Botkin Environmental Science Earth as Living Planet 8th txtbk

548 CHAPTER 23 Materials Management
The mining and processing of minerals greatly affect
the land, water, air, and biological resources and have
social impacts as well, including increased demand for
housing and services in mining areas.
Sustainable development and use of nonrenewable resources
are not necessarily incompatible. Reducing consumption,
reusing, recycling, and finding substitutes
are environmentally preferable ways to delay or alleviate
possible crises caused by the convergence of a rapidly
rising population and a limited resource base.
The history of waste-disposal practices since the Industrial
Revolution has progressed from dilution and
dispersion to the concept of integrated waste management
(IWM), which emphasizes the three R’s: reducing
waste, reusing materials, and recycling.
One goal of the emerging concept of industrial ecology
is a system in which the concept of waste doesn’t exist
because waste from one part of the system would be a
resource for another part.
The most common way to dispose of solid waste is the
sanitary landfill. However, around many large cities,
space for landfills is hard to find, partly because few
people wish to live near a waste-disposal site.
Hazardous chemical waste is one of the most serious environmental
problems in the United States. Hundreds
or even thousands of abandoned, uncontrolled disposal
sites could be time bombs that will eventually cause
serious public health problems. We know that we will
continue to produce some hazardous chemical waste.
Therefore, it is imperative that we develop and use safe
ways to dispose of it.
Ocean dumping is a significant source of marine pollution.
The most seriously affected areas are near shore,
where valuable fisheries often exist.
Pollution prevention (P-2)—identifying and using ways
to prevent the generation of waste—is an important
emerging area of materials management.
REEXAMINING THEMES AND ISSUES
Human
Population
Sustainability
Materials-management strategies are inextricably linked to the human
population. As the population increases, so does the waste generated. In
developing countries where population increase is the most dramatic, increases
in industrial output, when linked to poor environmental control,
produce or aggravate waste-management problems.
Assuring a quality environment for future generations is closely linked to
materials management. Of particular importance here are the concepts
of integrated waste management, materials management, and industrial
ecology. Carried to their natural conclusion, the ideas behind these concepts
would lead to a system in which the issue would no longer be waste
management but instead resource management. Pollution prevention
(P-2) is a step in this direction.
Global
Perspective
Materials management is becoming a global problem. Improper management
of materials contributes to air and water pollution and can cause environmental
disruption on a regional or global scale. For example, waste generated
by large inland cities and disposed of in river systems may eventually
enter the oceans and be dispersed by the global circulation patterns of ocean
currents. Similarly, soils polluted by hazardous materials may erode, and the
particles may enter the atmosphere or water system, to be dispersed widely.
Urban World
Because so much of our waste is generated in the urban environment,
cities are a focus of special attention for materials management. Where
population densities are high, it is easier to implement the principles
behind “reduce, reuse, and recycle.” There are greater financial incentives
for materials management where waste is more concentrated.