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Municipal solid waste (MSW), commonly known as trash or garbage in the United States and rubbish in Britain, is a waste type consisting of everyday items that are discarded by the public. " Garbage " can also refer specifically to food waste , as in a garbage disposal ; the two are sometimes collected separately.
Solid Waste Tree, Based on Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, United States Environmental Protection Agency. Solid waste means any garbage or refuse, sludge from a wastewater treatment plant, water supply treatment plant, or an air pollution control facility and other discarded material, including solid, liquid, semi-solid, or contained gaseous material resulting from industrial ...
Electronic waste or e-waste describes discarded electrical or electronic devices. Used electronics which are destined for reuse, resale, salvage, recycling, or disposal are also considered e-waste. Informal processing of e-waste in developing countries can lead to adverse human health effects and environmental pollution.
Categories of solid waste generated in the U.S., 1960 through 2014. As a nation, Americans generate more waste than any other nation in the world, officially with 4.4 pounds (2.0 kg) of municipal solid waste (MSW) per person per day, [1] with another study estimating 7.1 pounds (3.2 kg) per capita per day. [2]
A household hazardous waste collection center in Seattle, Washington, U.S. Under United States environmental policy, hazardous waste is a waste (usually a solid waste) that has the potential to: cause, or significantly contribute to an increase in mortality or an increase in serious irreversible, or incapacitating reversible illness; or
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) prohibits disposing of certain materials down drains. [4] Therefore, when hazardous chemical waste is generated in a laboratory setting, it is usually stored on-site in appropriate waste containers, such as triple-rinsed chemical storage containers [5] or carboys, where it is later collected and disposed of in order to meet safety, health, and ...
Congress enacted RCRA to address the increasing problems the nation faced from its growing volume of municipal and industrial waste. RCRA was an amendment of the Solid Waste Disposal Act of 1965. The act set national goals for: Protecting human health and the natural environment from the potential hazards of waste disposal.
Decomposing waste in these landfills produces landfill gas, which is a mixture of about half methane and half carbon dioxide. Landfills are the third-largest source of methane emissions in the United States, with municipal solid waste landfills representing 95 percent of this fraction. [18] [19]