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Developments in Management and Technology of Waste Reduction and Disposal
Author(s) -
RUSHBROOK PHILIP
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
annals of the new york academy of sciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.712
H-Index - 248
eISSN - 1749-6632
pISSN - 0077-8923
DOI - 10.1196/annals.1371.066
Subject(s) - hazardous waste , legislation , waste disposal , business , sustainability , cleaner production , environmental planning , engineering , waste management , municipal solid waste , law , environmental science , political science , ecology , biology
Scandals and public dangers from the mismanagement and poor disposal of hazardous wastes during the 1960s and 1970s awakened the modern‐day environmental movement. Influential publications such as “Silent Spring”1and high‐profile disposal failures, for example, Love Canal and Lekkerkerk, focused attention on the use of chemicals in everyday life and the potential dangers from inappropriate disposal. This attention has not abated and developments, invariably increasing expectations and tightening requirements, continue to be implemented. Waste, as a surrogate for environmental improvement, is a topic where elected representatives and administrations continually want to do more. This article will chart the recent changes in hazardous waste management emanating from the European Union legislation, now being implemented in Member States across the continent. These developments widen the range of discarded materials regarded as “hazardous,” prohibit the use of specific chemicals, prohibit the use of waste management options, shift the emphasis from risk‐based treatment and disposal to inclusive lists, and incorporate waste producers into more stringent regulatory regimes. The impact of the changes is also intended to provide renewed impetus for waste reduction. Under an environmental control system where only certainty is tolerated, the opportunities for innovation within the industry and the waste treatment and disposal sector will be explored. A challenging analysis will be offered on the impact of this regulation‐led approach to the nature and sustainability of hazardous waste treatment and disposal in the future.