3.8 Problems with Material Production: Waste
3.8 Problems with Material Production: Waste
The energy used to produce the materials for engineering projects is only half the problem. We must also consider what happens to the products after their “in-use” life is over. Some materials can be reused or recycled to go back to the “in-use” stream, however a large majority will end up as waste, and will need to be disposed of.
Example: Computers in the USA
30 million computers are thrown away each year in US (~14% are recycled now). Heavy metals present in the computers pollute water. Other materials will pollute the environment, and the space they take up put pressure on land usage. Tackling waste flows can reduce environmental impact and save money.
The electronics and automobile industry are beginning to design for the end of life
(Source: MIT Opencourseware [see reference 3])
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http://dspace.mit.edu/bitstream/handle/1721.1/39134/1-964Fall-2004/NR/rdonlyres/Civil-and-Environmental-Engineering/1-964Fall-2004/7304E211-2A38-4420-90C5-9669E185203F/0/lec1_introduction_jao.pdf
The following passage states some facts about waste in the UK:
(Source Open University [see reference 5])
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Note that only 30 out of a total of 335 million tonnes of waste per year are from the domestic setting. The rest will be industrial waste, where an engineer will be in a position to influence.
http://www.ted.com/talks/dianna_cohen_tough_truths_about_plastic_pollution.html