The wastes of Luhansk region chemical and energy enterprises and their impact on the environment

Abstract

The chemical and energy industries are one of the most powerful generators of solid industrial waste. Such enterprises have water treatment plants. The result of the water treatment process is the formation of a water treatment sludge. The sludge composition includes carbonates and hydroxides of calcium, magnesium, iron, aluminum, and coagulated natural organic materials. A significant amount of waste in the form of fly ash and fuel slag is generated in the process of burning coal at power plants. Such wastes are usually classified as “low-risk”. Nevertheless, when wastes are stored in the storage, they create environmental and economic problems. Large areas of land are alienated for storage. Dust emissions and filtration losses are observed in the process of waste storage. The wastes impact of the Luhansk region enterprises on the environment has been studied. Waste storage facilities are located on the left bank of the Seversky Donets River in the zone of Dnieper-Donetsk structure articulation and the Voronezh anteclise. Features of the territory geological environment are explained by the presence of geological disturbances, loamy-sandy and carbonate rocks, manifestations of carbonate karst. The wastes degrade the quality of surface and ground waters used for water supply in the region.