Introduction to Waste (HL IB Environmental Systems & Societies (ESS))

Sources & Types of Waste

• The use of natural resources generates waste

  • This waste can be classified by source or type

Sources of waste

• Domestic waste:

  • Waste generated from households, including food scraps, packaging and broken items

• Industrial waste:

  • Produced by factories and industries, such as chemicals, metals and manufacturing by-products

• Agricultural waste:

  • Created by farming activities, including animal manure, crop residues and empty containers from chemicals like pesticides and herbicides

Types of waste

• E-waste:

  • Electronic waste, such as old computers, mobile phones and televisions

  • E-waste contains toxic materials like lead and mercury

• Food waste:

  • Edible food that is discarded, often due to over-purchasing or spoilage

• Biohazardous waste:

  • Dangerous waste from hospitals or laboratories, such as medical equipment, needles and blood products (e.g. blood or plasma samples)

Solid Domestic Waste

• Solid domestic waste (SDW) refers to the non-liquid waste produced in homes

  • SDW typically includes a wide variety of materials, making it a challenge to manage and recycle

Common components of solid domestic waste

• Paper: newspapers, magazines and packaging materials

• Cardboard: packaging boxes and containers

• Glass: bottles and jars

• Metal: aluminium cans and tin containers

• Plastics: bottles, food containers and plastic bags

• Organic waste: food scraps, garden clippings and other biodegradable materials

• Packaging: items such as plastic wrap, Styrofoam and boxes

• Construction debris: waste from home repairs or renovations, such as bricks and wood

• Clothing: old or unwanted clothes and textiles

Volume & Composition of Waste

• The volume and composition of waste vary across time and between societies

  • Numerous factors play a role in this

Factors influencing waste volume and composition

Socio-economic factors

• Wealthier societies often generate more waste

  • This is due to:

    • Higher consumption levels

    • Single-use products

    • Excessive packaging

    • Culture of convenience

    • Fast fashion

  • For example, high-income countries like the United States generate more waste per person compared to lower-income countries like India

• Lower-income countries may produce less waste

  • However, they often have less capacity to manage it properly

Political factors

• Government policies can impact waste production, such as:

  • Recycling laws

  • Waste taxes

  • Bans on certain materials

  • Landfill regulations

• Countries with strong waste management policies tend to have lower levels of unmanaged waste

  • For example, the European Union's ban on single-use plastics has reduced plastic waste in member countries

Environmental Factors

• Environmental awareness can lead to reduced waste, such as more recycling or composting programmes

• Geographical location:

  • Popular tourist destinations experience high amounts of waste production during peak seasons

• Large amounts of crop waste follow harvest seasons in the agricultural sector

• Natural disasters can also increase the amount of waste generated

  • For example, after powerful hurricanes, large volumes of construction and debris waste can be generated during rebuilding efforts

Technological Factors

• Advancements in technology can reduce waste, such as:

  • Creating biodegradable plastics

  • More efficient recycling methods

• However, the rapid pace of technological advancements causes large amounts of electronic waste

  • This is because consumers want to regularly update their devices to newer versions with better features

  • Renewable energy sources can also produce large amounts of electronic waste, e.g. old or damaged solar panels and wind turbine blades

• New products can also increase waste if they are designed for short-term use (e.g. disposable electronics such as e-cigarettes or vapes)