Lesson 21- Urban Waste

Question 1

Urban Waste

Answer 1

• Creates lots of issues for planners and authorities
• can cause air and water pollution, have a negative impact on helath
• Globally increases around 7% every year due to population growth and economic growth

Question 2

How is waste linked to wealth and development?

Answer 2

• Wealthy nations consume more than poorer nations. Within a country, wealthier residents also consume more resources
• Urban dwellers produce twice as much waste as rural areas
  -urbanisation across Latin America, Asia and Africa showing no signs of slowing, waste production is expected to rise in the future

Question 3

Sources of waste
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Answer 3

• Residential-households
• Industrial-manufactorers
• Commercial-Stores
• Institutional-Schools,Hospitals
• Construction and Demolition
• Urban service-Street clearing

Question 4

How does waste differ between HIC’s and LIC’s?

Answer 4

• LIC’S tend to produce more organic waste like food and human waste
• HIC’s tend to generate more plastic, paper and aluminium waste

Question 5

CASE STUDY URBAN WASTE-New York,USA

Answer 5

• Over 10,000 tonnes of residential waste collected a day
• Over 15,000 tonnes of recyclable waste colected every day

Question 6

How and why was the waste cleaned in New York

Answer 6

• Government used men dressed as white soldiers to clean the streets as they previously used to put it in the sea
• They have opened dozens of land fills and incinerators-export 85% of their waste to landfills

Question 7

Evaluation of the effectiveness of landfill as a strategy to manage urban waste

Answer 7

• Property sites and different types of waste accepted and condensed
• Unsightly, often get opposed by neighbouring residents, high transport costs

Question 8

How is trade used to by HIC’S to manage their waste?

Answer 8

• Waste is increasingly traded valuable as its sent from HIC’s to LIC’s/NEE’s, often toxic waste from electronic products
• becoming an issue across Asia and Africa contaminating ecosystems
  -creates black market as selling them is illegal

Question 9

CASE STUDY E-WASTE-Ghana,West Africa

Answer 9

• Ghana imports around 150,000 tonnes of second hand electronics a year
• Up to 10,000 workers wade through tons of discarded goods
• About 80,000 men, women and children subsist from the Agbogbloshie dump either on site in the adjacent slum

Question 10

Impacts of the E-waste in Ghana

Answer 10

• Skin diseases and ailments, respiratory issues due to the high pollution
• Health risks entering the food market as haggard livestock roam freely and graze on the dumpsite

Question 11

Possible solution to e-waste in Ghana?

Answer 11

• The German development agency is in the midst of delivering a $5.5 million prodject to build a sustainable, efficient recycling system at Agbogbloshie as well as a health clinic

Question 12

What are challenges of displacing waste?

Answer 12

• Some waste is easier to dispose of than others. E.g food and horticultural waste
• However some urban waste is hazordous particularly that from industry
• LIC’s lack infrastrcuture or resources to manage urban waste correctly