Waste Disposal and Types of Waste

The 411 on Waste Disposal and Types of Waste Recycling household products is one way to save our landfills from growing, but recycling only targets a small percentage of the waste we as humans produce. For example, every time you flush the toilet, you’re contributing to organic hazardous waste that must be disposed of in a very specific way. New technologies are making this process more efficient and better for the environment. Using what is known as “anaerobic digestion,” new-generation waste processing plants can break down organic waste and wastewater using microorganisms in an oxygen-free environment. The resulting product can be used as fertilizer while the gasses produced can be burned and converted into energy. Another process that helps to break down the waste we do not recycle, reuse or repurpose is to incinerate that waste at extremely high temperatures. This method, known as Waste to Energy or Energy from Waste, breaks down the molecular structure of all waste into the simplest elemental forms that can be manipulated to create synthetic gas. This gas can than be ignited in a controlled environment to create steam that rotates turbines to create electricity. Another interesting philosophy that is gaining popularity is known as the Zero Waste movement. In short, this is a way to keep waste from being generated by designing and managing products and process to keep hazardous waste from being produced and to reuse or recycle everything else as opposed to burying it in a landfill. Reducing the amount of waste that gets into landfills will have a significant impact on the environment, especially when considering how much methane landfills produce. This is a theory that will require every person on the planet to be knowledgeable and conscientious about the products that use and how they dispose of them. The bottom line is, everything we can do to eliminate waste and its byproducts from polluting our land, water and air, the better the future of our planet will be for us and for future generations.