As it decomposes it releases methane gas. As written above, methane gas is a greenhouse gas which contributes to the greenhouse gas effect.
However, methane gas is 84 times more potent than carbon dioxide! Electrical and Electronic Equipment Waste items of electrical and electronic equipment can be very harmful for the environment.
If WEEE waste also known as e-waste is disposed of incorrectly it can result in air pollution. Additionally, electrical and electronic equipment can be hazardous to human health.
Numerous different hazardous materials can be found within WEEE items such as arsenic, cadmium, lead and mercury. As such it is very important that if you need to dispose of WEEE waste, you speak to a professional waste management company who can provide a professional WEEE service that complies with The Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations Irresponsible Waste Disposal Irresponsible disposal of waste can cause many different environmental problems.
It can result in air pollution, land pollution and could also cause numerous different health conditions. An ISO Environmental. If you would like to contact us, you can do so by: Calling us on , Our office opening hours are Monday to Friday 8 am to 5 pm. Sending an email to sales bkpgroup.
Filling out our contact form. Following us on Twitter GroupBkp. If you have forgotten your password, we can send you a new one. Europe generates large amounts of waste: food and garden waste, construction and demolition waste, mining waste, industrial waste, sludge, old televisions, old cars, batteries, plastic bags, paper, sanitary waste, old clothes and old furniture… the list goes on.
The amount of waste we generate is closely linked to our consumption and production patterns. The sheer number of products entering the market poses yet another challenge. Demographic changes, like an increase in the number of one-person households, also affect the amount of waste we generate e.
The large spectrum of waste types and complex waste-treatment paths including illegal ones makes it difficult to get a complete overview of the waste generated and its whereabouts.
There are data, albeit of varying quality, for all types of waste. According to data for for 29 European countries i. In , kg of municipal solid waste was generated per person in the 33 member countries of the European Environment Agency EEA. There is a slight downward trend from onwards, which can be explained partly by the economic crisis affecting Europe since The slight dip observed in municipal waste generated in the EU might have helped reduce the environmental impacts of waste, to some extent.
However, while waste quantities are important, waste management also plays a key role. Overall in the EU, an increasing amount of waste is recycled and a decreasing amount is sent to landfills.
Despite these achievements, large discrepancies still exist between countries. The shift in waste management is closely linked to EU waste legislation. It outlines a waste management hierarchy: starting with prevention, followed by preparing for re-use, recycling, recovery and ending with disposal.
It aims to prevent waste generation as much as possible, to use waste that is generated as a resource and to minimise the amount of waste sent to landfill. The WFD along with other EU waste directives on landfilling, end-of-life vehicles, e-waste, batteries, packaging waste, etc. EU countries can adopt different approaches in order to reach their waste targets. Some approaches seem to work better than others. For example, if designed well, landfill taxes appear to be an effective way of reducing landfilled waste.
Extended producer responsibility, where the producer has to take back the product at the end of its life, also seems effective. Poor waste management contributes to climate change and air pollution, and directly affects many ecosystems and species. Landfills, considered the last resort in the waste hierarchy, release methane, a very powerful greenhouse gas linked to climate change. Methane is formed by microorganisms present in landfills from biodegradable waste, such as food, paper and garden waste.
Depending on the way they are built, landfills might also contaminate soil and water. After waste is collected, it is transported and treated. The transport process releases carbon dioxide — the most prevalent greenhouse gas — and air pollutants, including particulate matter, into the atmosphere.
Part of the waste might be incinerated or recycled. Energy from waste can be used to produce heat or electricity, which might then replace the energy produced using coal or other fuels. Energy recovery of waste can thus help reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Recycling can help even more to lower greenhouse gas emissions and other emissions. When recycled materials replace new materials, fewer new materials need to be extracted or produced in the first place.
Some ecosystems, like the marine and coastal ones, can be severely affected by poor management of waste, or by littering. Marine litter is a growing concern, and not only for aesthetic reasons: entanglement and ingestion constitute severe threats to many marine species.
Waste impacts the environment indirectly as well. Whatever is not recycled or recovered from waste represents a loss of raw material and other inputs used in the chain, i. Environmental impacts in the life-cycle chain are significantly larger than those in the waste management phases alone.
Directly or indirectly, waste affects our health and well-being in many ways: methane gases contribute to climate change, air pollutants are released into the atmosphere, freshwater sources are contaminated, crops are grown in contaminated soil and fish ingest toxic chemicals, subsequently ending up on our dinner plates….
Illegal activities such as illegal dumping, burning or exports also play a part, but it is difficult to estimate the full extent of such activities, or of their impacts. Waste also represents an economic loss and burden to our society. Labour and the other inputs land, energy, etc. We can even lower the frequency of natural disasters that are affecting our communities internationally.
Climate Change Lessen the impact to our agriculture and fresh water locations. Lower the frequency of natural disasters that are affecting our communities internationally. Protect endangered species.
Lessen Landfill Impacts on Surrounding Communities Landfills create water pollution when the trash is saturated with water and certain particles cannot be removed through a water treatment process. This is dangerous to the surrounding communities because their drinking water is contaminated.
Air pollution is created through the natural gasses that are released from the decay of materials. Being surrounded by these toxic gases can be a factor in lung and heart complications.
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