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18-Env-B5 Industrial & Hazardous Waste Management · May 2017

Question 10 of 19: Three Strategies to Minimize Improper Disposal of Household Hazardous Waste

Nivaar worked solution (AI-drafted; not reviewed by a licensed engineer)

Notes on this paper

Reference texts: Nemerow & Dasgupta, Industrial and Hazardous Waste Treatment, 2nd ed.; Metcalf & Eddy, Wastewater Engineering: Treatment and Resource Recovery, 5th ed.; Davis & Cornwell, Introduction to Environmental Engineering, 6th ed.; LaGrega, Buckingham & Evans, Hazardous Waste Management, 2nd ed.; CCME, Guidelines for the Management of Biomedical Waste in Canada (1992); Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA), 1999; Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) regulations on radioactive waste under the Nuclear Safety and Control Act; provincial hazardous waste regulations (e.g. BC's Environmental Management Act and Hazardous Waste Regulation).

Question 10: Three Strategies to Minimize Improper Disposal of Household Hazardous Waste (3 marks)

Question text not reproduced: the examination questions are © Engineers and Geoscientists BC. Open the official past paper (linked at the top of this page) to read the question, then follow the worked solution below.

Household hazardous waste (HHW) improper disposal — pouring down the drain, putting it in regular garbage, or dumping — is minimized through three complementary strategy types:

  1. Dedicated HHW collection depots and events — permanent municipal eco-depots or periodic mobile collection days that give residents a convenient, free, legal alternative to disposal in regular garbage.
  2. Public education and awareness programs — labelling guidance, collection-schedule promotion and school/community outreach that inform residents which products are hazardous and where to take them.
  3. Extended producer responsibility (EPR)/take-back programs — industry-funded stewardship programs (e.g. Product Care for paint and solvents, Call2Recycle for batteries, pharmacy take-back for medications) that place collection responsibility, and cost, on the manufacturer/retailer rather than the municipality alone.