Discussion #5: Waste Disposal

          There are numerous problems associated with landfill sites. The biggest problem associated with landfill sites is regarded as the conflict between nimby (Not in My Back Yard) and pimby (Please in My Back Yard). Also, it can be seen that many environmental problems are contributed to landfills. The emissions to the atmosphere and to the water environment are the major problem. This includes noise, dust, odour, and landfill gas from opening. Furthermore, the emissions to the water environment contribute to the contamination of water surface, including ditches, streams, rivers, and so on. The other problem is considered as landfill space shortage which applies to many areas worldwide. It is caused by public enmity arising from public perception of landfills and environmental problems, and a landfill shortage crisis will soon appear within the next decade if further reduction of waste is not promoted.

           Throughout the research, I found out that Province of New Brunswick has been successful in managing the waste. First of all, it has made a significant waste reduction and diversion by achieving a 39% rate of diversion from 1988 to 1998. Moreover, over 1 billion containers have been diverted from landscapes and landfills ever since the Beverage Container Act was introduced in 1992. Lastly, over 2.5 million tires have been diverted from landfill, forming jobs and valuable products since the Tire Stewardship Program launched in 1996. As a result, tires are gathered and processed by the Tire Recycling Atlantic Canada Corporation, in which it cuts and breaks up the rubber from the tires to produce new rubber products.

          In 2004, of the over 25 million tonnes of non-hazardous waste that was disposed in Canada, approximately 24% was diverted from landfill sites. 

          I think that there has to be a remarkable difference on these days compared to 2004, because the larger amount of waste can eventually damage and harm the environment and the earth overall. Therefore, everyone around the world should take a share of responsibility and have an attitude to at least reduce certain amount of waste that each one of us produces. My opinion can be proved by the fact that at least 60 per cent of the countries that submitted national reports to the United Nations in advance of the 1992 Earth Summit said that solid waste disposal was among their biggest environmental concerns. Since the waste disposal is considered to be huge concern, the government of Canada is bound to promote an action against increasing amount of waste so that it can create a peaceful environment.

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