Solid waste is a public health problem of great magnitude. Each year in the United States, approximately 150 million tons of waste are generated. More than 80% of this material is discarded by burial in landfills [EPA, 19861. Unfortunately, landfills are becoming filled. Many are already at capacity, while others will be forced to close because they violate environmental requirements. In New York State, 75% of existing landfills are in jeopardy of closure [New York State, 19871. Options for disposal other than landfilling are limited. Transport of waste overland to remote sites has been utilized, but it is expensive (up to $130 per ton in New York City) and will become more costly as landfill space continues to dwindle. Ocean dumping is used in coastal areas. However, ocean dumping was scheduled by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to end in 1982; it continues today only under a court-ordered variance. Export of wastes overseas has become socially and politically unacceptable.
In this crisis, incineration has been hailed widely as the solution to the problem of overloaded landfills. EPA estimates [I9861 are that a sixfold rise in the national capacity for waste combustion will occur in the United States over the next 15 years. A major advantage of incineration is that it reduces the volume of waste by 75 to 80%. Incineration may be linked with recycling and recovery schemes to remove iron and steel as well as glass, paper, and other identifiable materials from the waste stream. Also, incineration is coupled in some instances with heat recovery systems for the cogeneration of electricity.
Incineration may, however, have significant adverse effects on the environment and on human health. These effects have not been well characterized. They appear to be the result of exposure to 1) airborne emissions, both stack emissions and fugitive emissions, and to 2) solid residues-ash and slag.
Airborne emissions from incinerators contain lead and other heavy metals; solvents, including benzene; and complex hydrocarbons, such as dioxins and furans Hryhorczuk et al., l981; EPA, 19871. Incinerator ash has been shown to contain high concentrations of noncombustible materials, including cadmium and lead. Lead concentrations in incineratyr ash have been found to exceed 7,000 parts per million (ppm) [NUS Corp., 19871. Populations at risk of exposure to the toxic products of waste combustion