How to dispose off chemical waste so that everyone, including the environment remains safe.
Hazardous chemical wastes are not only dangerous but also bad for our natural environment. They are poisonous and toxic by nature – considering they are byproducts of industries like manufacturing, hospitals, mining, automobiles, and laboratories and so on, and take all possible forms such as solid, liquid, sludge, and in rare circumstances, even radiation. As one can imagine, such chemical waste can be extremely unhealthy for any kind of life and the environment.
For this reason alone, it becomes critical to dispose of them in a manner that is safe and in keeping with the standard procedures of disposal. Let us take a look at the some of the ways you should and should not dispose of chemical waste.
Safe Storage before Disposal: Chemical waste should not and cannot be disposed of in a landfill. Such traditional methods of disposal are long gone. So before such material is disposed, it needs to be properly stored and then transported to the disposal sites. There are several licensed locations specified by the Australian Government where you can store such chemical waste so that it is away from the civilisation.
As an example, radioactive waste is stored at over 100 sites nationwide that are licensed by the government. You can find out more about these locations here:
http://www.environment.gov.au/protection/hazardous-waste
Proper and Adequate Safety Signage: Believe it or not, safety signs are an extremely critical part of the storage and disposal of the hazardous chemical waste process. These should be installed on every location and storage points that house chemical waste. They should be adequately bigger, brighter, and recognisable from a distance to be warning signage so that people don’t accidentally walk into their proximity or touch them.
How Not To Dispose Of Chemical Waste
Even though there are properly documented government procedures for disposal of waste, we tend to take the easy way out. No matter how enticing the motivation, never dispose of your waste in the following fashion:
In the dustbin: Do not chuck them away in your household or public bin. Things like batteries, gadgets, chemicals, and liquids are such examples that are improperly disposed of like this.
Burning: The second improper way people dispose of hazardous waste is by burning it. Even some professional businesses do this and it is wrong. Chemical waste can explode or release harmful gases in the environment. This makes the air poisonous for everyone
Pouring it down the drain: While pouring kitchen liquids down the drain is a normal phenomenon in homes and other places, it should not be the norm for any form of chemical waste. When poured down the drain, this waste lands in our oceans. You don’t need to be an expert to figure out the amount of damage it then does to the marine life, aquatic flora and fauna among other things.
When it comes to disposing hazardous chemical waste, we owe it to our children, future generations, living creatures around us, and environment to do it properly as per the documented and set procedures by government and other agencies. Let’s keep our environment safe and clean for everyone.
