Page 61 - Solid Waste Analysis and Minimization a Systems Approach

AN OVERVIEW OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS 39

Recycling also helps reduce greenhouse gas emissions that affect global climate. In
1996, recycling of solid waste in the United States prevented the release of 33 million
tons of carbon into the air—roughly the amount emitted annually by 25 million cars.
Burning MSW can generate energy while reducing the amount of waste by up to
90 percent in volume and 75 percent in weight. EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation is
primarily responsible for regulating combustors because air emissions from combus-
tion pose the greatest environmental concern and provided this data.
In 2006, the national recycling rate of 32.5 percent (82 million tons recycled) pre-
vented the release of approximately 49.7 million metric tons of carbon into the air—
roughly the amount emitted annually by 39 million cars, or 1300 trillion Btu, saving
energy equivalent to 10 billion gallons of gasoline.
The number of landfills in the United States is steadily decreasing—from 8000 in
1988 to 1754 in 2006. The capacity, however, has remained relatively constant. New
landfills are much larger than in the past.

2.4.3 INTERNATIONAL WASTE GENERATION
COMPARISON RATES

As discussed in the book Germany, Garbage, and the Green Dot: Challenging the
Throwaway Society by Bette Fishbein, it is very difficult to make international com-
parisons regarding waste generation. For example, Ms. Fishbein points out that
“According to the data published by the Organization of Economic Cooperation and
Development, waste generation in Germany is 318 kilograms per person per year as
compared to 864 kilograms per person per year in the United States. This might sug-
gest that the average person in the United States generates two or three times as
much garbage as the average person in Germany. However, data from the two coun-
tries are not comparable: the German data neither include materials collected from
recycling, nor do they include some commercial waste, both of which are included
in U.S. data. International comparisons of waste generation are usually unreliable
because countries use different data collection mythologies and different definitions
of waste.” Table 2.1 shows the annual waste generation rates for various countries.

2.5 An Overview of

Environmental Concerns

The world has changed significantly over the past century. Societies are shifting to a
convenience-oriented mind-set, world populations are increasing, and subsequently
waste generation is shifting, which is creating new environmental impacts. For exam-
ple, from a convenience standpoint, solid waste generation rates are increasing due to
the proliferation of individually packaged food servings, fast-food containers, and dis-
posable diapers. Figures 2.8 and 2.9 display the total and per capita waste-generation
rates in the United States.