As the Earth’s population continues to expand more solid waste is created. This raises the increasingly important issue of waste disposal and indentifying viable solutions for already overflowing landfills and their existing problems.
Landfills, the process of burying unwanted solid waste, create two major issues. Firstly, as waste within a landfill decomposes, its remnants mix together creating a liquid called leachate. This liquid can then leach into the ground water below, potentially contaminating local drinking water. Secondly, landfills emit a variety of gases that can be harmful to surrounding environments and contribute to global warming.
Many properly run landfills in North America and the rest of the developed world have systems in place to deal with these two issues, yet landfills are still having irreversible effects on surrounding eco-systems and the environment as a whole. This is not to mention the fact that major cities across North America are running out of space in their existing landfills, and are having difficulty in finding new locations willing to accept their solid waste. Many local governments have implemented initiatives such as recycling programs and landfill dumping limitations on certain recyclable materials, in attempts to divert more materials away from landfills and reduce the need for solid waste disposal.
Despite these initiatives, solid waste continues to be a major environmental issue in Canada. In 2006, Canadians created nearly 80 Billion pounds of solid waste and sent close to 2000 pounds for every Canadian to a landfill. Of this, almost two-thirds were created by non-residential, commercial, and industrial sources.
The major issue with landfills is the time necessary for all materials, even those that are biodegradable, to break down. Many products sent to landfill will never decompose. These products are made from manmade materials like petroleum products and will be buried in the ground forever. Other products, like paper, wood, food, and vegetation do breakdown over time. However, because landfills are packed so tightly, it takes much longer for these natural products to get the needed water and oxygen required for decomposing.
“Methane is a greenhouse gas that is 20 times stronger than carbon… landfills still account for 38% of all methane emissions in Canada.”
When natural products finally decompose, they release methane gas. Methane is a greenhouse gas that is 20 times stronger than carbon dioxide and leads to global warming and climate change. Many landfills in Canada capture this methane gas and use it to create electricity to power their landfill facilities. However, landfills still account for 38% of all methane emissions in Canada.
The obvious solution to this issue is to send less waste to landfill. Various projects have been undertaken with varying results. The most successful have been initiatives to recycle waste from residential sources. Despite only accounting for a third of waste created, residential sources are responsible for nearly half of all waste diverted from landfills in Canada. This is certainly a testament to residents and their participation in both curbside and volunteer recycling programs, but it also brings up the need for an increase in recycling in the non-residential sector.
In 2006, Canadians as a whole diverted 22% of solid waste from landfills. Meaning that it was either recycled, reused, or was reclaimed in some other way. Leading the way, residential sources diverted 29% of solid waste from landfill. Non-residential sources however, specifically the construction, demolition, and renovation sector, only diverted 17% of the solid waste it created.
2E Reclamation Solutions was created in response to the need to reduce unnecessary construction waste in landfills. Carpet is a prime candidate for reclamation and recycling. Our service not only reduces the strain on overflowing landfills, it also provides consumers, both residential and non-residential, the opportunity to alleviate the negative impact landfills have on our environment.