Essays on Hazardous Waste

Abstract

Maintaining a highly effective waste management system is an important part of being a clean and green city. While this may not be the top priority for some countries, especially the developing ones—because keeping a clean and green city can be costly; there are countries that are making long term investments for a more effective waste management system in the future. This can be evidenced by the fact that even countries like Qatar and the city of Dubai are finding it hard to find the political and economic will to develop and enforce environmental law and regulations. If ...

Article Reviews of Crime Scenes with Nuclear and Biohazard Materials

Bruce Budowle, Steven E. Schutzer, James P. Burans, Douglas J. Beecher, Thomas A. Cebula,Ranajit Chakraborty, William T. Cobb, Jacqueline Fletcher, Martha L. Hale  Robert B. Harris, 2012 Oct; 72(10): 6431–6438

Abstract

Hazardous materials are handled carefully during a crime scene. The hazardous and biohazard materials can be deadly if not handled properly. The dangerous items are analyzed and made safe for disposal to ensure no explosions occur during the clean-up process of the crime scene.

Introduction

The main point of this article is to discuss the proper safety of hazardous materials at crimes scenes. “The proper disposal ...

Abstract

Electronic waste is a growing global problem and as the demand and supply of electronic products grow, so does the–e- waste. Consumerism is on a steady rise, and people want new mobiles and computers every few months. That means more and more landfills and incinerators to take care of discarded and obsoleted electronics and potentially seeping of toxic substances like lead and mercury into groundwater. This can lead to serious health hazards and create toxic footprints. The essay looks at new developing technologies for the recycling of computers and creates a report on the basis of the quadruple ...

Introduction

Pharmaceutical wastes contain ingredients that are designed to have pharmacological effects and provide benefits to the society (WHO, 2012). Pharmaceutical wastes include illegal drugs, pharmaceutical products, and pharmaceutical ingredients. Regulations dealing with pharmaceutical wastes resulted from studies indicating that fish and wildlife were suffering from an increase in the content of drugs in the water resources. A study conducted by the Geological Society in the United States, in 2002, indicated an increase in the percentage pharmaceuticals released to water streams (Smith, 2002). This indicated a clear lack of a proper disposal system for pharmaceutical wastes.

RCRA

This refers to Resource Conservation and ...

Once dispatched to the scene of a hazardous waste scene, the following would be my course of action in making the area safer:

- It is first important to identify the type of chemical or hazardous waste that is exposed and let out of its containment. The first means of identification would be through the sense of smell since most toxic products typically have distinct odors within the vicinity of the incident. Through the representative odor thresholds’ table, the any toxic materials present in the incident’s location can be easily ascertained. Placards on the vehicle transporting the materials, labels ...

Psychology

1- Introduction

The environment is perhaps the most precious resource available to human beings. This is because it is responsible for the sustenance of human life on earth as well as ensuring survival of the species. The importance of the environment is however a factor that has been ignored by people for a very long time. Currently the environment is in jeopardy due to human activities which tend to have a very negative effect on the environment.

2. Peer discussion One such human activity that is detrimental to the environment is disposal of waste and pollution. With the human population growing ...

Miami

Miami is a city in the state of Florida in the south of the United States. The city is home to about twenty million residents and has over eighty million visitors every year. There are a number of environmental issues facing this city among them the destruction of the everglades wetlands, a high number of invasive species in the area mostly as a result of pets and the disappearance of some native species. However, as with any major city, among the greatest environmental issue of concern is waste management and water pollution. Among the greatest problems, facing Miami is pollution by petroleum ...

The “Green” Problem of Superfund (CERCLA)

The “green” problem did not start as a disaster. However, it spiraled into one of the worst environmental disasters in the history of the US (Hatfield, 2012). It all began with the Love Canal in 1880s. Love Canal was excavated by W.T. Love in 1890s and it was part of the hydroelectric power project in Niagara Falls, New York. The project was never implemented and Hooker Chemicals and Plastics Corporation used it as a landfill between 1942 and 1952. The surrounding areas were later developed with construction of an elementary school and residential homes. It was not until 1960s when odors ...

Introduction

The environment of operation is one of the most significant factors that companies focus on when they are seeking to be established in a given area. The environment may be either in the form of external or internal factors. External factors are the ones that are outside the business, and it may be hard to control while internal factors are the factors within the company and may be regulated by the company. The environment may influence business in different ways following consideration of various elements in the environment that may have extensive, impact on the operations of the company. The ...

Landfill mining and excavation is a process involving processing and excavation of previously landfilled solid wastes. Processing involves a cycle of mechanical processing operations that are premeditated to recover recyclable materials, landfill space, soil and a combustible fraction. Equipment used in landfill mining and excavation are screens, excavators, and conveyors. Therefore, landfill mining uses conventional soil excavating and processing techniques. The process used by landfill has six phases; excavate and separate landfill material into the soil, combustible and residual materials, recyclables, remove and disposal of wastes, remediate soil, refill to bring the intended site to reline or grade, and monitor after completion ...

Corruption

The definition of corruption is the misuse of public power for private profits. We can see this occurrence in large firms or enterprises. We can also see this in most of the activities regulated by the government. To speak more about corruption, it is scanning off money for their own profits. We can see these conditions where organisation don’t work properly because of which normal people have to money for their problems to be solved. Corruption stages will differ among a country side for various sorts. For example, there can also be minoroutstanding corruption during a country with a comparatively clean ...

The Current State of Research on New Methods and Technologies for the Safety and Reliability of Assessment of Propellants, Explosives and Pyrotechnics1

Abstract

Materials with high energy have in the past and are still in use for both intensive military and civil purposes. Research and studies have been conducted recently to try establishing and inventing new materials likely to have enhanced high performance and that are less sensitive to heat and shock as compared to existing materials. In future military applications have a threshold to be adjusted to. This paper is mainly focusing on the on the advancements, possible formulations of ...

Disposal of the hazardous waste has been a cause of concern from the time immemorial. Such poisonous toxic waste has a numerous disadvantages ranging from injuries and death to even permanent birth defects. This hazardous waste when dumped in an open area even used to contaminate the water, posing a threat to the aquatic life. To tackle this disastrous problem US military thus came out with the concept of disposal site. A site which is generally used for accumulation of waste with the primary purpose of disposal or treatment of such waste is called a disposal site. Before the existence of such ...

Safety is paramount to all organizations. Many organizations have lost many man hours and good people as a result of accidents and due to the fact that safety procedures were not practiced continuously. The US Navy is one organization that has experienced the loss of its best officers because of accidents. Hazardous material, commonly denoted as Hazmat, are materials that can cause harm to health or ship conditions if used incorrectly/improperly, accidentally spilled or deliberately mixed (Martin, Lipitt, Webb, 2000). The chemical characteristics, quantity, concentration and the physical traits of the materials determine their hazardous category. Every user of Hazmat ...

Introduction

One of the byproducts of urban growth and development is the waste production. As per the report of the World Bank (2013), OECD countries produce almost half of the world's waste, while South Asia and Africa are listed as the regions producing the least amount of waste. The Basel Convention defines 'wastes' as substances or objects that need to be disposed of in accordance with the provisions of national law. European Waste Catalogue shows 850 types of wastes out of which 420 types of wastes have been classified as hazardous waste. Hazardous wastes are those wastes considered to be ...

Question 1: Suncal's primary (market) stakeholders are their shareholders, their employees, vendors and potential home buyers and below market renters. The shareholders benefit from revenues which show up as dividends, The employees benefit from the company’s ability to generate income, and its vendors in turn benefit from a continued source of sales revenue, but also, potential Suncal home buyers, and below market renters. Secondary or non-market stakeholders include The Disney Resort Group. Although The Disney Resort Group “Disney” is not involved in direct monetary exchanges with Suncal, they, as well as residents in the city of Anaheim could ...

Hydraulic fracturing is a method that allows natural gas and oil to have free movement from the rock pores to a low permeability rock formation where they are trapped to come to the surface. The technology came into place in the 1940s and had been operational in most of the drilling stations. The method uses water, ceramic beads or sand, and other chemicals, as the main materials for the exercise. The mixture is pumped into the surface under high pressure and causes fractures in the rock that extends outward from the bore (Michael 2011). The main function of using the proppant ...

Response, Compensation and Liability Act

Environmental regulations are sometimes controversial and costly, but many have the potential to be very effective at addressing or preventing environmental and related problems. One law that highlights the important role of environmental regulation, as well as the controversial nature of many environmental laws and demonstrates the importance of amendments is the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act, also known as CERCLA or Superfund. CERCLA has its origins in the late 1970s, when a large number of abandoned hazardous waste dumps posing a threat to the environment and human health were discovered. The most famous of these hazardous waste ...

Industrial Safety Hygienist

Abstract This paper is on the role of the Industrial Safety Hygienist profession in safety and health field. The first section of this paper is on the historical background of Industrial Safety Hygienist. The second section of this paper will discuss the cause of its creation in the safety and health field. The third section will discuss the special education and training required to become an Industrial Safety Hygienist. The fourth section of this paper will discuss the certification or profession organization needed to be joined to become an Industrial Safety Hygienist. The following section will discuss the ...

The congress of the United States has put legislation in the leather industry the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) (RCRA Nonhazardous 1).This act governs the generating, storage, transportation, and the treatment procedures as regards the leather manufacturing facility. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) controls and regulates the RCRA Act in the nation (EPA Reports on Progress 1). The EPA ensures that industrial and manufacturing industries such as those that prepare the basketball adhere to the laid down procedures as regards waste. The RCRA Act stipulates environment friendly ways of handling all industrial waste in the leather industry. ...

The environmental justice movement in the United States was led by the civil rights churches which poured much of its resources and efforts into the environmental movement. This was as a result of the realization by the Church that environmental protection and justice were just but expressions of some of their social engagement. This movement was known as the religious environmental movement since the church was a central figure in the whole movement. Indeed, in recent times, theologians have developed the term” eco-justice” to mean or reflect a universal aspiration for the right relationship between man and earth. This has been so ...

According to Warrick (1993), global warming is the main contributor to the rise in global sea level since the Industrial Revolution. Human activities such as burning coal and oil and cutting down tropical forests increase atmospheric concentrations of heat-trapping gases. The three main factors leading to the rise in sea levels include: thermal expansion, ice loss from Greenland and West Antarctica and melting of glaciers and polar ice caps. Land ice, that is, glaciers, ice caps, and ice sheets, stores nearly two-thirds of the world’s freshwater and is shrinking in response to higher temperatures. Glaciers partially melt ...

Abstract

White Collar Crimes may have different definitions, but it is accepted that these crimes came into existence with the dawn of an industrialist and consumerist society. Present day criminology in general rejects a restraint of the term “White Collar Crime” by reference; rather it categorizes the form and motive of the crime. Following is a discussion of two kinds of White Collar Crimes, Environmental crime and Bribery.

White Collar Crime

Introduction 'White-Collar Crime’ may be defined as a non-violent form of crime committed by someone, typically for financial gain. FBI (1983) defines white collar crimes as "those illegal acts which are characterized by deceit, ...

Executive Summary

Sustainable development is a concept of great relevance in the contemporary society. The idea of sustainable development emphasizes the need of adopting safe practices that have the potential of minimizing the detrimental effect of human activities on the environment. In this respect, practices such as recycling materials, proper disposal of waste products, reducing consumption rates by adopting resource saving interventions, are the fundamentals of the idea of sustainable development. Companies are tasked with the important responsibility of ensuring that they are operating and engaging in activities that uphold the concept of sustainable development. Companies that promote the idea of sustainable ...

Introduction

Waste management refers to the process of collecting, transporting and disposing trash, sewage and other waste materials. There are different sources of waste including residential, industrial, commercial, institutional, construction and demolition, municipal, agriculture and manufacturing and all these waste products whether solid, gaseous, liquid or radioactive come under the realm of waste management. The EU Waste Framework Directive lays down a legislative framework for the waste management and also provides a definition for waste. Article 1 of the EU Directive provides the definition of waste as "any substance or object which the holder discards, or intends to or is required to ...

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Abstract

In United States of America, the environmental policy is a governmental action to control activities that may have an impact on the environment in the United States.The main purpose of this policy is to keep safe the environment and protect it for future generations. And in the same time - to interfere as little as possible in the commerce efficiency and people's liberty.The environmental policy takes its beginning from the great environmental movement in the 1960s - 1970s. During this movement a few protection laws have been passed - these laws regulated water and ...

Abstract

Complying with the OSHA 29 CFR 1910.120 regulations and NFPA 472 standards is essential in the fire control and management department. OSHA Act dictates that employees are responsible for the provision of a healthful and safe workplace. OSHA sets and enforces standards that are important in ensuring a safe and healthful environment is achieved. Therefore, the department’s mission should be to assure a healthful and safe workplace through following the OSHA set standards. It is the responsibility of all the employees to comply with the applicable OSHA standards in our department. In addition, it is the duty of all the employees ...

Introduction

Biomass is a biological material obtained from a living organism or a recently living organism. The word biomass is derived from two Greek words; bio meaning life, and maza meaning mass (Demirbas, “Fuels from Biomass” 43). Biomass means non-fossil and bio-decomposable organic matter (originating from plants, animals and microorganisms). The products, byproducts, residues and waste from agricultural processing, all constitute biomass. Bio-waste simply means non-fossil and biodegradable waste that is composed of organic matter. Bio-wastes include food and kitchen wastes, garden and park wastes, and wastes from food processing plants. Bio-waste is therefore an element of biomass. Non-fossil wastes that are ...

If one rents, trash removal is calculated into one’s monthly charge. If one own, in one way or another, one pays for trash to be removed from one’s dwelling. Waste Management, the largest trash business in the United States, is a member of the Fortune 500. Trash is big business. In many areas, having a municipal job in sanitation is a stable job with good pay and benefits. It may not be glamorous, but it is an honest living for most. Since, in general, the more people that live in a domicile, the more trash is produced, many locals are ...

Waste generation is a major problem global problem, as the world’s population rises, the quantity of domestic and industrial waste increases. The main strategy employed in waste management is the 3R approach of reduction, reuse and recycling. Environmental experts have suggested the inclusion of recovery to create a 4R strategic approach to waste management (Yearley, 2005a, p 7). The recovery of energy from wastes is a new approach to waste management that maximizes the energy derived from waste and minimizes the final quantity of waste disposed. More needs to be done to find safer approaches to strategic waste management and the improvement ...

Guidance on safe entry

It is very easy for rescue workers to drown while trying to access the flooded building. It is quite evident that even professional swimmers can drown in certain circumstances. A thorough study of the architecture of the building should be done (Cauffman and N.I.S.T, 2006). Workers should be enlightened on the topography or terrain that lies therein. They should also walk with copies of the architectural drawing or equivalent documents that will be useful in knowing the layout of the building. Before entry into the building, specific threat areas must be identified (Dasgupta, 2007). For example, workers must be ...

The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)

NEPA was created due to the increased concern and appreciation about wildlife and ecological system during the 1969. It is an environmental law that sought to promote environmental care through the establishment of a national policy. The Act seeks to lay done specific environmental goals and policies (Bass, Bogdan & Bass 2001). Secondly it provided for the formation of implementation and enforcement for the provided policies through relevant federal agencies. Finally, the Act, provided for the creation of Council on Environmental Quality attached to the President’s Office. The CEQ role is to advise the President on national status on ...

Environmental Hazards and Human Health

The Hartford Courant reported some good news on the Superfund site which is on Main Street, East Hartford, Connecticut.

A superfund site is a piece of real estate that has been polluted with “hazardous wastes” from an accidental spill or illegal dump then abandoned. Hazardous waste is pollution in the environment, including soil and groundwater that can harm the ecosystem and the health of people.

On December 11, 1980 the “Superfund” was established by Congress under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA) to gather up a tax (the “fund”) for cleaning up abandoned and uncontrolled hazardous waste sites.

...

EPA’s Municipal Waste and Hazardous Waste Programs

In USA the RCRA (Resource Conservation and Recovery Act) is the major law that governs solid and hazardous waste in the environment. The three distinct programs that are implemented are solid waste, hazardous, and underground storage tanks programs (EPA). In the two programs—solid waste and hazardous—there are variations that should be clearly noted so as the environment can be well conserved. Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) also called garbage or trash is controlled through a program with the same acronym. The goals in the program are to reduce the amount of solids, and to ensure that municipal solids ...

Incineration is the process of disposing solid wastes through burning. When solid wastes are burned a number substances are released or emitted and some others remain as residues. The emitted materials include dioxins, organic carbon emissions, heavy metals, particulate matter and ashes.

Effects of Incineration

Exposure to these emissions cause reproductive defects, cancer and respiratory system ailment. It has also been shown that the emissions can accumulate on the leaves of food crops. Even though the effects of these emissions in air are so hazardous, in water they form a neutral solution with the particulate matter settled at the bottom of the sea. ...

An industrial chemical is one of the toxic wastes that need to be disposed of properly. However, before disposal the effects of the chemical on the environment and its inhabitants must be assessed as well as the legality of the chemical. Once a chemical is declared legal by government, it can be disposed of in but prescribed location by the local government. In this case before hand if the chemicals were legal at the time of disposal, the individuals concerned cannot be held responsible for the damage that there arise. Although the officers concerned, on the other hand, must ...

Waste Management

HAZWOPER stands for Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response. It is a standard meant to protect three employee populations: workers participating in operations at hazardous waste sites being decontaminated; those employed at hazardous waste treatment, storage and disposal facilities; and employees who are acting in response to emergencies concerning chemical spills or releases (Christian, Ellsworth, & Matthew, 2002). The major components of HAZWOPER are preliminary characterization and analysis of the site; monitoring activities on water, air and soil; training of employees; medical monitoring of the workers; and emergency disaster response if the activities at the site get out of control ( ...

Scenario #3

1. Should the oily rags stay on the plant site?

Oily rags are classified as contaminated debris under EPA’s definition of hazardous waste because the rags are contaminated with oil which has the characteristic of being highly ignitable. As such, the oily rags should not be kept at the site since the high temperatures at the plant site could easily ignite the oil-air mixture in the dumpsters causing a fire. Therefore, their continued stay at the plant site poses a high preventable risk for fire (Hackman, Hackman & Hackman,2002).

2. What responsibility does Fleet Operations have?

Fleet Operations are the generators of the hazardous waste in ...

Introduction

The countries covering the South East Asia region have had a population surge during the past decade and at the same time the population is expected to continue increasing by around 25% of the current figures. This overly populated region is hence subjected to high degree for demand of commodities in order the needs of the consumers can be met. The high number of citizens in the particular countries has also resulted in the increase of waste materials released to the environment either in solid, liquid or even gaseous forms. The high demand for goods and services have burdened the ...