Managing Hazardous Solid
Waste and Waste Sites
Costillas, Kenny Rommel S.
Roman, Janssen S.
Characterizing the Hazardous Waste Problem
Hazardous solid waste-
Unwanted materials or refuse
posing a substantial threat to
health or the ecology
Waste stream- A series of
event that starts with waste
generation and continues
through the transportation,
storage, treatment, and
disposal of the materials.
Magnitude and Source of the Problem
All environmental media – the atmosphere, groundwater and
surface waters, and soil are susceptible to hazardous waste
contamination. Ocean pollution, soil contamination, disease, fish
kills, and livestock loss are among the potential damages.
Sources of Hazardous Waste
Who is responsible for generating all these toxic waste
materials?
It turns out that every sector of the economy – households, industry,
government, and institutions- contributes to the hazardous waste
stream.
In the Beginning
No federal policy on waste control existed
in the U.S. until the Solid Waste Disposal
Act (SWDA) was passed in 1963.
However, this law had limited strength
until it was amended in 1970 by the
Resource Recovery Act.
More revisions came in the mid-1970s,
these in the form of the Resource
Conservation and Recovery Act
(RCRA). The hallmark or RCRA was a
distinct set of regulations that established
a “cradle-to-grave” management
system for controlling hazardous waste.
“cradle-to-grave” management system- A command-and-
control approach to regulating hazardous solid wastes through
every stage of the waste stream.
Current U.S. Policy
Congress reauthorized and
strengthened Resource
Conservation and Recovery
Act (RCRA) through the
Hazardous and Solid Waste
Amendments of 1984, which
governs U.S. policy today.
Controlling Hazardous Waste: RCRA
To minimize the risks if hazardous waste
pollution, efforts must be made to
reduce the quantity and toxicity of the
waste stream. Most agree that two
general approaches are needed:
Sources reduction, which is a
preventive strategy aimed at the
generation stage.
Waste management, which refers to
strategies to control those wastes that
cannot be eliminated.
“Cradle-to-Grave” Management Approach
The RCRA program emerged as the “cradle-to-grave”
management system - a multi-pronged command-and-
control approach to regulating hazardous waste. Its four
major components are:
Identification of hazardous wastes
A national manifest system for tracking and monitoring
the movement of wastes
A permit system for treatment, storage, and disposal
facilities (TSDFs)
Development of standards for TSDFs
Identification of Hazardous Wastes
Characteristic wastes: are
hazardous wastes exhibiting
certain characteristics that
imply a substantial risk.
Listed wastes: are
hazardous wastes pre-
identified by government as
having met specific criteria.
Analysis of U.S. hazardous Waste Policy
“cradle-to-grave” management system uses a classic
example of a command-and-control policy approach. As
such, it lacks incentives, which decreases the likelihood of
an efficient or cost-effective outcome. To illustrate this
assertion, we consider the following aspects of the RCRA
program:
Risk-based-uniform rules of identification
Benefit-based uniform standards
Failure of the manifest system
Market implication of the land restrictions
Risk-based-uniform
rules of identification
The law requires that
hazardous waste be
identified according to
risk-based characteristics
and criteria.
Benefit-based uniform
standards
RCRA controls hazardous
waste management Failure of the manifest system
primarily through The system is a definitive
standards imposed on the
TSDFs. According to the command-and-control instrument,
law, these standards must with no incentives, no pricing
be set to protect health
and the environment. mechanisms, and no options.
Market implication of the land restrictions
In the late 1970s, it became apparent that existing hazardous waste was doing nothing to halt
the overuse of land disposal. One reason why landfilling had become to prevalent was that it
was cheaper than other disposal options.
Market-Based Policy
A customary market-based approach to hazardous waste control policy is the use of a
pollution charge, which can be implemented as a wasted-end charge.
Waste-end charge- A fee
implemented at the time of
disposal based on the quantity
of waste generated.
U.S. Hazardous Waste Site Policy
Beyond RCRA’s controls on current solid
waste management, guidelines and financial
support were needed to address the
damages caused by past contaminations and
to clean up abandoned and uncontrolled
hazardous waste sites.
This baseline information along with data
collected on an ongoing basis would
comprise a national inventory called the
Comprehensive Environmental Response,
Compensation, and Liability Information
System (CERCLIS)
CERCLIS- A national inventory of
hazardous waste site data.
Managing Uncontrolled
Hazardous Waste Sites:
Superfund
By most accounts, CERCLA, or
Superfunds, is considered a
landmark legislative act because
its intent is solely remedial rather
than preventive.
Response and Cleanup
Superfund gives the
federal government
broad authority to
respond whenever there
is a release or the threat
of a release of a
hazardous substance.
To implement these
response actions, a
comprehensive set of
regulations was
established called the
National Contingency
Plan (NCP), which
outlines procedures to
put Superfund into
action. The resulting in
the Superfund cleanup
process are summarized
in Figure 17.5
Removal Actions Compensation, Liability, and Enforcement
Are aimed at restoring immediate control to a Superfunds gives the EPA authority to force
release site. Official responses to a hazardous those parties that are responsible for the
substance release aimed at restoring release of hazardous substance to correct the
immediate control. problem and pay for the damage. So-called
potentially responsible parties (PRPs), are
any current or former owner or operator of a
Remedial actions hazardous waste facilities that are involved in
Are long-term responses aimed at finding a the disposal, treatment, or transport of
more permanent solution to a release site. hazardous substances to a contaminated site.
Official responses to a hazardous substance The intent is to force guilty parties to
release aimed at achieving a more internalize the externality of whatever
permanent solution. market transaction contributed to the release.
Emergency Planning
Its purpose is to inform citizens about the existence and
potential release of hazardous substance to provide a
planning system for emergencies.
REPUBLIC ACT 9003
Ecological Solid Waste Management Act:
Environmental Protection Through Proper Solid
Waste Practices
Albert P. Aquino, Jamaica P. Deriquito, and Meliza A.
Festejo
AN ACT PROVIDING FOR AN ECOLOGICAL SOLID
WASTE MANAGEMENT PROGRAM, CREATING
THE NECESSARY INSTITUTIONAL MECHANISMS
AND INCENTIVES, DECLARING CERTAIN ACTS
PROHIBITED AND PROVIDING PENALTIES,
APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR, AND FOR
OTHER PURPOSES
Republic Act (RA) 9003 or the Ecological
Solid Waste Management Act of 2000 a
landmark environmental legislation in the
Philippines. The law was crafted in response
to the looming garbage problems in the
country. RA 9003 declares the policy if the
state in adopting a systematic,
comprehensive and ecological solid
waste management program to ensures
the protection of public health and the
environment and the proper segregation,
collection, transport, storage, treatment and
disposal of solid waste through adoption of
best environmental practices.
The earth will not continue to
offer its harvest, except with
faithful stewardship. We cannot
say we love the land and then
take steps to destroy it for use
by future generations.
- John Paul II
Thank You!