This book will focus on "Waste Management," a serious global issue and engineers' responsibility towards finding better solutions for its sustainable management. Solid waste management is one of the major environmental burdens in both developed and developing countries alike. An alarming rate of solid waste generation trends can be seen as a result of globalization, industrialization, and rapid economic development. However, low-income and marginalized sectors in society suffer most from the unfavorable conditions deriving from poor waste management. Solid waste management is not a mere technical challenge. The environmental impact, socio-economic, cultural, institutional, legal, and political aspects are fundamental in planning, designing, and maintaining a sustainable waste management system in any country. Engineers have a major role to play in designing proper systems that integrate stakeholders, waste system elements, and sustainability aspects of waste management. This book is part of a focused collection from a project on Engineering and Education for Social and Environmental Justice. It takes an explicitly social and environmental justice stance on waste and attempts to assess the social impact of waste management on those who are also the most economically vulnerable and least powerful in the society. We hope that this book will assist our readers to think critically and understand the framework of socially and environmentally just waste management. Table of Contents: Introduction / Towards a Just Politics of Waste Management / Expertise, Indigenous People, and the Site 41 Landfill / Waste Management in the Global North / Waste Management in the Global South: A Sri Lankan Case Study / Assessing the Feasibility of Waste for Life in the Western Province of Sri Lanka

This book will focus on "Waste Management," a serious global issue and engineers' responsibility towards finding better solutions for its sustainable management. Solid waste management is one of the major environmental burdens in both developed and developing countries alike. An alarming rate of solid waste generation trends can be seen as a result of globalization, industrialization, and rapid economic development. However, low-income and marginalized sectors in society suffer most from the unfavorable conditions deriving from poor waste management. Solid waste management is not a mere technical challenge. The environmental impact, socio-economic, cultural, institutional, legal, and political aspects are fundamental in planning, designing, and maintaining a sustainable waste management system in any country. Engineers have a major role to play in designing proper systems that integrate stakeholders, waste system elements, and sustainability aspects of waste management. This book is part of a focused collection from a project on Engineering and Education for Social and Environmental Justice. It takes an explicitly social and environmental justice stance on waste and attempts to assess the social impact of waste management on those who are also the most economically vulnerable and least powerful in the society. We hope that this book will assist our readers to think critically and understand the framework of socially and environmentally just waste management.

As populations continue to increase, society produces more and more waste. Yet it is becoming increasingly difficult to build new landfills, and the existing landfills are causing significant environmental damage. Finding solutions is not simple; the problem is enormous in size, vital in terms of its impact on the environment, and complex in scope. This book provides a vast look at solid waste management in North America and seeks solutions to the waste crisis. It describes the magnitude and complexity of the problem, focusing on municipal wastes and placing them in the perspective of other wastes such as hazardous, biochemical, and radioactive debris. It describes the components of an integrated waste management program, including recycling, composting, landfills, and waste incinerators, and it presents in detail the scientific and engineering principles underlying these technologies. To illustrate both the problems and solutions of waste management programs, the authors provide seven case histories, among them the Fresh Kills (Staten Island, New York), the East Carbon Landfill (Utah), and the Lancaster County Municipal Waste Incinerator (Pennsylvania). The Waste Crisis is unique in its attempt to analyze waste management in a broader societal context and to propose solutions based on basic principles. And by doing so, it encourages readers to challenge commonly held perceptions and to seek new and better ways of dealing with waste. As such, this book deserves a place on the bookshelf of anyone who deals with or feels the need to confront the growing problems of waste management.

Preface. 1. The Waste Crisis. 2. Starting from Basics. 3. Historical Perspectives. 4. Integrated Waste Management. 5. Recycling and Composting. 6. Wastes: Know Thy Enemy. 7. Landfills: How Do They Work? 8. Are There Better Disposal Methods? 9. Incineration: The Burning Issue. 10. Containment, Encapsulation, and Treatment. 11. Case Histories. 12. The All-Powerful NIMBY. 13. A New Approach. 14. Garbology: A Vision for the Future.

Describes how large amounts of garbage are created today, how to recycle effectively, and why it is important to reduce or eliminate garbage.

The Waste Crisis Explore modern solutions to the most critical issues in waste management policy and design In The Waste Crisis: Roadmap for Sustainable Waste Management in Developing Countries, an accomplished team of sustainability researchers deliver a concise insight of modern waste management practices that acts as a handbook for waste management professionals. Along with flow charts and example problems, the authors offer readers the information necessary to support decision making based on country, city size, population, waste generation volume, type, geographical location, and more. The book begins with an overview of current waste management practices, including waste generation, collection, processing, composting, recycling, and disposal. It moves on to a series of case studies from over ten countries and presentations of sustainable waste management strategies. The Waste Crisis: Roadmap for Sustainable Waste Management in Developing Countries concludes with a series of practical and effective final recommendations for future best practices. It also includes: Practical discussions of material flow, cost-effective material recovery, anaerobic digestion, composting, recycling, disposal, training, and human capacity building Comprehensive explorations of unique and robust decision-making strategies for designers, policy makers, and regulators In-depth treatments of ready-to-implement waste management systems perfect for systems designers The Waste Crisis: Roadmap for Sustainable Waste Management in Developing Countries is an indispensable resource for waste, recycling, and resource management professionals. It???s also perfect for waste management system designers and decision makers seeking a one-stop guide to issues of sustainability in the developing world.