In the 21st century, sustainable waste management is as much about resource management and recovery, as it is about safe and effective disposal.
This course helps participants who either produce waste or handle waste to use information gained to develop a more sustainable and cost-effective way of managing waste in both a local and national context. It follows the principles of the waste management hierarchy to underpin good practice in waste management, in a way that recognizes waste as a resource. This will both help to protect the environment and maximize profit.
Participants will learn to use a range of tools to explore opportunities in waste prevention, re-use and recycling; and in so doing, reduce management costs and create commercial opportunities.
Opportunities for energy generation from biological waste, including food waste, will also be identified.
Course Methodology
This course is highly interactive and includes group discussions, case studies and syndicate work. It includes practical exercises that will allow all participants to use the knowledge they gained to implement their skills in Waste Management.
Course Objectives
By the end of the course, participants will be able to:
Explain the use of the waste management hierarchy in the sustainable management of waste and its role in the circular economy
Use the principles of sustainable waste management in a Middle East context
Identify opportunities in waste prevention for cost-efficient waste management
Explore re-use and recycling opportunities in waste management, and manage waste-related environmental risks through a risk-based approach
Use principles of waste recovery to explore opportunities for energy generation through anaerobic digestion and energy from waste incineration
Examine the potential impacts of waste disposal to land (landfill) and identify more sustainable alternatives where appropriate
Target Audience
This course is designed for waste managers and supervisors in all waste-producing industries (e.g. including construction, manufacturing and retail.) It is also ideal for municipal waste managers, waste planners (private and public sector) and anyone who wishes to explore opportunities in the management of waste in the 21st century.
Target Competencies
Waste prevention
Sustainable waste management
Waste recycling
Waste recovery
Waste disposal
Course Outline
Sustainable waste management: an international context
Waste management policy for the 21st Century
Principles of sustainable waste management
Sustainable waste management and the circular economy
Sustainable waste management: A Middle East perspective
Environmental risks and their management and control
Pollution linkages and their use in managing environmental risks
Good practice in municipal waste management
Sustainable options for different waste types
Waste prevention
Commercial ‘drivers’ and good practice examples
The true cost of waste
Use of simple tools
Flow diagrams
Scope to save
Process mapping
Mass balance
SMART objectives
Cause and effect diagrams
Decision matrices
Waste re-use and recycling
The value of waste as resources
The role of Materials Recovery Facilities (MRFs)
‘Clean’ MRFs and ‘Dirty’ MRFs: How they work
The role of transfer stations
The science of composting
Good practice in open windrow composting
Good practice in ‘In-Vessel Composting’ (IVC)
IVC for food waste
Waste recovery
Anaerobic Digestion (AD): an old science with new opportunities
The science of AD: summary
AD of food waste
AD for energy generation
Good practice in the management of food waste
Waste incineration with energy recovery
Good practice in Energy from Waste Incineration (EfW)
EfW for municipal waste
Waste disposal on land
Landfill: Hazards and risks
Principles of sustainable landfill
Landfill: Engineering considerations
Regional (including climate and geological) influences on good practice
Co-disposal landfill
Long-term storage of waste
Waste management in 2050
Predicting the future: potential commercial opportunities in waste management