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\"Hundreds of million tonnes of agricultural and food waste are produced each year around the world, most of which is just that, waste. Anaerobic digestion, biogas and the heat and electricity that can be produced from it is still a nascent industry in many countries, yet the benefits of AD spread throughout the community: - Gives good financial returns to farmers and eco-entrepreneurs. - Helps community leaders meet various policies and legislative targets. - Offers an environmentally sensitive waste disposal option. - Provides a local heat and power supply, & creates employment opportunities - Reduces greenhouse gas emissions, as well as providing an organic fertilizer. Although the process of AD itself is relatively simple there are several system options available to meet the demands of different feedstocks. This book describes, in simple, easy to read language the five common systems of AD; how they work, the impact of scale, the basic requirements, the costs and financial implications, and how to get involved in this rapidly growing green industry\"--Provided by publisher.

Water bodies are constantly being degraded by leachates from waste disposal sites, particularly in the Nigeria cities. This paper investigates the effect of waste disposal sites on physicochemical properties of water in selected states of Southeast Nigeria. To achieve the main aim of the study, three waste disposal sites were selected from three cities based on their proximity to streams. Wet and dry seasonal effects were also noted. The experiment was laid out in a Randomized Complete Block Design, with four replications for 3 years, and data collected was analyzed statistically. The result indicated that biological oxygen demand (BOD) values of 29.31 ± 1.60 mg/L, 23.87 ± 2.32 mg/L, and 32.73 ± 1.30 mg/L at Abakaliki, Enugu, and Awka in the wet period decreased by 2%, 17%, and 10% respectively, relative to the dry season values, and were significantly ( p  < 0.05) higher relative to the respective controls. The result also proved that values of chemical oxygen demand (COD), nitrate (NO 3 − ), and turbidity in water presented similar results. However, more findings from this study showed an evidence of more pollution loads from the waste disposal sites in the wet period relative to the dry season due possibly to increased leachate and run-off coming out of the sites to the surface water bodies. Based on the findings, the study strongly recommends proper awareness to avoid contamination/pollution of surface water bodies within the vicinity of the waste dump sites among the immediate settlement that make use of the environment in order to safe-guard their lives.

Background Despite health benefits of sanitation, an estimated 12% of the global population practices open defecation, including an estimated 50% of the population of India. Current estimates, however, do not include households that own toilets but do not use them, suggesting that the actual number of people defecating in the open is underestimated. This protocol describes a cluster randomized controlled trial to evaluate an intervention specifically designed to increase latrine use, including the safe disposal of child feces, in rural Odisha, India. Methods The trial engages 66 villages in Puri district, 33 randomly allocated to receive the intervention and 33 to serve as controls. The primary outcome is latrine use and is recorded at baseline and endline for all members of all households that own latrines in all trial vilalges. Additional data on determinants of latrine use and safe child feces disposal are also collected to assess change based on the intervetntion. A process evaluation assesses the delivery of the intervention and qualiative research takes place in non-trial villages as well as post-endline in trial villages to help explain trial findings. Discussion This is one of four trials taking place simultaneously in rural India with latrine use as the primary outcome. All four studies use the same outcome to gerenate comparable data across sites that can serve the government of India. The trial in Odisha is unique in that it collects latrine use data from all potential users in all households that own latrines, enabling a thorough view of the sanitation situation and factors that influence use at the community level. That latrine use is collected via self-report is a limitation, however any bias in reporting should be the same across villages and not impact the overall assessment of intervention impact. Trial registration This trial is registered at clinicaltrials.gov: NCT03274245 .

The presence of legacy pollutants, on-going chemical manufacturing activities, and population shifts have introduced complex, cumulative exposure risks to residents of many highly industrialized communities. These “industrial corridors” present unique challenges to environmental health science professionals, public and private sector decision makers, and residents seeking to make their communities safer and healthier. Social-ecological resilience theory offers a useful framework for the design and implementation of community engagement efforts to help stakeholders take action to reduce their exposure risks. A resilience framework views the human community as a coupled social-ecological system, wherein disturbances to the equilibrium of the system – acute and/or chronic – are common rather than rare events. It recognizes three key capacities of more resilient communities. These are the abilities of community members to self-organize to address changing threat levels, to hold scientifically sound understandings of the risks, and to learn from past experiences and take action – individually or collectively – to adapt to or mitigate the hazards in their local environment. We apply this resilience theory framework to a case study from Camp Minden, Louisiana, conducted through the Louisiana State University (LSU) Superfund Research Center’s Community Engagement program and supported by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS). The case illuminates a critical path by which resilience theory can be applied to guide bi-directional communication and information-gathering, and co-development of risk-reducing strategies at the community level. These are central elements of community engagement within a contentious, real-world setting. The three components of the resilience framework were supported by specific program mechanisms and activities. The capacity for self-organization among community stakeholders was furthered through the convening of a Dialogue Committee which brought together representatives of concerned residents, regulatory agencies, research scientists, and others. This collaborative problem-solving approach supported a more holistic and scientifically sound understanding of the problem through a series of interactive meetings in which members discussed site-remediation options with thermal-treatment experts and regulators, and shared how recent explosions and concerns about air quality affected them. The members co-developed selection criteria and reached consensus on two types of disposal methods that would best reduce the significant threats to public health and the local environment. We also include a brief summary of our recent randomized survey of over 550 residents of Louisiana’s industrialized communities to determine the influences on household-level adaptive behaviors to reduce acute and chronic environmental exposure risks. The results of the logistic regression analysis indicate that residents with more concern and knowledge about environmental hazards, along with confidence in their ability to implement risk-reduction measures – such as checking air-quality forecasts and then limiting outside activities – were much more likely to adopt the exposure-reducing behaviors, even when controlling for socioeconomic and demographic differences among respondents. These findings shed light on the conditions under which residents of these types of communities may be more likely to take action to reduce potential environmental exposure risks, and may help in the design of public education efforts. These “lessons learned” from Louisiana communities facing cumulative environmental exposure risks suggest that application of resilience theory to the design and implementation of community engagement programs may support the longer-term effectiveness of the efforts and enhance overall environmental health resilience. In addition, they provide practical insights about how to operationalize and apply these theoretical concepts to real-world environmental health challenges faced by residents of industrialized communities throughout the world.

Solid waste management (SWM) is one of the key responsibilities of city administrators and one of the effective proxies for good governance. Effective SWM mitigates adverse health and environmental impacts, conserves resources, and improves the livability of cities. However, unsustainable SWM practices, exacerbated by rapid urbanization and financial and institutional limitations, negatively impact public health and environmental sustainability. This review article assesses the human and environmental health impacts of SWM practices in the Global South cities that are the future of global urbanization. The study employs desktop research methodology based on in-depth analysis of secondary data and literature, including official documents and published articles. It finds that the commonplace SWM practices include mixing household and commercial garbage with hazardous waste during storage and handling. While waste storage is largely in old or poorly managed facilities such as storage containers, the transportation system is often deficient and informal. The disposal methods are predominantly via uncontrolled dumping, open-air incinerators, and landfills. The negative impacts of such practices include air and water pollution, land degradation, emissions of methane and hazardous leachate, and climate change. These impacts impose significant environmental and public health costs on residents with marginalized social groups mostly affected. The paper concludes with recommendations for mitigating the public and environmental health risks associated with the existing SWM practices in the Global South.

Landfilling is one of the most common waste management methods employed in all countries alike, irrespective of their developmental status. The most commonly used types of landfills are (a) municipal solid waste landfill, (b) industrial waste landfill, and (c) hazardous waste landfill. There is, also, an emerging landfill type called “green waste landfill” that is, occasionally, being used. Most landfills, including those discussed in this review article, are controlled and engineered establishments, wherein the waste ought to abide with certain regulations regarding their quality and quantity. However, illegal and uncontrolled “landfills” (mostly known as open dumpsites) are, unfortunately, prevalent in many developing countries. Due to the widespread use of landfilling, even as of today, it is imperative to examine any environmental- and/or health-related issues that have emerged. The present study seeks to determine the environmental pollution and health effects associated with waste landfilling by adopting a desk review design. It is revealed that landfilling is associated with various environmental pollution problems, namely, (a) underground water pollution due to the leaching of organic, inorganic, and various other substances of concern (SoC) contained in the waste, (b) air pollution due to suspension of particles, (c) odor pollution from the deposition of municipal solid waste (MSW), and (d) even marine pollution from any potential run-offs. Furthermore, health impacts may occur through the pollution of the underground water and the emissions of gases, leading to carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic effects of the exposed population living in their vicinity. Graphical abstract: [Figure not available: see fulltext.]

Following the growth of the global population and the subsequent rapid increase in urbanization and industrialization, the fisheries and aquaculture production has seen a massive increase driven mainly by the development of fishing technologies. Accordingly, a remarkable increase in the amount of fish waste has been produced around the world; it has been estimated that about two-thirds of the total amount of fish is discarded as waste, creating huge economic and environmental concerns. For this reason, the disposal and recycling of these wastes has become a key issue to be resolved. With the growing attention of the circular economy, the exploitation of underused or discarded marine material can represent a sustainable strategy for the realization of a circular bioeconomy, with the production of materials with high added value. In this study, we underline the enormous role that fish waste can have in the socio-economic sector. This review presents the different compounds with high commercial value obtained by fish byproducts, including collagen, enzymes, and bioactive peptides, and lists their possible applications in different fields.

Food wastage and its accumulation are becoming a critical problem around the globe due to continuous increase of the world population. The exponential growth in food waste is imposing serious threats to our society like environmental pollution, health risk, and scarcity of dumping land. There is an urgent need to take appropriate measures to reduce food waste burden by adopting standard management practices. Currently, various kinds of approaches are investigated in waste food processing and management for societal benefits and applications. Anaerobic digestion approach has appeared as one of the most ecofriendly and promising solutions for food wastes management, energy, and nutrient production, which can contribute to world’s ever-increasing energy requirements. Here, we have briefly described and explored the different aspects of anaerobic biodegrading approaches for food waste, effects of cosubstrates, effect of environmental factors, contribution of microbial population, and available computational resources for food waste management researches.

Beyond better recycling, the ultimate aim should be a circular economy of cleaner production and less wasteful consumption, including the embrace of a sharing economy and cloud-based technologies with smaller material footprints. As the world's largest producer of electronic goods and recipient of the most e-waste, China should take the lead.

As landfilling is a common method for utilizing plastic waste at its end-of-life, it is important to present knowledge about the environmental and technical complications encountered during plastic disposal, and the formation and spread of microplastics (MPs) from landfills, to better understand the direct and indirect effects of MPs on pollution. Plastic waste around active and former landfills remains a source of MPs. The landfill output consists of leachate and gases created by combined biological, chemical, and physical processes. Thus, small particles and/or fibers, including MPs, are transported to the surroundings by air and by leachate. In this study, a special focus was given to the potential for the migration and release of toxic substances as the aging of plastic debris leads to the release of harmful volatile organic compounds via oxidative photodegradation. MPs are generally seen as the key vehicles and accumulators of non-biodegradable pollutants. Because of their small size, MPs are quickly transported over long distances throughout their surroundings. With large specific surface areas, they have the ability to absorb pollutants, and plastic monomers and additives can be leached out of MPs; thus, they can act as both vectors and carriers of pollutants in the environment.