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CHAPTER II

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

Open burning is the act of creating small fires we light in a barrel, or right on the

ground. It is also defined as the burning of a bonfire, vegetation debris fire or other fire in

an outdoor location where fuel burned is not contained in an incinerator, outdoor fireplace,

barbecue grill or barbecue pit. Implementing Rules and Regulations of Republic Act 9003

(Ecological Solid Waste Management Act 2004) define open burning as thermal

destruction of wastes by means of direct exposure to fire.

In the Philippine Law as stated in Section 48 of Republic Act. 9003 otherwise

known as Solid Waste Management Act and the Clean Air Act of 1999, open burning or

pagsisiga is prohibited in the Philippines. In Section 13, Rule XXV of RA 8749

Implementing Rules and Regulations no person shall be allowed to burn any materials in

any quantities which shall cause the emission of toxic and poisonous fumes. Open burning

releases loads of health damaging pollutants that are invisible to the naked eyes, including

particulate matter (PM), dioxins and furans, lead, mercury, and other heavy metals, carbon

dioxide and other greenhouse gases, halogenated carbons and volatile organic compounds.

The law states that burning of leaves and wastes is harmful and illegal. People found to

violate this law will penalized with imprisonment of one to 15 days and a corresponding

fine of P300 to P1,000.

The burning of municipal waste at a waste disposal site, except for a limited number

of specific materials, is prohibited under The Environmental Management and Protection

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Act, 2002 (EMPA 2002) and The Clean Air Act. The municipality and the operator of a

waste disposal site shall ensure that no municipal waste is burned at the site as part of the

waste disposal operation. Segregated clean wood and brush may be burned at certain sites

only with permission/permit, and are subject to certain requirements. These requirements

are provided in The Municipal Refuse Management Regulations, 1986 (MRMR 1986) and

The Clean Air Regulations.

Open burning of backyard wastes such as dry leaves can lead to other diseases. The

smoke from leaf fires is made up of many tiny particles that can penetrate deep in to our

lungs and cause the most health damage. Particulate matter (PM) can trigger asthma and

hearth attacks in some people. People living near the area can develop coughing, wheezing,

chest pain, and difficulty of breathing. The symptoms may appear a few days after

exposure. Leaf smoke contains many dangerous chemicals like carbon monoxide and

benzopyrene. Carbon monoxide is an invisible gas that results from incomplete

combustion, and burning leaf piles are ideal for creating carbon monoxide emission. It is

absorbed into the bloodstream through the lungs and combines with the red blood cells.

This reduces the amount of oxygen the red blood cells can absorb and supply to body

tissues. Unborn children, new born infants, smokers, the elderly and persons with heart and

chronic lung disease are more susceptible to carbon monoxide that the general population.

When expose to large amount of smoke, a person can collapse and die in a short span of

time. Patients with asthma, emphysema, lung disease, and heart disease are most

susceptible to the ill effects of leaf smoke. Some reports find an association between smoke

inhalation and cancer of the lungs, nose, and throat.

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People burn leaves and wood to dispose of leaves and use wood as fuel for cooking.

Biomass burning is estimated to produce 40 percent of the carbon dioxide, 32 percent of

the carbon monoxide, and 50 percent of the cancer-causing poly-aromatic hydrocarbons.

According to the EPA, hydrocarbons are chemicals that can exist as both gases and solid

particles. Because leaves are often moist and burn without proper air circulation, they often

burn poorly, producing high levels of hydrocarbons. Some of these hydrocarbons, such as

aldehydes and ketones, cause irritation of the eyes, nose, throat, and lungs. A substantial

portion of the hydrocarbons in leaf smoke consists of polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons,

some of which are known carcinogens.

In some case community growth resulted in waste disposal grounds being closer to

communities. Burning activities create potential adverse effects to the surrounding

environment; employees and users of the waste disposal ground; local area residents;

businesses; landowners and children playing outdoors.

Changes in waste composition has occurred with the introduction of products and

packaging manufactured from hydrocarbon and chlorinated compounds such as plastic,

solvents, or pesticides. Although regulations prohibit hazardous substances and waste

dangerous goods from entering the landfill, toxic materials and packaging still make their

way to landfills as components of commercial and household waste. Disposal of household

cleaning products, pesticides and other materials pose a danger to public health and the

environment. Incomplete combustion of waste during open burning contributes to air

pollution and climate change.

"Open Burning of Garbage is Illegal" - It's the law - 45CSR6 "Control of Air

Pollution from Combustion of Refuse". Certain kinds of open burning are still allowed if
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it doesn't create a nuisance and if it is not prohibited by local ordinances. These types of

fires are allowed: Vegetation (leaves, branches and other vegetative matter) grown on the

premises of a home or farm, Campfires and outdoor barbecues, DAQ approved open

burning of land clearing debris described in this pamphlet, DAQ approved fire training as

described in this pamphlet

If in violation of the open burning law, 45CSR6, refusal to comply may result in a

Notice of Violation and/or a fine of up to $10,000 a day. Materials illegal to open burn

include: Household trash (burn barrels and/or piles) including paper products - such as

cardboard, boxes, etc., Construction, building, or demolition materials (examples: lumber,

flooring, roofing material, carpet, plastic, styrofoam, etc.), Wood pallets and other

packaging materials, Tires or other rubber products, Asbestos-containing

materials including building materials, Insulation from copper wire, Waste paints, waste

oil, or solvents

Open Burning of Land Clearing Debris Must be "Approved": Vegetative material

generated by clearing of land for purposes of preparation for development, construction,

mining or other such activity may be open burned provided there is no practical alternative

disposal method. Non-vegetative (ex. construction debris) material is not considered land

clearing debris. Pit burners should be used whenever practical and may be required in non-

rural areas. It must also complete the approval to conduct open burning form and receive

written approval from DAQ.

Proper waste management should always be done. Throwing daily waste/garbage

in the landfills is the most popularly used method of waste disposal used today. This

process of waste disposal focuses attention on burying the waste in the land. Landfills are
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commonly found in developing countries. There is a process used that eliminates the odors

and dangers of waste before it is placed into the ground. While it is, true this is the most

popular form of waste disposal, it is certainly far from the only procedure and one that may

also bring with it an assortment of space.

This method is becoming less these days although, thanks to the lack of space

available and the strong presence of methane and other landfill gases, both of which can

cause numerous contamination problems. Landfills give rise to air and water pollution

which severely affects the environment and can prove fatal to the lives of humans and

animals. Many areas are reconsidering the use of landfills.

Incineration or combustion is a type disposal method in which municipal solid

wastes are burned at high temperatures so as to convert them into residue and gaseous

products. The biggest advantage of this type of method is that it can reduce the volume of

solid waste to 20 to 30 percent of the original volume, decreases the space they take up and

reduce the stress on landfills.

This process is also known as thermal treatment where solid waste materials are

converted by Incinerators into heat, gas, steam and ash. Incineration is something that is

very in countries where landfill space is no longer available, which includes Japan.

Resource recovery is the process of taking useful discarded items for a specific next

use. These discarded items are then processed to extract or recover materials and resources

or convert them to energy in the form of useable heat, electricity or fuel.

Recycling is the process of converting waste products into new products to prevent

energy usage and consumption of fresh raw materials. Recycling is the third component of

Reduce, Reuse and Recycle waste hierarchy. The idea behind recycling is to reduce energy
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usage, reduce volume of landfills, reduce air and water pollution, reduce greenhouse gas

emissions and preserve natural resources for future use.

Plasma gasification is another form of waste management. Plasma is a primarily an

electrically charged or a highly-ionized gas. Lighting is one type of plasma which produces

temperatures that exceed 12,600 F. With this method of waste disposal, a vessel uses

characteristic plasma torches operating at +10,000 F which is creating a gasification zone

till 3,000 F for the conversion of solid or liquid wastes into a syngas.

During the treatment, solid waste by plasma gasification, the wastes molecular

bonds are broken down as result of the intense heat in the vessels and the elemental

components. Thanks to this process, destruction of waste and dangerous materials is found.

This form of waste disposal provides renewable energy and an assortment of other fantastic

benefits.