Improper Chemical Waste Disposal Takes Toll On Us Landfills

Improper chemical waste disposal, contrary to the understanding of most, is not as much of a problem for industry as it is for the common household. In industry, companies are educated as to proper chemical waste disposal and waste is tracked and disposed of in a way that will prevent it from getting penalized by regulators. However, the common household, which is not responsible to regulators due to the fact that they are not associated with industry and because they handle small amounts, remains as a collective, one of the largest offenders of environmental regulation. How so?

Improper disposal of a variety of chemicals and chemical products is not uncommon at all. Usually, waste such as old paint, cleaners, construction materials and containers used to hold them are simply thrown in the garbage, usually wrapped in a plastic bag, concealing their contents. What does this mean? This means that these toxic waste containers and the residual chemicals that they contain eventually leak into the environment when they are buried in a landfill. How do we know that this is a potential and in some places an actual problem? One way to tell is the fact that effluent waters are continuously tested.

Effluent monitoring happens essentially each and every time it rains. As rain falls on a landfill, eventually it runs off carrying with it some of the chemical waste that was dumped there. Waste such as old paint, cleaning solution containers, computer boards, you name it. All of these types of things leach toxins into the effluent water. Even worse, just because they are detected does not mean they are contained. They still eventually make it to the water supply. The only difference is, we know about it and that's it.

If toxins are detected, which in many cases they are, the landfill may be penalized, but unlike in the case of industry, the cause can never be traced and the responsible party, never found. That is why education is important in this area. The only way to keep, chemicals such as automotive fluids, cleaners, surface coatings, heavy metals, etc...from entering our water supply is to never put it there in the first place.

By: Mark T He

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Protect your family and your water supply from toxic effluent by installing a reverse osmosis system recommended by our chemists in your house. This article is the property of The Official Chemistry Lab Equipment Journal found at chemistry-lab-equipment.com