Hazardous Secondary Waste from Municipal Waste Incineration Installations

Abstract

Waste has always accompanied man. As human evolution progressed, not only the quality of waste changed, but also its quantity. Already in antiquity, attempts were made to organize the issue of waste, which over the centuries resulted in various legal regulations. The last 150 years have seen a rapid development of techniques and technologies aimed at solving problems related to waste, including municipal waste. This was forced, among others, by the industrial revolution, which was accompanied by the rapid development of cities associated with the increase in the number of inhabitants, and as a consequence, the amount of generated waste increased. Current activities, especially in the European Union, are aimed at the maximum use of waste, limiting its storage in landfills for re-use. One of the elements in this chain of activities is the incineration of municipal waste, which significantly reduces the amount of waste sent to landfills. However, the problem is secondary waste, which is the product of combustion and is classified as hazardous waste. After being properly treated, they end up in hazardous waste landfills, which, despite the use of advanced security measures, pose a potential threat to the environment.