It is no secret that the quantity of household waste
produced is increasing year after year at an alarming rate and governments are
under pressure to expand existing landfills or build new ones to accommodate
the waste that is being produced.
What is Hazardous Household Waste?
Household waste is leftover from household goods or
products. Hazardous household waste are household products which contain
chemicals that have the potential to affect plants, the health of humans and
animals and are detrimental to the environment when handled improperly
Improper management of household waste has the potential to
be very detrimental to the environment, people and animals. What many of us may
not realise is that many of those common household products contain corrosive,
toxic or flammable chemicals, that can be hazardous to the environment if not
handled or managed properly.
Hazardous household waste should not be disposed of in the
same way as regular waste. For example, gasoline can be buried in the ground can
affect rivers and find its way into drinking water. The hydrocarbons in motor
oils or pesticides have the potential to bio-accumulate in freshwater fishes
and can find its way in the food chain. Burning of hazardous waste leads to the
release of toxic chemicals and fumes in the air. Once released into the
environment these chemicals are dispersed over large areas, thereby affecting
the health of persons over a wider area.
Some of these chemicals remain in the systems of plants and
animals for a long time and may enter the food chain when the affected plants
and animals are consumed.
Bioaccumulation of hazardous compounds in the systems of
plants, animals and humans have the potential to affect their reproductive
lives, growth, impair the function of various organs such as the liver and
kidneys, affect the functioning of the central nervous systems and immune
systems of human and animals and some have been listed as known carcinogens.
How Can You Tell a Product is Hazardous?
Read the labels of products. In most countries’ labels are
required for all products. These should provide information on the constituents
of the products, including symbols and words to indicate the hazard to animals,
humans and the environment if mishandled.
What Can You Do to Manage Hazardous Waste?
Purchase Environmentally Friendly Products, the best way to
control waste is to not produce it in the first place. You can start by
avoiding the purchase of products that contain chemicals that are harmful to
humans, animals and the environment. Purchase those products that are
biodegradable or friendly to the environment.
Safe Product Storage - Ensure that hazardous products are
stored in a safe place, that their containers are not damaged, do not have any
leaks to reduce the risk of contaminating water sources, land, humans, animals,
plants and the environment. Ensure that corrosive products like acids are
stored in separate areas from other hazardous products.
Check products frequently to ensure that there are no leaks
and broken lids or bulging sides.
Always store products in their original containers to avoid
unintentional usage.
Ensure that these products are stored in a place where
children and animal have no access to them.
Disposal of Products - Disposal of products should always be
the last resort. Why? Because there are no safe ways of disposing of hazardous
waste. You can avoid the dilemma of hazardous waste disposal by either
selecting biodegradable products, recycling the product, giving the excess
products to friends, neighbours or family or purchasing smaller volumes of the
product.
If, however, disposal is inevitable then you should dispose
of the waste in the manner prescribed on the label.
Although there are laws to regulate the handling and use of
large quantities of hazardous waste the existence of laws to regulate the
typical small quantities generated at the household is non-existent. For this
reason, the responsibility for the management of hazardous waste falls squarely
on the shoulders of the hazardous waste generators.
Protection of the environment can only happen when you play
a role in finding creative ways to re-use, recycle or reduce waste. This is
essential if we are to safeguard the environment and health of future
generations. Remember that waste management is your business, my business, our business.
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