22 - Strategies for the Future – Waste Reduction and Recycling, Treatment Technologies, and Green Chemistry

Abstract

Waste minimization is characterized as the reduction of waste from sources and the reuse of waste through recycling. The objective is to decrease the amount of hazardous waste bound for energy recovery, treatment, and disposal facilities. Therefore, hazardous waste minimization does not include treatment processes, such as those that alter the physical, chemical, or biological composition of waste. The most effective way to reduce waste outputs is to reduce inputs and to make processes more efficient. This is commonly called pollution prevention. This can be achieved through improvements such as: updating outdated and inefficient technologies, reformulating chemical products to exclude hazardous chemicals, switching to non-toxic materials used for manufacturing, and increasing efficiency of methods and protocols. Hazardous waste reduction provides regulatory benefits as well. Companies that are able to reduce their hazardous waste outputs below 1,000 kg per month can move from a large-quantity generator (LQG) to a small-quantity generator (SQG) designation. Many large industries have volunteered to reduce specific hazardous waste associated with their manufacturing. In areas other than industry, such as biomedical research, waste minimization practices have also effectively decreased hazardous waste production. Strong incentives such as environmental protection, regulatory compliance, liability avoidance, disposal cost avoidance, and improved community relations encouraged 90% of laboratories to adopt waste minimization programs. At these laboratories, substantial waste reduction and cost savings were reported due to these waste minimization programs.