Draft Report on Health Effects of between 150,000 and 300,000 acute lower respiratory infections, such as bronchitis and pneumonia, in children less than 18 months of age. These produce between 7,500 and 15,000 hospitalizations. The report also found that children who live with smokers are more likely to become asthmatic. Secondary tobacco smoke exacerbates asthmatic symptoms in approximately 20 percent of the country's 2 million to 5 million asthmatic children, and is a risk factor in triggering between 8,000 and 26,000 new cases of asthma per year. More generally, secondhand smoke increases the prevalence of coughing, wheezing, inner-ear infection, and reduced lung function among children. The report also suggests a link between secondary tobacco smoke and sudden infant death syndrome. Finally, it estimates that secondary smoke causes between 2,500 and 3,300 lung-cancer deaths per year. This report, focused solely on respiratory problems, leaves out heart disease, which other studies have estimated causes about half of the nation's tobacco-related deaths and 37,000 deaths per year among nonsmokers.... The Wall Street Journal reported: "... The report now goes to the agency's science advisory board, which can either accept it or send it back for modifications. Following the board's approval, the report will be sent to EPA Chief William Reilly, who may order further changes or release it. Agency officials predict the final report will Acid Rain Emissions Limits Proposed for Over 900 Power Plants percent of sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions in the United States; SO2 is the chief contributor to acid rain. Under the 1990 Clean Air Act, each power plant is to be issued emissions allowances. Each allowance equals one ton of SO2 emissions per year. The number of allowances a plant gets is determined by formula and is based in large part on the plant's past consumption of fuel. As the program gets underway in 1995, each plant must hold enough allowances to cover its annual emissions. It can meet its requirement either by reducing emissions or by purchasing allowances from other utilities. For every ton of SO2 a plant emits in excess of its allowances, it The Situation Today Putting the Crusade into Perspective Recycling and waste generation both are on the rise by William E. Franklin and Marjorie A. Franklin J ust about everyone in the United States seems to think that there is too much municipal solid waste (MSW). Newspaper articles and television programs bombard us with images of discards heaped up and overflowing. Schoolchildren are probably more aware than most; just visit a school and view the children's posters exhorting people to save the Earth by recycling. There's no doubt that the problem is growing. EPA's most recent estimates are that in 1990 the United States generated over 195 million tons of MSW. That's up from about 88 million tons in 1960, and 151 million tons in 1980. EPA defines MSW as wastes (Bill Franklin, chairman of Franklin Associates, Ltd., has been a municipal solid waste consultant since 1968. Marge Franklin, president of Franklin Associates, has been a municipal solid waste consultant since 1975. Part of this article was based on a speech delivered at EPA's Municipal Solid Waste Source Reduction and Recycling Conference, Hot Springs, Virginia, March 1988. Most of the statistics in the article are from Characterization of Municipal Solid Waste in the United States: 1992 Update, EPA Report No. 530-R-92-019.) from residences (such as houses, commercial establishments (such as Of course, as the population The approach that most government Source reduction-reducing wastes because it means generating less waste in the first place. Very simply, waste that isn't generated never enters the waste stream. • Recycling and composting are next best. Recycling is a process that begins with separation and collection of a product that otherwise would become waste and ends when the recovered material is processed into a new product. Closed loop recycling means that a recovered product (such as an aluminum can) is made into the same product again. Open loop recycling means that a product (such as a recovered plastic soft drink bottle) is made into a different product (such as fiber for carpeting). (See box on composting on page 14.) Incineration and landfilling are least desirable. Unfortunately, endorsing this hierarchy is a little like saying you're going to lose weight; it's easier said than done. In the first place, no one has devised an acceptable way to measure source reduction on a nationwide basis, and it is difficult to estimate the effect that current efforts are having on the waste stream. Nevertheless, there are many examples of source reduction currently in practice: Many offices are reducing waste by copying reports on both sides 7 of the paper; many marketers of consumer products are finding ways to reduce packaging. Also, while efforts in recycling and composting have increased tremendously in the past few years, people wonder whether they're really making a difference. EPA's estimates of how MSW was managed in 1960 and in 1990 show that recovery for recycling and composting increased from almost 6 million tons in 1960 to over 33 million tons in 1990. At the same time, the amount of MSW burned increased only slightly. On the other hand, the United States landfilled about 130 million tons of MSW in 1990 compared to 55 million tons in 1960, an increase of 137 percent. Looking at the recent past, the picture is a little brighter. MSW generation continued to increase steadily, but recovery for recycling and composting made a big increase-from more than 16 million tons (less than 10 percent of generation) in 1985 to over 33 million tons (17 percent) in 1990. This is an increase of 104 percent, not bad for starters. Incineration also termed combustion also increased in this period, so the best estimate is that less total MSW was landfilled in 1990 than in 1985. If recycling is to be used as a genuine MSW management alternative, rather than just a "feel good" way to conserve resources, then materials must be recovered and made into new products in large quantities. Unfortunately, some of the products that are relatively easy to identify and recycle economically are not very big factors in the waste stream. To cite two examples: • Lead-acid automotive batteries were recovered at a rate of over 96 percent in 1990. This is an impressive number, and keeping lead out of landfills and combustors is highly desirable from an environmental standpoint. However, these batteries would be less than 1 percent of all MSW even if they were not recovered at all. • Recovery of aluminum beverage cans is one of the great success stories of recycling, perhaps the greatest. Their recovery rate was well over 60 percent in 1990, and, since they bring a good price, aluminum cans are an important economic factor in recycling programs. On the other hand, aluminum beverage cans would also be less than 1 percent of total MSW even if they were not recovered at all. So what can be recycled that will have a real impact? By weight, the four largest components of MSW generation in 1990 were: yard trimmings (18 percent), corrugated boxes (12 percent), food wastes (7 percent), and newspapers (7 percent). The yard trimmings and food wastes can be composted; the corrugated boxes and newspapers are highly recyclable. By going after these components, which really make a difference in the waste stream, communities can make some real reductions in what has to be disposed of. In fact, that is exactly what happened to achieve the 17 percent recovery rate in 1990. Paper products were nearly 63 percent of all recovery in 1990, and recovery of yard trimmings for composting made up nearly 13 percent. Recovery of glass, metals, plastics, rubber, and other materials made up the remaining 25 percent. What's been accomplished gives some guidance as to what must be done to increase recycling and composting in the future. That is, |