Nature
- waste is material that has been left over after goods and services have been produced or thrown away by ppl
- cannot be reused or recycled
- 3 kinds of waste – solid, liquid and gaseous
- solid waste
o disposed in landfills
o can also be incinerated, composted, recycled or dumped at sea
o incineration: kills germs and produces heat that can be used commercially, converts poisons into harmless gases, residue of ash can be used in road base, but high cost
o composting: organic waste is shred and mixed with sewage sludge
o recycling: primary recycling turns waste into products of the same type, and secondary recycling converts waste into entirely new products
o landfills: sanitary landfills lined with compacted clay and sheets of plastic
- liquid waste
o comes from general sources and point sources
o can include water from cooling towers, chemicals, acids and alkalis, solvents, pains, oil, grease, animal waste, domestic sewage and radioactive liquid waste
- gaseous waste
o gases emitted to the air and cause major pollution

Impacts
- air pollution from incineration, releasing dioxins, mercury and lead into atmosphere
- smoke from fires, toxic runoff after rain, dust and litter blown by wind caused huge environmental damage around landfills
- traffic, noise and dust in landfill area
- contamination of the soil and groundwater under the landfill from leakage at bottom of landfill
- methane gas produced contributes to greenhouse gas emissions
- liquid wastes can pollute water sources – when heavy rain overloads system or plants malfunction, untreated raw sewage can flow directly into rivers or ocean
- gaseous wastes cause the greenhouse effect, depletion of ozone layer and lead and air pollution

Responses by individuals, groups and governments to the issue
- individuals make decision about consumption, recycling and reusing
- local governments make decisions about waste removal, community health conditions and recycling schemes
- state government make decisions about toxic waste dumps, air and water quality and waste disposal methods
- federal government makes decisions about greenhouse gas emissions, large industrial developments and international trade in toxic wastes
- e.g. many councils now have separate recycling facilities and they’ve introduced green bins
- e.g. many people now recycle 50% of waste
- e.g. use of sanitary landfills
o dug on geological stable sites, lined with clay and sheets of plastic
o waste is compacted and disinfected
o covered with earth and recycled compost everyday, and then covered with clay to seal garbage
o little pollution, odour, rodent, or insect problems
o quick and cheap, and site can be reused

sorry there aren't as many notes on waste management. the syllabus specified that TWO geographical issues needed to be studied. so yeah.. hmm and i think (not for trials though) for SC we need to study our fieldwork essay as well, cause it JUST may come out. supposedly in SC they can ask you a question about fieldwork and then you'll have to write an essay about the process and stuff.
hopefully all this is helpful! i know it's definitely helpful with my learning, summarising all this stuff =]