Landfill diversion

Waste diversion or landfill diversion is the process of diverting waste from landfills. The success of landfill diversion can be measured by comparison of the size of the landfill from one year to the next. If the landfill grows minimally or remains the same, then policies covering landfill diversion are successful. For example, currently in the United States there are 3000 landfills. A measure of the success of landfill diversion would be if that number remains the same or is reduced. In 2009, it was recorded that the national average of landfill diversion in the United States was 33.8%, while San Francisco had implemented the most effective policies and had recorded a landfill diversion rate of 77%. By diverting landfills we can preserve our natural resources.

Waste diversion is the process of diverting waste from landfills through recycling and source reduction activities. This can be calculated in different ways. As a global community, we can measure the size and number of landfills from one year to the next. If the landfills have shrunk or decreased in number, then it can be gathered that we are successfully implementing a waste diversion plan. If landfills have increased in number, then we are not doing enough to combat the growing population and growing waste we produce. On a smaller scale, we can track our week to week, or even day to day, waste diversion rate.

Reduction of waste is another way to divert waste from landfills; not creating waste in the first place will reduce the amount of waste going to landfills. There are numerous ways to reduce waste, for example, consumers can avoid single use products and instead invest in re-usable items such as canvas bags instead of plastic bags; consuming less in general is also an effective way to reduce waste. In addition, maintaining vehicles' tires will also help reduce waste tires in landfills since they are undesirable and take up too much space along with many other negative effects.

Landfill diversion can occur through recycling. Recycling refers to taking used materials and creating new products in order to prevent the disposal of these products in landfills. Recycling material can include glass, paper, metal, plastic, textiles, and electronics.

Another method of landfill diversion is thermal treatment (such as Incineration). Approximately sixteen percent (16%) of waste is incinerated yearly in the United States. Incineration, however, can lead to other environmental issues that may have positive or negative results.

In addition to reusing materials waste products can go through biological treatment. There are two types of biological treatments anaerobic digestion or composting. Simply stated, biological treatment is the breaking down of material through the action of micro-organisms. Materials are broken down to carbon dioxide, water and biomass. Biomass consists of wood, crops, yard and animal waste. Biomass is considered a renewable energy because more can be grown in a short amount of time. Biomass contributes to roughly four percent of our energy. Biomass energy although its burned, does not pollute the air as much as fossil fuels. Some materials easily break down, others do not. The environment in which the material is placed determines the speed of breakdown.

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