solid waste management

What is solid waste?

Any solid component that is thrown out after use and that materials effects the environmental conditions are known as solid waste.

According to Britannica, “Solid-waste management, the collecting, treating, and disposing of solid material that is discarded because it has served its purpose or is no longer useful. Improper disposal of municipal solid waste can create unsanitary conditions, and these conditions in turn can lead to pollution of the environment and to outbreaks of vector-borne disease—that is, diseases spread by rodents and insects.”

source of solid waste--

1. Industrial waste- (plastics, food wastes, metals, paper, glass, wood, cardboard materials, special wastes and other hazardous wastes)
2. Domestic waste 
3. Institutional waste-(rubber waste, plastics, food wastes, wood, paper, metals, cardboard materials, electronics)
4. Medical waste-( syringes, bandages, used gloves, drugs, paper)
5. Food stores-(waste food)
6. Market wastage-(plastics,glass,cardboard)
7. construction areas-(concrete,cement particles,metallic waste)
8. Agriculture-(agricultural wastes, spoiled food, pesticide containers)

Effect of bad management of solid waste-

Due to improper waste disposal systems particularly by municipal waste management teams, wastes heap up and become a problem. People clean their homes and places of work and litter their surroundings which affects the environment and the community.

• It pollute the surrounding water.
• It decreases the surrounding air quality.
• It may causes different type of diseases.
• It may cause soil pollution and also decreases the fertility of soil.

control measures of solid waste

1. By using RRR approach 

•  R-Reduse
•  R-Recycle
•  R-Reuse

1. Sanitary Landfill- can be safely deposited in a sanitary landfill, a disposal site that is carefully selected, designed, constructed, and operated to protect the environment and public health
2. Composting-conversion into fertilizer and compost
3. Pyrolysis
   -This is method of solid waste management whereby solid wastes are chemically decomposed by heat without presence of oxygen.