Seminar - Ali El Hanandeh - Composting as a pre-treatment of municipal solid waste: Global warming perspective

Wednesday 28 April 2010, 4.00 pm - 5.00 pm
Civil Engineering Lecture Theatre 3

Ali El Hanandeh
PhD Graduate of the School of Civil Engineering
University of Sydney

Abstract:
Climate change is a major concern of this decade. Greenhouse gases (GHG), due to human activity, are the main culprit. Although, the solid waste management sector accounts for 3.4% of the total GHG, it is responsible for 18% of the total methane release. Landfills are the major producers of methane which is a strong GHG that is 21 times more potent that carbon dioxide. Research has shown that with proper management of solid waste, a total saving of GHG emissions in excess of 9% is possible. Many new rules, including tougher regulations on new establishments of landfills, have been legislated to curb landfilling practices. Therefore, it is of crucial importance to investigate new techniques that will extend the life of existing landfills while reducing their impact on climate change. Composting is a simple, well established technique that can be used to pre-treat organic waste prior to landfilling. It can reduce the amount of waste going to landfill by up to 40% but more importantly, stabilizing the organic content resulting in significant reductions in methane generation.