Environmental and Health Impacts of Hazardous Wastes

Abstract

This is a report on the literature review of the environmental and health impacts of hazardous wastes. Modern survival entails processes and functions that generate huge volumes of waste every year. However, all wastes are not harmful to the environment. This literature review specifically focuses on the impacts of hazardous wastes and to put things in perspective, also discusses waste management practices and the various efforts undertaken to manage hazardous wastes.

1. Introduction

As long as the human kind continues to thrive and explore better ways of survival through agriculture and industry, there will be wastes — substances that are discarded in the process of production. Misra & Pandey (2005) considers waste as an inevitable result of industrial development in our modern society. However, waste does not generate only from industries; they also come from agricultural production, the household, healthcare facilities, changing consumer preferences (for example, discarded electronic gadgets), etc (Rushton, 2003). Wastes can come in many forms and types — there can be solid wastes, liquid wastes, regulated medical wastes (RMW), hazardous wastes, pharmaceutical wastes, e-wastes, universal wastes, recyclable wastes, construction and demolition (C&D) wastes and many more (Practice Greenhealth). These are not necessarily mutually exclusive of each other; on the contrary, are often overlapping and diffuse into one another. For example, many solid wastes and liquid wastes can be hazardous, while hazardous wastes can comprise any of the other — RMW, e-waste, etc. This paper particularly focuses on hazardous wastes and its impacts on the environment and health of modern citizens. Nevertheless, it also aims to discuss, in brief, wastes in general and the various waste management methods in practice. Finally, the paper explores the literature that deals with mitigating environmental and health risks of hazardous wastes, how to check the risks associated with handling hazardous wastes, etc.

2. What are Hazardous Wastes

Broadly speaking, wastes fall into two categories — controlled and uncontrolled, according to the UK Environment Agency. Controlled wastes come from household (solid/liquid wastes), industries and commercial units, healthcare facilities and from C&D. Wastes that go uncontrolled generally come from agriculture, dredging operations, mines and quarries (Rushton, 2003). Of all these, some wastes are called ‘hazardous’ because of their very nature. According to Annex III of the Basel Convention, wastes are hazardous if they are any of the following:

  • Explosive
  • Toxic
  • Poisonous
  • Flammable solids/liquids
  • Infectious
  • Ecotoxic

Refer to Table 1. for details on the different characteristics of hazardous wastes and their potential impact on the environment and life forms.

 

Table 1. Hazardous Wastes: Characteristics

Source: Dutta, et al. (2006)

By the UNEP definition, hazardous waste disposal are any waste that causes or may cause damage to the environment or health of individuals. According to the Annex I of the Basel Convention, hazardous wastes include:

  • Clinical wastes
  • Wastes containing zinc, copper, mercury, lead, cadmium and asbestos
  • Wastes generated from production and use of latex, resins, adhesives and plasticizers
  • Waste oils, emulsions, hydrocarbons, etc.
  • Wastes generated from surface treatment of metals and plastics
  • Residual wastes from various industries’ waste disposal endeavours

(Department of Environment, Australia Government)

Annex II of Basel Convention lists two other types of wastes as requiring special consideration. These are:

  • Household wastes
  • Residues from incineration of household wastes

Majority of hazardous waste disposal are a result of product manufacturing for domestic consumption or for further use in various industries (Grasso et al., 2011). If treated or managed inappropriately, these wastes may pose potential risks to the environment (air, water or soil) and also to the health of human beings (Misra & Pandey, 2005). Many such hazardous wastes are around us — redundant pesticides, acids and lead from waste batteries, oil from transportation, healthcare wastes, chemical wastes from factories and other commercial setups, etc. These are regular and often handled carelessly, leading to more potential hazards to life and environment. Orloff & Falk (2003) notes that national attention increases on health related matters pertaining to hazardous wastes when a country develops and gets economic resources. The authors also reiterate that among all waste management techniques, landfilling is the most common and impacts human health and environment to a large degree.

Hazardous wastes have numerous harmful impacts on the environment, natural resources and humans (Grasso et al., 2011). Of the different types of wastes formed, solid waste causes the maximum  environmental degradation (Misra & Pandey, 2005). Some damages are known, studied and some are still unknown to mankind. Soil contamination, groundwater contamination, infections, mutations are only a few of the identified risks these wastes pose that these paper will discuss in details in later parts. However, since hazardous wastes are significantly notorious, management, sorting and disposal of these become a topic of paramount importance.

3. Waste Management

Most developed nations would treat waste management quite seriously today, owing to the very nature of wastes and potential risks posed by hazardous wastes, in particular (Rushton, 2003). Risk assessment and waste management has emerged as a vital decision-making framework in developed nations in order to manage hazardous wastes properly and allocate public resources (Grasso et al., 2011). Many regulations have come in place, like the Landfill Directive of the EU Waste Policy (EEA Report, 2009) or the Basel Convention of the UN, which was formed to regulate trade in hazardous wastes and other malpractices related to hazardous wastes (Sonak, et al., 2008).

3.1 Types of waste management

As a practice, waste management comprises the entire lifecycle of waste — starting from generation to collection, processing, transportation, through disposal of waste (Rushton, 2003). The commonest methods of waste management include:

  • Landfill
  • Recycling
  • Incineration
  • Composting
  • Sewage treatment
  • Dumping and trading of wastes

All of these singularly and collectively cause immense damage to our environment and human health. Landfill entails disposal of waste in a specific area of land. Although it is a cost-effective method of getting rid of waste, it may not be possible in over-populous countries like Japan (Derek Both). And even if it is possible, landfill method must be ensured with care taken not to harm the environment beyond repairable limits. Incineration is simply a process of combusting the organic components of waste and turning them into ashes. Sewage treatment, as the name suggests, is the treatment and disposal of raw sewage into rivers or seas. But some research shows that sewage could be treated to create methane and biomass and re-used in fish culture (Abraham, et al., 2009). Many nations and enterprises constantly work at innovative waste disposal methods. Recycling involves re-use of wastes in an effort to minimize wastes. Dumping and trading of wastes is a practice whereby developed nations shipped their wastes and dumped them into developing nations. However, that practice is debated and tightly regulated now after the Basel Convention came in place. Under the Convention, the export nations and the industries creating the pollutants are liable to handle their own toxic wastes and hence, any trade of hazardous waste is banned (Sonak, et al., 2008). Composting, quite different from other waste management methods, is a natural bio-degradable process by which all organic wastes are finally decomposed into the soil. However, of these, the most effective approach is that of recycling, holds Orloff & Falk (2003). This idea has a counter-logic to it, as is mentioned by Hahn & Lauridsen (1998) in the Encyclopaedia of Occupational Health and Safety. They say that recycling poses more potential health and safety risks as waste recycling can commence at any time and at every step of the waste system. People involved in recycling of waste may suffer due to over-exposure into wastes and also may not always comply to safety standards of handling waste.

3.2 Why Manage Waste?

Whatever the means, there is no denial that the end, that is waste management, is necessary in our lives. “It is crucial to our way of life”, says Derek Both in his article on waste management. There are three primary reasons behind waste management practices:

  1. Waste attracts germs and spreads infections / diseases
  2. Unmanaged and piled-up wastes damage air, water, soil and other natural resources
  3. Waste is visually displeasing, unwanted excess and stinks badly

When it comes to hazardous wastes, it becomes absolutely imperative to manage waste efficiently and reduce risks of environmental and human damage. National hazardous waste management programs should have strict regulations along with adept monitoring mechanisms to ensure these are practiced in reality too (Grasso et al., 2011). But in the first place, it is important to classify waste, understand their composition and then resort to the best method for its disposal. Murthy, et al. (2013) states that rational decision making on waste management is impossible without analysing the source and composition of waste, especially solid waste. Justifiably then, there is such extensive literature available on classification of wastes and its relevant waste management practices.

4. Impacts of Hazardous Wastes on Environment & Human Health – By Type

Each year, several health problems arise from hazardous wastes (Tyagi, 2011). Once it is out in the open, hazardous wastes can harm every life form (Grasso et al., 2011). Directly or indirectly, it threatens human health to a considerable degree. Before we discuss the impacts of hazardous wastes on our environment and health, it is important to categorise the main types of wastes or waste sources. Wastes are many, ever increasing with modernity and technological advancement. But the following hazardous wastes comprise the bulk of all wastes created on the planet:

  • Agricultural hazardous wastes
  • Industrial hazardous wastes
  • Healthcare / Biomedical hazardous wastes
  • Electronic hazardous wastes
  • Nuclear Wastes
  • Commercial Wastes
  • Domestic or Household Wastes

4.1 Agricultural

Hazardous wastes from agriculture mainly consist of greenhouse gas emissions, pesticides, chemical fertilizers, and animal product wastes (Grasso et al., 2011). Pesticide run-offs often contaminate surface water and those used in fields eventually pass on to the foods and affect human health (Onder, et al. 2011). A main source of these hazardous agricultural wastes are the farms in agro-industries. The fertilizers used in agricultural production often contain high amounts of nitrogen which erodes soil, contaminates groundwater, and even drinking water. What’s worse, these nitrogen-based fertilizers sometimes increase content of carcinogenic materials like nitrosamine in the soil. That is precisely why many EU nations have put limitations on the amount of nitro-fertilizer usage in agriculture.

Another hazard in agriculture is the use of plant hormones, which can turn toxic if applied incorrectly (Onder, et al. 2011). Plant hormones increase crop yield if used at the right time and in the right amount. Although most agricultural wastes are biodegradable and hence, less hazardous, there are still some agricultural wastes that contain human and animal pathogens, feed additives, certain metals, nitrogen, etc. that can be fatal to life forms (Loehr, 1978).

Stubble burning as part of agriculture practices to prepare for sowing of seeds is also hazardous to the environment. excessive stubble burning erodes wind and water and also turns the soil unfertile (Onder, et al. 2011). This has also been banned in many countries. Animal husbandry is hazardous too. The wastes generated from manure, urine and animal products pollute the soil, apart from polluting the air with obnoxious smells. On the whole, agricultural processes often generate wastes that are hazardous to life and environment and destroy the ecological balance (Sinha, et al., 2009).

Landfill is the commonest form of waste disposal method used in the agro-industry. Research has shown that proximity to such landfill sites has resulted in low-birth weight babies, neonatal deaths and congenital malformations (Rushton, 2003). Closeness to landfill areas is also found to cause cancers, particularly gastrointestinal, oesophageal, stomach, colon or rectal (Najem, et al., 1983; Griffith, et al., 1989).

4.2 Industrial

A vast majority of hazardous wastes generate from industrial sources. Industrial hazardous wastes include solvents like methylene chloride, sludge arising from wastewater treatment, refinery products fuel and tar, ammonia and other gas emissions, elements like cyanides and phenol in the waste streams, and many other toxic chemicals related to mines and mineral processing sites (Grasso et al., 2011; Prajapati, et al., 2010).

Chemical manufacturing, petroleum processing, metal production and metal fabrication are the primary industries which generate the maximum hazardous industrial wastes in today’s world. The pesticides, for example, are itself poisonous substances and one can imagine the amount of hazard the production of pesticides might involve. Any spills and run-offs can cause severe damage to air, water and land, as well as, affect humans.

An obvious waste generation for all industries across the globe is carbon dioxide gas emission as a result of energy use for running of the industries. Although gas emissions have been considerably checked following stringent waste management regulations, it still exists (Commission for Environmental Cooperation Report, 2008). The report also points to the fact that industrial metal smelters and cement kilns generate air contaminants like nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxides that significantly harm the environment with acid rains and smogs and cause respiratory problems to locals.

Some industries take to incineration as a method of waste disposal. However, it is worth noting the hazards posed by such a method. Incineration causes, studies have found, cardiovascular and respiratory problems, bronchitis, and reduced lung functions (Dockery & Pope, 1994; Zanobetti, et al., 2000). Incinerator emissions also contain harmful metals like lead, mercury, arsenic, cadmium, etc. that are found to have carcinogenic effects on humans.

Mining wastes, a part of industrial wastes, often contain hazardous substances like mercury that kills animals, and causes neurological diseases, birth defects, kidney problems and many other health issues to humans.

4.3 Healthcare / Biomedical

According to a World Health Organization publication (2000), only a small portion of all healthcare wastes are ‘hazardous’ in nature. The hazards posed by healthcare wastes are usually infectious, genotoxic, toxic, radioactive or contain sharps. Hospital waste is growing by quantity and variety, owing to the progress in scientific knowledge and these affect human health too (Rao & Garg, 1994). Pathological wastes, human blood, contaminated needles — all contribute to hazardous biomedical waste (Grasso et al., 2011). All of us who are exposed to healthcare or biomedical wastes are at risk of health issues, but the majority of health hazards rest with doctors, nurses, patients and workers involved in healthcare or healthcare waste management units (WHO, 2000). For understanding the types of health risks these healthcare wastes pose to the human kind, refer to Table 2. below.

 

Table 2. Health Risks of Healthcare Wastes

Source: WHO, 2000

As is evident from the Table above and discussions on the World Environment Day at NBRI, Lucknow (ISEB, 1999), hospital wastes give rise to many infections, diseases like Hepatitis A, Hepatitis B, AIDS, and also pollute land and water bodies through careless waste handling. Healthcare wastes are usually disposed of by incineration and this emits hazardous gases like Dioxin, Furan, Hydrochloric acid, etc.

Table 3. represents the broad categories of hazardous healthcare wastes:

 

Table 3. Hazardous Healthcare Waste Categories

Source: Acharya, et al., 2014

Sharps comprise the needles, syringes, knives, blades, broken glass and other sharp objects that are disposed off in hospitals. Pathological wastes refer to human blood or body parts, tissues or organs that are not required anymore. Chemical wastes in healthcare facilities are substances like disinfectants or medicines that has expired, solvents, discarded thermometers, batteries, etc. Pharmaceutical wastes refer to expired medicines or unused medicines and cytotoxic wastes having genotoxic elements. Radioactive wastes, highly hazardous, are items like unused liquids from radiotherapy and other research, contaminated absorbent papers, urine and excreta of patients treated with unsealed radio nuclides (Giroult & Rushbrook, 1999).

Again, incineration is the commonest method of waste disposal in the healthcare industry and are therefore, potentially harmful to the environment and humans. Studies and statistics suggest significant amount of health problems arising from healthcare wastes (Acharya, et al., 2014).

4.4 Electronic

Technology advances and mankind progresses to newer horizons of development that is marked by smart electronic gadgets. But the immediate and inevitable fallout of this progress is the generation of huge piles of electronic wastes. The Hazardous Waste Rules 2003 defines electronic wastes as discarded electrical and electronic machines, inclusive of all their parts and sub-parts, except batteries (ENVIS, 2008).

Rani, et al. (2013) notes in their research how the list of obsolete gadgets is always on the rise, making way for new one — PCs, monitors, pagers, main frames, floppy discs, cell phones are things of the past and they only rest as e-wastes in some landfill area. And these e-wastes, like other wastes, are hazardous to the health and environment too. According to the study report of US EPA (2001), electronic wastes comprise about 1% of municipal solid waste (MSW) streams on an average.

In a way, the e-wastes are also a sub-set of the industrial wastes, as electronics form a vital industry in today’s fast-paced world. The e-industry is, in fact, the fastest growing manufacturing industry in the past decade (Subburaman, 2012) and contributes to a lot of hazardous wastes generated around the world. Landfills are choked with piles of e-wastes as the electronic industry flourishes and new gadgets come into play.

E-wastes contain heavy metals, glass, plastics and other such hazardous substances which can harm the environment and health of humans (Subburaman, 2012). According to Rani, et al. (2013), waste electrical and electronic equipment consist of over 1000 different materials that are both hazardous and non-hazardous. The hazardous components of electronic wastes include lead, mercury, arsenic, cadmium, halogenated substances, and plastics containing brominated flame retardants (BFRs). These plastics and circuit boards, when incinerated, emits toxic gases due to their BFR content. These emissions pollute the air. Refer to Table 4. below for details of health impacts of e-wastes.

 

Table 4. Health Impacts of E-Wastes

Source: www.basel.int

4.5 Nuclear

Nuclear waste or radioactive wastes are a result of nuclear activities like nuclear power generation, nuclear research and other applications. Used nuclear fuel is also a hazardous waste in this category and is strongly radioactive. According to the World Nuclear Association, the most hazardous nuclear wastes comprise only 3% of total nuclear wastes, but they contain as high as 95% radioactive substances in them.

The amount of radioactive waste exposure determines the type of disease it will cause to humans. Starting with simple head spins (dizziness), headaches to vomiting and more serious ailments — hazards from nuclear wastes can come in various forms and packages; and since this kind of waste is genotoxic, it also adversely impacts genetic materials (WHO, 2000).

Sources of nuclear wastes can be agricultural, industrial, commercial, medical or household and human product-related (Sutherland, 2011). Wastes from each of these areas have some amount of radioactive materials in them, especially those from industries and healthcare facilities. As per the Institute for Energy and Environmental Research (IEER), the largest source of radioactive wastes are commercial nuclear power and military nuclear weapon manufacturing industries. These contain organic solvents and other toxic substances that are highly hazardous to the environment and people. High-level nuclear wastes are managed by leaving them deep under the ground in geological repositories (World Nuclear Association).

4.6 Commercial

Commercial wastes come from dry cleaners, gasoline stations, paint shops, automobile repair units, unused products left in containers, etc. (Grasso et al., 2011). Not all commercial wastes are hazardous, but only if these entail inflammable or toxic components, are they considered hazardous commercial wastes. For example, empty pesticide containers are hazardous to the environment and humans handling it by the sheer fact that pesticides are poisonous chemicals. There are strict regulations on disposing commercial wastes — businesses need to ensure empty containers before disposal and transportation of such stuff as per the environmental law, Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA).

4.7 Domestic / Household

In our domestic environment, there are already several hazardous substances, which when disposed can cause potential damage to the environment and human health. We just need to look around and spot items like furniture polishes, unused paints, batteries and dry cells, rat poisons, mosquito repellents, fuel, stain removers, antifreeze, drain cleaners, disinfectants, pesticides and many more. All these when no longer needed or are thrown out carelessly, become hazardous household wastes (Grasso et al., 2011). Most of household wastes, if sorted carefully, can be reused or recycled. But those which cannot be reused, need proper disposal. Some government bodies initiated periodic collection efforts towards collecting hazardous household wastes from every household and ensured these are appropriately handled (either recycled or disposed).

5. Efforts Towards Hazardous Waste Management

Comprehending the extent of potential damage wastes can cause to the environment and all life forms, the human kind has gradually come up with various efforts to mitigate such risks, reduce wastes and manage it efficiently. Centuries ago, around the time the Industrial Revolution too place, throngs of people moved from rural outskirts to industrialized cities for better living opportunities. Human consumption concentrated in these urban areas and led to huge accumulation of wastes, which, after a point, turned hazardous — plagues, epidemics typhoid and cholera broke out (Derek Both). It is then that humans realised that wastes needed to be managed.

Since then, humans have innovated different waste management practices, formed policies and regulatory bodies and nations, particularly developed nations, have started to take waste management seriously. Today, regulatory bodies like the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) help the governments monitor and manage all wastes from different sources, including hazardous wastes. The EU’s Landfill Directive of 1999 has also been a success — it is able to reduce the amount of biodegradable         municipal waste dumped in landfill areas, causing air, water and soil contamination (EEA Report, 2009). Some countries have even levied landfill costs as an economic instrument to manage excessive landfilling of wastes. Some governments tightened the noose on emission standards of incinerations, thus reducing environmental damage. Regulations and directives operate at national and regional levels, but with the common goal to reduce the environmental and health risks of hazardous wastes.

Then in the late 1980s, observes Rani, et al. (2013), environmental regulations became so stringent that the cost of proper and compliant waste management rose astronomically in developed, industrialized nations. As a result, to reduce operational costs, they started looking out for cheaper options. One such option was trading of hazardous wastes to developing countries. The developing nations took in huge shipments of hazardous wastes from developed nations, in exchange of large sums of money. Irresponsible practices such as this prompted the formation of the 1989 Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal, which had the central objective to end this trade in hazardous wastes (Sonak, et al., 2008).

Apart from waste management best practices of 3 R’s — reduce, reuse and recycle (Tyagi, 2011), regulations such as the Basel ban was much needed, in an effort to curb malpractices related to hazardous waste disposal. India and other countries are party to the convention, except the US, which still continues to dispose hazardous e-wastes to Asian borders (Rani et al., 2013). This means, large quantities of hazardous wastes are still shipped to less-developed economies and potential risk to their environment and citizen health increased. However, the only good part is, the trade has been considerably restricted as most nations have ratified to the Basel Convention.

6. Conclusion

There is extensive literature available on the environmental and health impacts of hazardous wastes and all, in essence, capture the amount of hazards modernity poses before us. The severity of most wastes, be it from agricultural, industrial, biomedical, commercial or household sources, are a result of humans’ unending desire for better and higher levels of consumption, recreation and progress. Humans, as a species, are not easily satisfied. They need better crops, better machines, better remedies, better consumer durables, better living, better housing and the list goes on. And this desire never ends at any ‘better’. As a consequence, technology advances, research progresses, production increases and hand in hand, the waste also increases. It is no wonder that waste management will be one of the top priorities in all nations in the decades ahead of us, although mankind has made significant strides in the reduction and control of hazardous waste. A lot still remains to be done. Until such time, we need to work with our government, businesses and communities to protect and enhance the planet and its people (Tyagi, 2011).

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