.

iii. Plants and animals killed by mining activity or by contact with toxic
soil or water are some of the direct impacts. Indirect impacts include
changes in nutrient cycling, total biomass, species diversity, and
ecosystem stability.

iv. Periodic or accidental discharge of low-grade pollutants through

failure of barriers, ponds, or water diversions, or through the breaching
of barriers during floods, earthquakes, or volcanic eruptions, also
may damage local ecological systems to some extent.
Aerial photograph of Bingham Canyon Copper Pit, Utah. It is one
of the largest artificial excavations in the world.
Tailings from a lead, zinc, and silver
mine in Colorado. White streaks on
the slope are mineral deposits
apparently leached from the tailings.
2. Social Impacts
i. Stress on local services, such as water supplies, sewage and solid-
waste disposal systems, and also on schools, housing, and nearby
recreation and wilderness areas.

ii. Land use shifts from open range, forest, and agriculture to urban
patterns.

iii. Construction and urbanization affect local streams through sediment

pollution, reduced water quality, and increased runoff.

iv. Air quality suffers as a result of more vehicles, construction dust, and
power generation.

v. Closing down mines create “ghost towns” such an old American West.

vi. The price of coal and other minerals also directly affects the livelihood of
many small towns due to the increased level of environmental
regulation of the mining industry.
Ghost town American West
Name TWO environmental and TWO social impacts of
mining activity.
Minimizing the Environmental Impact of Mineral
Development
1. Reclaiming areas disturbed by mining

This award-winning golf course in Golden, Colorado, was for a century

an open-pit mine (quarry) for clay to produce bricks.
2. Stabilizing soils that contain metals to minimize their release into
the environment. Often this requires placing contaminated soils in a
waste facility.

3. Controlling air emissions of metals and other materials from

mining areas.

4. Treating contaminated water before it can leave a mining site or

treating contaminated water that has left a mining site.

5. Practicing the three R’s of waste management. That is, Reduce the
amount of waste produced, Reuse waste as much as possible, and
maximize Recycling opportunities.
At several sites, for example, constructed wetlands use acid-tolerant
plants to remove metals from mine wastewaters and neutralize acids
by biological activity. The Homestake Gold Mine in South Dakota
uses biooxidation to convert contaminated water from the mining
operation into substances that are environmentally safe; the process uses
bacteria that have a natural ability to oxidize cyanide to harmless
nitrates
(a) Simplified flowchart of the resource cycle: (b) mining gold in South Africa; (c)
copper smelter, Montana; (d) sheets of copper for industrial use; (e) appliances
made in part from metals; and (f) disposal of mining waste from a Montana gold
mine into a tailings pond.
Integrated Waste Management (IWM)
The dominant concept today in managing waste is known as integrated
waste management (IWM), which is best defined as a set of
management alternatives that includes reuse, source reduction,
recycling, composting, landfill, and incineration.
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
The ultimate objective of the three R’s of IWM is to reduce the amount
of urban and other waste that must be disposed of in landfills,
incinerators, and other waste management facilities.

A 50% reduction by weight could be achieved by:

i. source reduction, such as packaging better designed to reduce
waste (10% reduction);
ii. large-scale composting programs (10% reduction);
iii. recycling programs (30% reduction).

The metal from almost all of the millions of automobiles discarded

annually in the United States is recycled. Iron and steel are recycled in
such large volumes for two reasons.

i. The market for iron and steel is huge, and as a result there is a large
scrap-collection and scrap-processing industry.

ii. An enormous economic and environmental burden would

result from failure to recycle because over 50 million tons of scrap
iron and steel would have to be disposed of annually.
Public Support for Recycling
Fast-food restaurants are using less packaging and providing onsite
bins for recycling paper and plastic.

Groceries and supermarkets are encouraging the recycling of plastic

and paper bags by providing bins for their collection.

Companies are redesigning products so that they can be more easily

disassembled after use and the various parts recycled. Small
appliances, such as electric frying pans and toasters, may be recycled
rather than ending up in landfills.

The automobile industry is also responding by designing automobiles

with coded parts so that they can be more easily disassembled (by
professional recyclers) and recycled, rather than left to become rusting
eyesores in junkyards.
Municipal Solid-Waste Management

1. Composition of Solid Waste

2. Onsite Disposal
A common onsite disposal method in urban areas is the garbage-
disposal device installed in the wastewater pipe under the kitchen sink
to grind garbage and flush it into the sewer system.
3. Composting
Composting is a biochemical process in which organic materials, such as
lawn clippings and kitchen scraps, decompose to a rich, soil-like material.
The process involves rapid partial decomposition of moist solid organic
waste by aerobic organisms.
4. Incineration
Incineration burns combustible waste at temperatures high enough
(900°–1,000°C) to consume all combustible material, leaving only ash and
noncombustibles to dispose of in a landfill.

Besides reducing a large volume of combustible waste to a much smaller

volume of ash, incineration has another advantage: It can be used to
supplement other fuels and generate electrical power.

Incineration of urban waste is not necessarily a clean process; it may

produce air pollution and toxic ash.
5. Open Dumps (Poorly Controlled Landfills)
In the past, solid waste was often disposed of in open dumps (now called
landfills), where refuse was piled up and left uncovered.
6. Sanitary Landfills
A sanitary landfill (also called a municipal solid-waste landfill) is designed
to concentrate and contain refuse without creating a nuisance or hazard to
public health or safety. The idea is to confine the waste to the smallest
practical area, and cover it with a layer of compacted soil frequently if
necessary. Covering the waste is what makes the landfill sanitary.

The compacted layer restricts continued access to the waste by insects,

rodents, and other animals, such as seagulls. It also isolates the refuse,
minimizing the amount of surface water seeping into it and the amount
of gas escaping from it.

Leachate (noxious and mineralized liquid) from sanitary landfill comes

into contact with surface or groundwater capable of transporting bacterial
pollutants.
Idealized diagram of a solid-waste facility (sanitary landfill) illustrating
multiple-barrier design, monitoring system, and leachate collection system.
ACTIONS YOU CAN TAKE TO REDUCE THE WASTE YOU GENERATE

i.Keep track of the waste you personally generate

ii.Recycle as much as is possible and practical

iii.Reduce packaging: buy your food items in bulk or concentrated

form

iv.Use durable products: Choose automobiles, light bulbs, furniture,

sports equipment, and tools that will last a longer time.

v.Purchase products made from recycled material

vi.Purchase products designed for ease in recycling

In the capacity of an individual and a student,
what can you contribute for waste management?
Hazardous Waste
In the United States, approximately 1,000 new chemicals are marketed
each year, and about 70,000 chemicals are currently on the market.
Although many have been beneficial to people, approximately 35,000
chemicals used in the United States are classified as definitely or
potentially hazardous to people or ecosystems.
Case Study 1: Love Canal, Niagara Falls

1892 William Love excavated a canal to

develop an industrial park
uncompleted canal remained unused and became
a dump for wastes
In 1953 the Hooker Chemical Company dumped
the insecticide DDT
After that, several hundred homes and an
elementary school were built
1976–1977, heavy rains and snows triggered a
number of events, disperse the chemicals
surrounding Love Canal
A study identified many substances such as
benzene, dioxin, dichlorethylene, and
chloroform
Concern centered on alleged high rates of
miscarriages, blood and liver abnormalities,
birth defects, and chromosome damage
After about $400 million was spent on cleaning
up the site, the EPA eventually declared the area
clean
Case Study 2: River Severn, England

This site was used for storing hazardous waste

Several fires at the site in 1999 followed by a large unknown fire in 2000

Nearly 200 industrial solvents (xylene and toluene), cleaning solvents

(methylene chloride), produced a fireball that rose into the night sky

Wind gusts of hurricane strength spread toxic smoke and ash to nearby
farmlands and villages

People exposed to the smoke complained variety symptoms of headaches,

stomachaches and vomiting, sore throats, coughs, and difficulty
breathing.

A few days later, the site flooded, interfered with cleanup after the fire and
increased the risk of downstream contamination by waterborne hazardous
wastes
Alternatives to Land Disposal of
Hazardous Waste
1. Source Reduction
The object of source reduction in hazardous-waste management is to
reduce the amount of hazardous waste generated by
manufacturing or other processes. For example, changes in the
chemical processes involved, equipment and raw materials used,
or maintenance measures may successfully reduce the amount or
toxicity of hazardous waste produced.
2. Recycling and Resource Recovery
Hazardous chemical waste may contain materials that can be recovered
for future use. For example, acids and solvents collect contaminants when
they are used in manufacturing processes. These acids and solvents can
be processed to remove the contaminants and then be reused in the
same or different manufacturing processes.
3. Treatment
Hazardous chemical waste can be treated by a variety of processes to
change its physical or chemical composition and reduce its toxicity or other
hazardous characteristics. For example, acids can be neutralized, heavy
metals can be separated from liquid waste, and hazardous chemical
compounds can be broken up through oxidation.
4. Incineration
High-temperature incineration can destroy hazardous chemical waste.
However, incineration is considered a waste treatment, not a disposal
method, because the process produces an ash residue that must itself be
disposed of in a landfill. Hazardous waste has also been incinerated offshore
on ships, creating potential air pollution and ash-disposal problems in the
marine environment.
Ocean Dumping
Oceans cover more than 70% of Earth. They play a part in maintaining
our global environment and are of major importance in the cycling of
carbon dioxide, which helps regulate the global climate.

It seems reasonable that such an important resource would receive

preferential treatment, and yet oceans have long been dumping
grounds for many types of waste, including industrial waste,
construction debris, urban sewage, and plastics.

Shellfish today often contain organisms that cause diseases such as

polio and hepatitis. In the United States, at least 20% of the nation’s
commercial shellfish beds have been closed (mostly temporarily)
because of pollution.

Beaches and bays have been closed for recreational uses.

Case Study 3: North Sea and Baltic Sea

1988 algal bloom was responsible for killing nearly all marine life to a
depth of about 15 m

urban waste and agricultural runoff contributed to the toxic bloom

The upper 3 mm of ocean water most concern due to abundant

planktonic life abundant reside there in the early stages of their life.

But this layer tend to concentrate pollutants, such as toxic

chemicals and heavy metals.

One study reported that concentrations of heavy metals—including

zinc, lead, and copper—in the microlayer are from 10 to 1,000 times
higher than in the deeper waters.
Effects of Ocean Dumping

1. Contaminated marine organisms, as we mentioned, may transmit

toxic elements or diseases to people who eat them.

2. In addition, beaches and harbors polluted by solid waste, oil, and other
materials may not only damage marine life but also lose their visual
appeal and other amenities.

3. Economic loss is considerable as well. Loss of shellfish from pollution

in the United States, for example, amounts to many millions of dollars
per year.

4. A great deal of money also is spent cleaning up solid waste, liquid

waste, and other pollutants in coastal areas.
Pollution Prevention
This approach, which is part of materials management, includes the
following:

i. Purchasing the proper amount of raw materials so that no

excess remains to be disposed of.

ii. Exercising better control of materials used in manufacturing

processes so that less waste is produced.

iii. Substituting nontoxic chemicals for hazardous or toxic materials

currently used.

iv. Improving engineering and design of manufacturing processes so

less waste is produced.
Case Study 5: Cheese firm Wisconsin

faced with the disposal of about 2,000 gallons a day of a salty solution
generated during the cheese-making process

the firm spread the salty solution on nearby agricultural lands

Department of Natural Resources in Wisconsin placed limitations on this

practice

modify its cheese-making processes to recover salt from the solution and
reuse it in production
Sustainable Resource Management
Through human ingenuity, we learned that we can use raw mineral
materials more efficiently. For example, in the late 1800s when the Eiffel
Tower was constructed, 8,000 metric tons of steel were used. Today the
tower could be built with only a quarter of that amount.

A measure of how much time we have for finding solutions to the depletion of
nonrenewable reserves is:

R:C (ratio)

Where;
R is the known reserves (for example, hundreds of thousands of tons of a
metal);
C is the rate of consumption (for example, thousands of tons per year used by
people).

This measure will provide a view of how scarce a particular mineral resource
would be
In sum, we may approach sustainable development and use of
nonrenewable mineral resources by developing more efficient ways of
mining resources and finding ways to more efficiently use available
resources, recycling more and applying human ingenuity to find substitutes
for a nonrenewable mineral.