Professional Documents
Culture Documents
ASSIGNMENT A
Q1. What is the need to regularize biomedical wasters? Give examples from Hospitals you are
familiar with.
A1. Biomedical waste, also known as medical waste or infectious waste, is generally defined as
any solid waste that is generated in the diagnosis, treatment, research, production or testing of
biologicals for humans or animals. Examples of biomedical waste include:
• soiled or blood-soaked bandages
• culture dishes and other glassware
• discarded surgical gloves ‒ after surgery
• discarded surgical instruments ‒ scalpels
• sharps and needles ‒ used to give shots or
draw blood
• cultures, stocks, swabs used to inoculate
cultures
• removed body organs ‒ tonsils, appendices,
limbs, etc. (except teeth)
• lancets ‒ the little blades the doctor pricks
your finger with to get a drop of blood
Five Vancouver area Health Boards announced recently that they would join together with a
private contractor to dispose of hospital biomedical waste in a new way. The Health Boards are
responsible for producing almost all the hospital biomedical waste in BC. At present this
material is shipped to Alberta or Washington. In 1998 the five Health Regions considered
dealing with the waste locally, with a view to reducing the risks associated with the
transportation of this material and the liability involved. The result is a plan to eliminate 85% of
the hospital biomedical waste locally.
Biomedical waste is only a small part of hospital waste. The traditional method of incineration
has been replaced with a sterilizing technology known as “autoclaving” in other parts of North
America. A new method called “hydroclaving” was developed in Canada using high pressure
steam to decontaminate biomedical waste. This is similar to the technology of autoclaving,
except that it uses steam and pressure to accelerate the decomposition of organic matter.
Hydroclaving, although new to BC, has been used successfully in Ontario and other parts of the
world for a few years.
Q2. What are disposal strategies for various categories of Solid Wastes? What are the
principles of Sustainable Development? List 3 of them
• SISWM provides a minimum level of acceptable service to all urban residents and
establishments, with higher levels of service where there is either a greater need (e.g., in
terms of business development or tourism) or a greater desire to pay for a higher level.
• SISWM is conducted in a transparent and accountable manner to minimize opportunity for
corruption and unwarranted political interference.
• SISWM provides workers with uniforms, clear-cut performance tasks and outputs, and
predictable routes and schedules so that the public can participate in performance monitoring.
• SISWM is responsive to the service levels and conditions desired by the residents and
establishments receiving service.
• SISWM is affordable within the context of available customer funds to meet the necessary
range of basic urban services and compatible with the service levels desired.
• SISWM is open to all viable parties, including women and micro-enterprises, that could
contribute to the economic provision of services.
• SISWM recognizes that willingness to pay is affected by perception of service quality being
received and involvement of stakeholders in decision-making, and therefore places a high
priority on keeping stakeholders informed and involved regarding issues and proposals.
• SISWM looks for ways to enable communities to be responsible and for individuals to take
action in ways that build public cooperation with the service
Provides Economic Service Delivery
• SISWM considers economies-of-scale in facility sizing and route designs, and seeks to
decentralize or bundle services as needed to optimize such economies.
• SISWM recognizes that collection is the major cost element of the solid waste system
and requires comprehensive cost analysis for continuous rationalization of routing, crew
sizes and technologies, with appropriate planning and supervisory staffing and technical
resources applied to enable this outcome.
• SISWM includes pre-collection systems, to the extent that they enhance willingness to
pay and obtain cooperation of the public with the service.
• SISWM recognizes that systems and equipment should be selected according to local
conditions, and not be transplanted from other situations without careful consideration
of local conditions.
• SISWM builds local capacity to engineer and produce equipment and spare parts, to
the extent economically viable, so that the skills to maintain and replace such equipment
shall be readily available.
• SISWM tariffs establish fair distribution of costs according to ability to pay, the service
provided, and level of waste pollution generated.
• SISWM lets all parties know the costs of the services and what level of service can
reasonably be expected for the costs incurred.
• SISWM minimizes hidden costs and subsidies, making all costs as transparent as possible.
• SISWM sets up cost recovery mechanisms and financial management systems that are
leak-proof and constrain the potential for undue political intervention.
• SISWM uses segregated accounts for solid waste revenues to ensure reliable cash flow
remains available to meet service needs.
• SISWM provides incentives for waste minimization, recycling, and resource recovery at the
source, or as near to the source as possible.
• SISWM seeks disposal sites that minimize area required by optimizing the depth of fill
Embraces Public Participation.
• SISWM planning and operations consider gender, children and cultural aspects of the
local population, and avoids inconveniencing or placing the work burden unduly on any
specific group.
• SISWM planning and operations are participatory and enable continuous feedback
From those involved in receiving and providing service.
• SISWM provides a forum for handling and tracking complaints and related responses.
• SISWM enables the public to perform its role in monitoring service delivery, environmental
impacts, and costs.
• SISWM recognizes that compost has benefits to the rural economy outside of the municipal
service area, for replenishment of soils, minimization of erosion, development of high nutrient
foods, and reduction of water irrigation needs; thus every effort to enhance the cost effective
production of high quality compost and the development of compost markets needs to be made.
• SISWM involves environmental impact assessment and public involvement for all new
transfer, treatment, and disposal facilities.
SISWM addresses traffic and queuing impacts of all new facilities and routing changes.
SISWM involves the phased closure of all open dumps unless they can be upgraded to
controlled landfills that pose no significant environmental threat.
SISWM involves the curtailment of dumpsite waste picking, with interim steps to
upgrade their status, earning power and working conditions.
SISWM prevents children and domestic animals from having access to waste disposal
sites and other waste handling facilities.
SISWM employs systems to track and document hazardous wastes to ensure that
significant quantities are not mixed with other wastes but are taken to secured facilities for
hazardous wastes treatment and disposal.
• SISWM recognizes the need for reliable data to ensure effective planning and management.
• SISWM recognizes that the state of literature on the health and safety consequences of waste
management is still developing and that cautious health and safety obligates cautious measures,
such as providing a buffer zone between people and other living creatures and any
significant waste storage and handling facilities or disposal sites.
• SISWM requires minimum occupational safety and health be met for all waste workers
and waste pickers, whether engaged by the public or private sector.
• SISWM encourages the development of markets for recyclable materials in major centers of
waste generation, including the provision of incentives for increased industrial demand of
secondary materials as feedstock.
• SISWM requires long-term strategic planning so that the lands necessary for handling wastes
are set aside for the future.
• SISWM does not include incineration of general municipal wastes unless the year- round
Calorific value supports self-sustainable combustion at temperatures adequate to protect air
quality.
• SISWM recognizes that modern and environmentally safe landfill is a part of every long term
disposal strategy, and that there will always be some wastes that cannot be otherwise
economically treated, recycled, or recovered.
• SISWM places key functions at the appropriate level within municipal government, so that
access to cash flow and decision-making powers are commensurate with the work required.
Marketing
A major study by ICF Kaiser International "shows that when public companies improve their
corporate environmental practices, they are able to increase shareholder wealth by up to 5
percent...The findings suggest that when environmental risks are reduced, the company becomes
a more attractive investment to potential and current stockholders. "Three factors contribute:
corporate environmental management, environmental performance, and environmental
communications.
Social
ISO 14000 helps create a common language and way of thinking about environmental aspects
which can help companies, communities, governments, and organizations communicate and
work together.
Q4. What is EMS? Briefly explaining the 17 step process of getting ISO 14001 Certification.
Q5. What is the role and importance of communication process between the regulatory
agencies and the users of environmental resources?
A5.
Companies must adopt various kinds of strategies to meet their goals. The Goals primarily
concern profitability and the interest of shareholders. Increase in business growth increases the
burden on environment and natural resources. Hence ecological considerations that support the
business ought to be integrated into business strategy.
Many countries are offering subsidies for the companies or industrial sectors that shift to clean
technologies, recycling programs or for energy conservation/use of non-conventional energy
resources. Incentives for those who incur additional costs in their operations for the protection of
ecosystem. These incentives maybe in the form of financial compensation.
ASSIGNMENT B
A1. Environmental law is a complex and interlocking body of treaties, conventions, statutes,
regulations, and common law that operates to regulate the interaction of humanity and the natural
environment, toward the purpose of reducing the impacts of human activity. The topic may be
divided into two major subjects: (1) pollution control and remediation,(2) resource conservation
and management. Laws dealing with pollution are often media-limited - i.e., pertain only to a
single environmental medium, such as air, water (whether surface water, groundwater or oceans),
soil, etc. - and control both emissions of pollutants into the medium, as well as liability for
exceeding permitted emissions and responsibility for cleanup. Laws regarding resource
conservation and management generally focus on a single resource - e.g., natural resources such
as forests, mineral deposits or animal species, or more intangible resources such as especially
scenic areas or sites of high archeological value - and provide guidelines for and limitations on
the conservation, disturbance and use of those resources. These areas are not mutually exclusive
- for example, laws governing water pollution in lakes and rivers may also conserve the
recreational value of such water bodies. Furthermore, many laws that are not exclusively
"environmental" nonetheless include significant environmental components and integrate
environmental policy decisions. Municipal, state and national laws regarding development, land
use and infrastructure are examples.
Federal agencies operate within the limits of federal jurisdiction. For example, EPA's jurisdiction
under the Clean Water Act is limited to "waters of the United States". Furthermore in many cases
federal laws allow for more stringent regulation by states, and of transfer of certain federally
mandated responsibilities from federal to state control. U.S. state governments, therefore,
administering state law adopted under state police powers or federal law by delegation,
uniformly include environmental agencies. The extent to which state environmental laws are
based on or depart from federal law varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction.
Thus, while a permit to fill non-federal wetlands might require a permit from a single state
agency, larger and more complex endeavors - for example, the construction of a coal-fired power
plant - might require approvals from numerous federal and state agencies.
The Environment Agency plays a vital role in authorizing how much water resource can be made
available for supply and in the way it is managed and developed. The Agency's focus is on the
protection and improvement of the environment and as such it strives to ensure the best use of
the limited resource available. This requires not only that existing water resources are used
effectively and efficiently but also that future plans do not place an unnecessary burden on the
environment.
Q2. Write short notes on Vermiculture, Hydroclaving, Land Filling and Incineration.
A2. Vermiculture: Vermiculture can be the perfect answer for an indoor herb gardener.
Vermiculture is a way of composting using earthworms to speed up the process. It is easily done
inside the home as it takes only a small amount of room and creates no odor. In fact, if you are
an indoor-only herb gardener, you will benefit from having just the right amount of compost to
add to your smaller sized garden area. Vermiculture is the management of worms.
It defines the thrilling potential for waste reduction, fertilizer production, as well as an
assortment of possible uses for the future. Vermiculture enhances the growth of plants that
provide food along with producing prosperous and financially rewarding fertilizer.
The earthworm is one of nature's pinnacle "soil scientists." Earthworms are liberated, cost
effective farm relief. The worms are accountable for a variety of elements including turning
common soil into superior quality. Worms facilitate the amount of air and water that travels into
soil. They break down organic matter and when they eat, they leave behind castings that are an
exceptionally valuable type of fertilizer.
Charles Darwin's primal struggle to survive and reproduce entailed the terminal disappearance
called extinction (extinction being the death of the species and so the death of deaths). Darwin
was haunted by irredeemable loss and studied the benefits of worms over one hundred years ago.
Today, his foresight on the topic of Vermiculture (worms) has influenced the profit margin for
many farmers across the country.
Hydroclaving:
A new method called “hydroclaving” was developed in Canada using high pressure steam to
decontaminate biomedical waste. This is similar to the technology of autoclaving, except that it
uses steam and pressure to accelerate the decomposition of organic matter.
Land Filling:
Land filling is one of the methods used to reduce and manage the waste as well as being the most
common method by which waste is disposed off.
After dumping the waste in landfill sites, several chemical hazard materials such as volatile
organic compounds, (VOCs), methane, heavy metals, dioxin, furan, hydrogen sulphide and
natural occurrence radioactive material (NORM) are vented to environment as result of several
biological and chemical processes occurring in the landfill site.
Incineration:
Incineration is a waste treatment technology that involves the combustion of organic
materials and/or substances.
Incineration and other high temperature waste treatment systems are described as "thermal
treatment". Incineration of waste materials converts the waste into ash, flue gases, particulates,
and heat, which can in turn be used to generate electricity. The flue gases are cleaned for
pollutants before they are dispersed in the atmosphere.
Incineration with energy recovery is one of several waste-to-energy (WtE) technologies such as
gasification and anaerobic digestion. Incineration may also be implemented without energy and
materials recovery.
In some countries, incinerators built just a few decades ago often did not include a materials
separation to remove hazardous, bulky or recyclable materials before combustion. These
facilities tended to risk the health of the plant workers and the local environment due to
inadequate levels of gas cleaning and combustion process control. Most of these facilities did not
generate electricity. Incinerators reduce the volume of the original waste by 95-96 %, depending
uponcomposition and degree of recovery of materials such as metals from the ash for recycling.
This means that while incineration does not completely replace and filling, it reduces the
necessary volume for disposal significantly.
Incineration has particularly strong benefits for the treatment of certain waste types in niche
areas such as clinical wastes and certain hazardous wastes where pathogens and toxins can be
destroyed by high temperatures. Examples include chemical multi-product plants with diverse
toxic or very toxic wastewater streams, which cannot be routed to a conventional wastewater
treatment plant.
Waste combustion is particularly popular in countries such as Japan where land is a scarce
resource. Denmark and Sweden have been leaders in using the energy generated from
incineration for more than a century, in localized combined heat and power facilities supporting
district heating schemes. In 2005, waste incineration produced4.8 % of the electricity
consumption and 13.7 % of the total domestic heat consumption in Denmark. A number of other
European Countries rely heavily on incineration for handling municipal waste, in particular
Luxemburg, The Netherlands, Germany and France.
CASE STUDY
1. What are the activities that are critical to the company’s environmental management
certification?
A1. Companies must adopt various kinds of strategies to meet their goals. The Goals
primarily concern profitability and the interest of shareholders. Increase in business
growth increases the burden on environment and natural resources. Hence ecological
considerations that support the business ought to be integrated into business strategy.
Many countries are offering subsidies for the companies or industrial sectors that shift
to clean technologies, recycling programs or for energy conservation/use of non-
conventional energy resources. Incentives for those who incur additional costs in their
operations for the protection of ecosystem. These incentives maybe in the form of
financial compensation.
Companies must work towards:
• Improvement of image and sales of products
• Manufacturer’s being more accountable to environmental impacts
• Consumer’s awareness that their choice of product do affect the environment as
some products are less damaging to environment than others.
Q2. List the activities that have potential environmental impact in a paint industry.
A2. In the paint industry the raw materials used deplete natural resources. The process of
paint manufacturing leads to release of toxic gases into the environment. And finally
the by-products and waste generated during manufacturing needs to be disposed off
without effecting the immediate surrounding environment.
Therefore it is important that the paint industry keeps these factors in mind and invests
in systems and procedures to avoid effecting the environment.
The product to display the list of critical ingredients in descending order of quantity
present. The material used for packaging to be recyclable/reusable/biodegradable.
Q5. Explain how your company can prepare itself towards certification.
A5.
• The products must meet the relevant standards of BIS.
• Manufactures must produce documentary evidence in regard to compliance of
EPA, Water and Air Acts and other rules and regulations such as Prevention of
Food Adulteration Act and Drugs and Cosmetics Acts and rules made there
under.
• The product to display the list of critical ingredients in descending order of
quantity present.
• The material used for packaging to be recyclable/reusable/biodegradable
ASSIGNMENT C
1. United Nation Conference on Human Environment on 16th June 1972 was adopted in:
a) Stockholm Conference
b) Paris Conference
c) Rome Conference
d) Spain Conference
a) Montreal protocol
b) Delhi protocol
c) MEF
d) MOST
a) Water sterilization
b) Stem sterilization
c) Soil control method
d) Water pollution method
4. Hydroclaving is:
a) Expansion of autoclaving
b) Expansion of vermiculture
c) Expansion of onsite water treatment
d) None of these
a) EA
b) EL
c) EMS
d) EIA
a) ISO 14001
b) ISO 14004
c) ISO 14020
d) All of these
7. Management review is discussed in clause:
a) 4.1
b) 4.6
c) 4.2
d) 4.4
a) 4.3.7
b) 4.4.2
c) 4.2
d) 4.0
a) 4.2
b) 4.4
c) 4.3.2
d) 4.3
a) 4.3
b) 4.3.3
c) 4.2
d) 4.1
a) EMS
b) Auditing
c) Labelling
d) Auditors qualification
a) EIA
b) EL
c) EMS
d) Ethics
a) EIA
b) EL
c) EMS
d) Ethics
a) ISO 9000
b) ISO 14001
c) ISO 14002
d) ISO 14030
a) Labelling
b) EIA
c) EMS
d) EPE
a) Co2
b) CFC
c) CFCKCL
d) No2
a) EMS/LCA
b) EA
c) EPE
d) EL
a) CFC Control
b) OZONE Layer Control
c) Treaty with Africa on Environment Control
d) LCA
a) 1986
b) 1987
c) 1998
d) None of the above
a) Equity
b) Reliance on resources
c) Avoid depletion of resources
d) All of these
e) None of these
a) CFC 11
b) CFC 12
c) CFC 113
d) All of these
e) None of these
a) CFCCFC 113
b) CFC 12
c) HCFCL
d) a, b & c only
a) Env labeling
b) Env audits
c) Qms
d) ISO 14020
a) 4.4.4
b) 4.5
c) 4.3
d) None of these
a) 4.6
b) 4.5
c) 4.4
d) None of the above
a) 4.5.3
b) 4.5
c) 4.9
d) None of the above
a) Auditing
b) Planning
c) Estimating
d) Controlling
a) 4.2
b) 4.3
c) 4.0
d) 4.1
a) Environmental labeling
b) Environmental engineering
c) Auditing
d) QMS
a) Glossary
b) Terms and conditions
c) Labeling
d) Pollution
a) EMS
b) LCA
c) MMS
d) EA
37. LCA has:
a) Four standards
b) Two standards
c) Three standards
d) No standards
a) Training
b) Audits
c) Process
d) ENS
a) Reduce
b) Recycle
c) Rework
d) All of the these
e) None of these