7/11/2023 0 Comments Trash it 4.02,3 Landfill gas collection systems allow this gas to be used as a source of energy.īut which one is better? Unfortunately, there isn’t a definitive answer, and it varies facility by facility. In 2018, landfills accounted for 17% of total methane emissions in the U.S., the equivalent of 111 million metric tons of CO 2-and they can continue to release methane for up to 50 years after they are filled. This means that the organic portion of the trash (think food waste, or wood) decomposes anaerobically (without oxygen), producing methane, a potent greenhouse gas, as a byproduct. Inside the cell, the trash is packed down tightly, squeezing out all the oxygen. Once a cell is filled with trash, it is sealed and capped to minimize contact with the surrounding environment. Modern sanitary landfills are highly engineered facilities, neatly organized into cells, sort of like a honeycomb. Our other option, putting waste into a landfill, also releases greenhouse gases. In a “waste-to-energy plant,” this energy can be used to make electricity, replacing some electricity that normally comes from fossil fuels like coal and natural gas. On the other hand, burning waste also releases energy. When it’s a material that’s mostly made up of carbon (like plastic), the gas will contain CO 2, which contributes to global warming. ![]() When the trash contains hazardous materials (like some metals), this gas can be toxic. Burning waste may seem like a better way to permanently get rid of it-once the trash is burned, it appears to be “gone.” However, burning trash simply transforms it from a solid to a gas (and creates ash that must later be landfilled). “There is no sustainable scenario in which we consume a lot of materials, particularly single-use materials,” Krones says, “and rely on disposal processes to manage the waste and mitigate its effect on human and environmental health.”Ĭurrently, we have two major ways to deal with non-recyclable waste: we can put it into a landfill or burn it in an incinerator. 1 But what sort of impact does all this trash have on greenhouse gas emissions? The situation isn’t good, says Jonathan Krones, Visiting Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies at Boston College. 1 In 2018, this amounted to 292 million tons of trash. creates about 4.9 lbs of trash per person. ![]() But there's only one solution that doesn't contribute to climate change at all: not making waste in the first place.Įvery day, the U.S. All waste disposal methods release greenhouse gases, and it's hard to make apples-to-apples comparisons.
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