Chapter 2.

2 Generation, sources and types of hazardous wastes

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The need for information

Need to identify: generators

hazardous waste quantities

types current treatment and disposal methods

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Hazardous waste generators

All industries generate some hazardous waste The largest quantities come from five sectors: Chemical and pharmaceutical manufacture Metals refining Petroleum and coal products

Metal working and fabrication

Rubber and plastics manufacture
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Some common wastes and industrial sources

Flammable eg solvents - from chemical manufacturers, laundries & dry cleaners, metal plating, tanneries, print shops etc Corrosive eg acids and alkalis - from cleaning & maintenance, equipment repair, vehicle body shops etc Reactive eg bleaches and oxidisers - from chemical manufacturers, laboratories etc Toxic and eco-toxic eg heavy metals, pesticides, cyanides from metals manufacturing, photographic processing, pesticide end users etc
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Waste generating industries

Large quantity generators: > 1000kg /month eg pharmaceutical companies Medium quantity generators: 100 - 1000kg/month eg laboratories, printers Small quantity generators: <100kg/month eg dental surgeries, photographic processors

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Small and medium scale industries

In developing economies, these often predominate Typically they have: low level of technology unskilled management unspecialised workers lack of modernisation poor environmental performance SMIs may account for one third of the total hazardous wastes generated There are high risks from occupational and environmental exposure
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The dirty dozen

tanneries textile dyeing plants dyestuff producers metal working and electroplating shops foundries automobile service shops and gas stations lead-acid battery manufacturing/recycling chemical industries/laboratories paint shops printers photographic processors dry cleaners
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Small scale industries in developing economies 1: Mumbai, India

Problematic small-scale industries in Mumbai Industrial category Number of industries Print shops 1600 Observed wastes Inks, caustic soda, bleach, kerosene Dyestuff industries 900 Heavy metals Pharmaceutical formulators 656 Drugs, containers Electroplating shops 600 Heavy metals Petrol stations 200 Oil and grease Textile dying plants 180 Dye, caustic soda, sludges Leather tanneries 9 Tannin, Chromium, suspended solids, BOD, COD, chlorides Silver refineries * Heavy metals, spent alkali Car-painting shops * Paints and solvents Pesticide formulators * Pesticides, containers Chemical laboratories * Spent chemicals * Number unknown but observed to be significant sources of hazardous waste BOD= Biochemical oxygen demand. COD= Chemical oxygen demand. Source: ASSOCIATED INDUSTRIAL CONSULTANTS, Case study of hazardous wastes and emissions from small-scale manufacturing in India, case study prepared for UMP/UNCHS, Nairobi, Kenya, 1992.
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Small scale industries in developing economies 2: Harare, Zimbabwe

Metals fabricating, metal products and engineering 25% Transport and garaging 20%

Textiles and clothing manufacture 13%

Paper and printing 9% Chemical industries 6%

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Small scale industries in developing economies 3: Leon, Mexico

Estimated total annual waste load produced by the tanneries of Leon
Estimated total annual waste load produced by the tanneries of Leon Size Effluent (l/s) Cottage Small-scale Mediumscale Totals 149 483 43382 15312 3828 19 26 104 Chromium (tonnes) 73 103 307 TDS (tonnes) 6574 9247 27561 Flesh (tonnes 2320 3264 9728 Hair (tonnes) 580 816 2432

TDS: Total dissolved solids Source: MENDOZA H., Case study of hazardous waste and emissions from small scale and cottage tanneries in urban areas of Mexico, 1992.
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Small scale industries in developing economies 4: Lima, Peru

Textile weaving and dyeing Tanneries

Clothing and shoe manufacture

Metal products including electroplating Print shops Furniture making & wood preserving
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Some types of waste associated with different industries

Chemical manufacturers Chemical process wastes Acids and alkalis Spent solvents Reactive wastes Discarded commercial chemical products Vehicle maintenance shops Paint wastes Used oils Spent solvents Acids and alkalis

Furniture and wood manufacturing and refinishing Spent solvents Construction industry Paint wastes Paint wastes Spent solvents Strong acids and bases
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Non-industrial waste sources

Some examples include:
Used motor oils Used car batteries Redundant agricultural pesticides and containers Surplus paints and solvents Medical and health care wastes

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Health care wastes

Diverse mixture of sources and waste types
doctors surgeries hospitals clinics nursing homes

dental surgeries
veterinary practices

Only a small fraction pose risk - this can be minimised by:

Classification of wastes into groups which can be treated similarly Segregation of wastes - non-risk waste should be disposed of with municipal waste Safe storage Treatment to reduce the pathogen content of waste
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Some typical household hazardous wastes

Vehicle maintenance items eg antifreeze, brake fluid Cleaning products eg drain cleaners, spot removers, toilet cleaners, chlorine bleach, oven cleaners Cosmetics eg nail polish and remover Fire extinguishers Pet care products eg Flea collars and sprays Garden products eg herbicides, lawn chemicals, pesticides Insecticides and insect repellent Home care products eg paint and paint stripper, wood stains, solvents, swimming pool chemicals Prescription drugs
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Average hazardous household waste composition

USA (1997) 9kg/hh/ pa Household maintenance items (paints, solvents, adhesives) Household batteries 36.6% 18.6 % 63% * Norway (2000) 10.3kg/hh/pa

Cosmetics (inc nail polish & removers) Cleaners (inc polishes, oven cleaners) Automotive items (mostly motor oil) Garden items (inc pesticides, fertilizers) Hobby (pool chemicals, art supplies)
Pharmaceuticals Fluorescent tubes, lamps etc

12.1% 11.5% 10.5% 4.1% 3.4%

3.2% -

3% 27% 0.7% 0.8%

5.5%

* batteries are collected separately in Norway, at a rate of approx 3kg/hh/pa

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Stockpiles of old hazardous wastes

One major problem is the widespread existence of stockpiles of old hazardous waste materials such as:
Obsolete pesticides PCB transformers Ozone depleting substances

Military stockpiles

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Treatment residues
Municipal & industrial treatment sludge Incinerator ash Tank bottoms Solvent still bottoms Filter cakes Leachate

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Estimated quantities of hazardous wastes

(000 tonnes per year - as reported by Parties to the Basel Convention 1998)

Selected countries: China 9,896 Czech Republic 3,917 Denmark 281 Greece 287 Indonesia 17 Latvia 80 Morocco 6,543 The Netherlands 2,926 Russian Federation 107,060 Slovakia 1,400 Thailand 1,600 UK 4,846 Uzbekistan 26,442

More than 400 million tonnes of hazardous wastes are generated worldwide each year
Source: UNEP Geo 2000

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Quantifying waste generation: by measurement

Factory visits/records
Interviews with contractors & suppliers On - site inspections

Raw materials and product records

Waste disposal records at generating, treatment & disposal sites

Industry associations
Local government staff/inspectors Surveys
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Quantifying waste generation:

Waste audit
Pre-assessment steps
identify staff and resources define unit operations

identify links between unit operations

Conduct audit quantify all inputs and outputs analyse and apply findings

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Quantifying waste generation: by rapid estimation 1

Basic indicators - use economic and social statistics such as GDP, population Goal-oriented indicators - used in the context of policies and enforcement, for example when the national aim is to achieve certain degree of hazardous waste minimisation, or to implement Cleaner Production Impact indicators and indices - used to identify impacts from hazardous wastes Risk indicators - relate to areas of higher risk for health and/or the environment
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Quantifying waste generation: by rapid estimation 2

Per capita:
100kg/per person/year for industrialised countries with strong chemical sector 6kg/per person/year for OECD countries with predominantly agricultural economies

Per unit of GDP:

According to contribution of industry to GDP
According to importance of chemical sector within industry

Per unit of work force

Per number of contaminated sites

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Hazardous waste generation in OECD countries

Note: The USA estimate includes large quantities of dilute wastewater not reported in other OECD countries. Source: YAKOWITZ H., Waste management: what now? What next? An overview of policies and practices in the OECD area, 1993
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Per capita waste generation (1997)

Source: Secretariat of the Basel Convention (data as reported by the parties) 1999

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Waste generation based on Gross National Product

Source: Secretariat of the Basel Convention (data as reported by the parties) 1999

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National surveys
National surveys are: difficult, as experience shows useful for raising the profile of hazardous waste issues sensitive - generators are anxious about revealing information Questionnaires must be simple, with only a few questions should be carefully designed, perhaps by independent specialists must strike a balance on information sought must address the specific aims of the survey
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Chapter 2.2 Summary

Wastes come from diverse sources in all countries Some industry sectors are major generators, producing common waste types Small and medium sized industries may also be important contributors There are also non-industrial waste sources eg households There is a need for information eg on generators, waste quantities and types - national definitions influence results. There are various methods for quantifying waste generation
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