Dvisha Patel Unit 6: Waste Management, Hazards, Economics and the Future Chapter 16: Waste Management 1.

Compare early concepts of waste disposal with modern trend of zero waste. a. Early Concepts: i. Dilution and dispersion: let the rivers take care of the waste ii. Concentration and containment: but containers often fail iii. Problem of limited space for landfills and their high cost iv. NIMBY (not in my back yard) b. Zero Waste concept of eliminated waste by not generating it or turning it into resources 2. What is e-waste and why is it hazardous? a. E-waste: waste generated from computers, TVs, cell phones, other electronic devices used by people b. Toxic from inadequate or unsafe disposal of electronic devices (60 Minutes video) 3. Discuss the following waste management strategies: a. On-site: disposal at home i. Ex: Kitchen garbage disposal units, composting of kitchen and garden waste, incineration b. Composting: biochemical process in which organic materials are decomposed to a rich, soil-like material (composting of kitchen and garden waste) c. Incineration: combustions of waste leaving only ash and noncombustible to dispose of in a landfill i. Reduces volume of waste and may generate electrical power ii. May cause air pollution and generate toxic ash d. Open Dumps: open, have no cover i. Generate a nuisance: pests, health hazard, air and water pollution ii. (It rains garbage washed away (no cover)) e. MSW landfills: (Municipal Solid Waste) site to dispose of municipal solid waste, also called a sanitary landfill i. Concentrates and contains refuse/layers of compacted soil contain waste ii. Isolates waste from pests and surface water iii. Principal hazards leachate 4. Briefly describe the four major types of land disposal of hazardous waste. a. Land Disposal i. Secure landfills are designed to confine waste and leachate b. Microbial Breakdown i. Applying waste materials to near-surface soil ii. When biodegradable waste is added to the soil its attacked by microflora c. Surface Impoundment i. Pit in the ground to hold hazardous liquids ii. Prone to seepage into soil, or evaporation of toxic gases d. Deep-Well Disposal i. Injecting waste into deep wells below all freshwater aquifers e. Alternatives i. Combination of reduction, recycling, resource recovery, treatment, and incineration o Reclaim/reuse useful chemicals o Treatment to reduce toxicity o Reduce the volume of waste items 5. What are some strategies for preventing the generation of waste? 1/4

Dvisha Patel Unit 6: Waste Management, Hazards, Economics and the Future a. Hazardous Waste Legislation b. Integrated Waste Management 6. Key Terms a. Integrated Waste Management (IWM): Reduce, Reuse, Recycle (and composting, landfill, and incineration) b. Leachate: concentrated form of toxins b/c only diluted by rain or water in trash/garbage fill; in MSW, open dump, all waste sites Chapter 17: Natural Hazards 1. Differentiate between a. Natural Hazard: natural process thats a potential threat to human life and property b. Disaster: an event that occurs over a limited time in a limited geography area and causes significant losses of life and property c. Catastrophe: a massive disaster requiring very significant expenditures of money and time Natural Hazard: Natural Disaster: Significant Damage Catastrophe: Massive 2. What does it mean to take a historical point of view about disasters? Discuss the La Conchita landslide as an example a. We must learn from past experiences, or well suffer the same consequences repeatedly b. La Conchita i. Was built on top of old landslides ii. Was in the direct path for more landslides (easily seen and predictable) iii. (Picture with dirt covering the city) 3. What are the natural service functions of periodic disturbances such as earthquakes? a. Plate tectonics causes earthquakes builds mountains b. Volcanic Eruptions catastrophic island building and soil fertility c. Floods, landslides, dust storms hazardous enrich soil d. Moving continental plates: force groundwater to surface 4. Explain why human population growth is a key factor in the increase in catastrophes. a. (graph, in notes, based on loss of property damage, loss of life) b. Population is getting bigger and bigger c. Increased size of cities d. Increased population density makes hazards more dangerous e. Warning signs unheeded 5. Give examples of linkages between hazards and the environment. a. Volcanic eruptions often cause landslides b. Mount St. Helens altered landscape and ecosystems c. Hazards may have a significant effect on the biological environment such as disruption of ecosystems and fragmentation of habitat 6. Define the following natural hazards: a. Earthquake b. Volcanic eruption c. Landslide d. Hurricane e. Heat wave 2/4

Dvisha Patel f. g. h. i. j.

Unit 6: Waste Management, Hazards, Economics and the Future Tsunami Wildfire Tornado Flood Drought

7. How can we minimize the adverse effects of natural hazards? a. Land-use planning to avoid hazards b. Implementing evacuation plan c. Minimizing effects with preparation (e.g.: protecting hillside communities in the foothills from mudslides after Station Fire) d. Control through engineering e. By not believing that bad stuff will happen to only other people, and not to you f. Laws protecting people who disregard hazards g. Obtaining insurance program Chapter 18: Environmental Economics 1. Discuss the tragedy of the commons. Give examples of todays commons. a. Commons: land that belongs to the public, not to individuals b. Historically: in Old English and New England towns where all the farmers could graze their cattle; each farmer tries to maximize personal gain adding one more cow: benefit to farmer of selling a cow is greater than his share of the negative cost of overgrazing i. Complete freedom in a commons inevitably ruins the commons c. Todays commons: forests, fisheries, and the atmosphere i. Problems: recreation; payoff for individual for being selfish 2. Discuss the difficulty of balancing resource sustainability against maximum profit, using the whaling industry as an example. a. Adopting resource sustainability means low yield and high costs lower profits b. Adopting maximum profit means converting the entire resource into investments with no costs- higher profits c. Whales are not a highly profitable long term investment (whalers didnt try to conserve whales) d. The relative scarcity of a necessary resource affects its value e. Thinking beyond immediate economic advantages policies that seem ethically good may not be the most profitable for an individual 3. Define externality a. Externality: a factor with side effects and consequences that dont reflect on market prices b. Ex: air and water pollution 4. Describe the public-service functions of nature and other environmental intangibles. a. Natures public service functions are hard to measure in dollars b. Valuing the beauty of nature - Landscape aesthetics i. Problem: personal preference beauty is in the eye of the beholder c. (Can have beauty pricey homes with views but pay for them with fire damage, earthquakes 5. Discuss risk-benefit analysis as it relates to environmental science. a. The riskiness of the future that influences the value we place on things in the present b. What is the value of human life? c. Factors: number of people affected d. Novel Risks seem more dangerous or less acceptable than something longestablished because its an unknown 3/4

Dvisha Patel

Unit 6: Waste Management, Hazards, Economics and the Future i. France spent $ on jet/plane safety rather than on highway fixes even though more people travel on their roads e. Envi: i. What are we willing to pay to reduce risk? ii. What is the value of human life? iii. The average cost of pollution control per family in the U.S. is low iv. Compare the costs of pollution control to the costs of pollution

6. Who should bear the costs of tackling global environmental problems? a. Developing countries as much as industrialized countries? (Kyoto Protocol) Chapter 19: Planning for a Sustainable Future 1. Discuss the issues of the environmental planning: who how, what? a. Planning that emphasizes the environment including impact and land use b. Who i. All societies try to plan their use of land and resources ii. Competing Interests: Business/Profit people vs. Naturalists/Preserve c. Envi planning and review are closely related to how land is used 2. Explain the controversy over the Wildlands Project. 3. What a. b. c. are the advantages of promoting nature in urban areas? Recent studies verify our need for nature in cities Trees help to protect us from air pollution and heat City Parks Central Park (NY) i. Designed by Frederick Law Olmstead his parks were naturalistic d. Garden Cities system of countryside and urban landscapes with cities surrounded by greenbelts

4. How did Curitiba, Brazil become a model for urban planning and sustainability? a. Public transportation system: more than 1.3M people ride busses each day b. Recycling solved garbage problem c. City planned affordable housing and attractive parks 5. Discuss the competing interests of individual rights versus the public trust, especially as they relate to the environment 6. Describe the three stages in the history of federal legislation pertaining to land and natural resources. 1st Stage: Goal was to convert public lands to private uses 2nd Stage: the Beginning of protection for public lands 3rd Stage: Congress enacted laws about the environment 7. What are some of the challenges for students of the environment? a. Continue to work toward environmental and social justice for all the people in the world b. Enhance the development of sustainability, to minimize local, regional, and global environmental degradation c. Develop and support international agreements to control global warming and pollutants 8. Key terms a. Ecotage: sabotage 4/4

Dvisha Patel Unit 6: Waste Management, Hazards, Economics and the Future b. Mediation: negotiation process between adversaries, guided by a neutral facilitator c. International Environmental Law: body of laws consisting of treaties that address environmental problems and solutions

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