Question

Explain the methods of managing solid wastes in urban area.

Answer 1

• Solid waste is the waste that is produced by us from our homes, office, schools, shops, hospitals etc. The was produced is usually collected by the municipal corporation or the body that manages the city. Solid waste can be divided into 3 types (I) biodegradable (ii) non-biodegradable (iii) recyclable.
• There are many ways which are used for disposing of the solid waste but the on that is used in majority is landfilling. In landfilling the waste that is collected is dumped in a large part of land that are situated at a very far distance from the city.. First the waste that is collected is burned so as to reduce its amount and then it is dumped. Generally the biodegradable waste that is collected is separated from other types of waste and then it is dumped in the landfill where time to time a layer of earth is added to it so that it can degrade naturally, but these kind of made especially in developing countries become a large ground for breeding of disease vectors like rat and flees.
• The nonbiodegradable was which is not biodegraded or takes a very very long time to completely degrade, there is no proper method to dispose of this kind of waste other then it being used again or being totally destroyed after being collected like by using fire furnaces, incinerators etc.
• The medical was that is collected from the hospitals comes under the category of nonbiodegradable waste and this waste is very much hazardous of the population health, therefore, this waste is to be completely destroyed. For this instrument like incinerators are used.
• Next type of was that is recyclable waste that means that after being used once the substance can be recycled and used again for the same or different purpose. For example, E-waste which is the waste produced from electronic products that are used worldwide. The e-waste that is produced has some parts that contain valuable metals like silver, gold, nickel, copper etc. which can be collected either by manual work or mechanically work.
• Some of the plastics that are used by users in our daily like are also recyclable and can go under recycling until they cannot be recycled and used anymore.
• These are some of the methods that can be used for managing the solid waste, but still, the waste that is produced by the human population is very large compared to the area or the time that we have to dispose of it.
• So the best way is to see that the amount of waste that is produced should be kept in check and such products should be avoided which contribute to producing more waste.