Waste Management and Recycling

Concern over our environment has seen a massive increase in recycling globally which has grown to be an important part of modern civilization.

As a society we manage to produce a vast amount of materials that are just thrown away, waste management is the collection of these materials in order to recycle them and as a result decrease their effects on our health, our surroundings and the environment. Practices in waste management are different the world over, dependent on certain issues such as how developed the nation is, if it is a city or rural area and so on. The management of waste is not only the responsibility of governments and the manufacturer, but also an individual’s duty. Waste management is an issue that has to be dealt with daily in order to control the huge amounts of waste currently passing through our towns and cities.

Australia is one such country that is giving attention and priority to how it handles its waste, and this has resulted in the emergence of companies offering environmental services for resource recovery and recycling. To reduce the impacts of waste and unwanted resources on the environment it is important to educate the populace about waste items and how they can be processed or recycled.

There are several resource recovery systems in place and facilities that have been developed to deal with these issues. Natural recovery systems make use of of food, organic and green waste and are then dealt with in in-vessel compost systems, whilst materials collected for recycling include glass, plastic bags, metals and paper. Automated and manual methods are used to sort materials from construction sites, such as brick, tiles and concrete and after being sorted are re-used for road base and construction materials. E-waste (electronic waste) comes from items such as old computers which are taken apart in order to recover materials like cabling, aluminium, copper, glass and plastics. Bioreactor landfills are deployed to generate green energy through the capturing of biogas from municipal waste. There is also help provided for councils to award innovative technologies which can be used to recover recyclables.

We can all help out when it comes to waste management and recycling products. It may not seem effective to recycle products as a household, but put all those households together and you will produce a result. It is each person’s responsibility to do what they can to conserve resources, reduce landfill volumes and produce new materials using less energy. Some cities in developed nations keep a record of their resource recovery systems in order to identify if they are working effectively, evaluate them and update them if necessary, this information can then be passed onto other areas or nations to help them in the recycle challenge. Deciding to recycle is a simple step and surprisingly easy to start. If you are unsure where to begin there are lots of resources, including the local environmental sector, who will be eager to teach you how to recycle your leftover waste and check on the internet too for information.

Michiel van Kets provides articles for Renee Fry who is the owner of Veolia Australia’s environmental services leader in all facets of waste management and recycling in Australia.

E-Waste Recycling Video

The companies Müller Guttenbrunn, Metran and MBA Polymers jointly work on the treatment of E-Waste. This films shows the techniques used to process these e-wastes with the following steps:
1. De-Pollution using a patented smasher, 2. Shreddering in campaigns for only E-Waste, 3. Ferrous metals separations, 4. Non Ferrous Metals separations and these non ferrous metals and printed circuit boards go to smelters and 5. the plastics rich fraction is pre-processed and subsequently recycled into tech plastics that can be re-used in durable products.
Source: Youtube.com

Report: Global Market for E-Waste to Reach $11.4 Billion by 2014

Nonexistent in 1989, e-waste is currently the fastest-growing waste stream in the world.

(BCC Research: Wellesley, MA) -- According to a new technical market research report, “Electronic Waste Recovery: Global Markets (MST037B)” from BCC Research, the global market for electronic waste (e-waste) materials was an estimated $8.5 billion in 2009, but is expected to increase to nearly $13 billion in 2014, for a 5-year compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8.9 percent.

The largest segment of the market, made up of recycled metals, is expected to reach $11.4 billion in 2014, after increasing at a CAGR of 8.8 percent from the estimated 2009 value of $7.5 billion.

The segment made up of recycled plastics was estimated to be worth $976 million in 2009, and is expected to increase at a CAGR of 10 percent to reach nearly $1.6 billion in 2014.

The smallest segment of the market, recycled silica, is projected to grow at a CAGR of 7.1 percent, from $4.9 million in 2009 to $6.9 million in 2014.


It’s remarkable to think that e-waste did not exist before 1989, and now it is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. For purposes of this report, e-waste is described as discarded, surplus, obsolete, or broken electrical or electronic devices. This includes all components of the waste stream, including metals, plastics, silica, and other materials. On average, e-waste equals between 3 and 5 percent of the solid waste stream in developed countries. Of that e-waste, approximately 75 to 85 percent ends up in landfills or is incinerated, and is not recycled.

The global municipal solid waste stream (MWS) was estimated in 2009 at nearly 400 million tons.

A concerted effort to reclaim discarded e-waste from the MWS is being undertaken by almost all countries, with varying degrees of success. This study forecasts future global markets for recovery, reuse, and disposal of e-waste.

Part of this analysis focuses on producer responsibility for appropriate recovery and disposal. With rapidly shifting global regulatory trends, led by the European Union’s directives, worldwide changes in the material composition and end-of-life treatment of electric and electronic equipment are being mandated. These policies are compelling manufacturers to migrate to nontoxic materials, at the same time they require manufacturers to manage the life cycles of those materials.

This report is targeted primarily at those engaged in the design, manufacture, sale, use, recovery, and disposal of electric and electronic equipment. The market analysis can be of use to senior decision makers, business development managers, and investment professionals, including engineers, product development managers, and economic analysts.

BCC Research  is an information resource producing high-quality market research reports, newsletters, and conferences. BCC's market research reports explore major economic, scientific, and technological developments in industrial, pharmaceutical, and high technology organizations. Industry analysis and market forecasts for advanced materials, high-tech systems and components, nanotechnology and novel processing methods are at the forefront of the company's expertise.

An Inconvenient Truth: Al Gore Documentary On Global Warming

Al Gore's Documentary on Global Warming:
Everything are changing !the Earth is getting worse.Human life are damaged.

Imported Old Equipment Are Toxic Waste

India must stop importing old equipment (e-waste) from foreign countries because other countries use this as a means to dump their toxic waste. On Friday, various stakeholders ranging from manufacturers to recyclers unilaterally agreed that the import of old equipment for recycling or reuse must be deleted from the final
E-Waste (Handling & Management) Rules 2010. The stakeholders along with the Maharashtra E-Waste Association and the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board debated the draft rules. Suggestions and objections from stakeholders were invited and will be sent to the Ministry of Environment and Forest within one week.

“For example, we don’t want foreign countries to provide computers as charity for schools in India. It’s the route for dumping into the country that is used as the final resting place,” said Satish Sinha, executive director, Toxics Link. “We should follow the rules of the Basel Convention that restrict transboundary movement of hazardous waste as India is a signatory to it. Even second-hand goods though permitted by the convention, must not be dumped here.”

The debate assumes significance because the Central Pollution Control Board in February said Mumbai topped the list of electronic waste producing cities in the country followed by Delhi. While in 2005, 146,800 tonnes of e-waste was generated in India, the number is is expected to increase to 800,000 by 2012.

Apart from the listed items that generate e-Waste such as large and small household appliances, toys, medical devices, electronic and electrical tools, there was also a consensus that the new rule should incorporate lighting equipment such as CFL bulbs and lights.

Unlike Europe and even China, the draft rules either do not define threshold limits of chemicals in materials that can be make its way into the country or they are much below those specified world over. This leads to dumping of low quality products in India.
Source: Hindustan Times