Municipal Waste Incineration Risk Assessment

The disposal of large quantities of municipal solid waste (MSW) being generated by industrialized countries has become a serious problem. Since it is estimated that within 10 years, half of all municipalities will lack sufficient landfill space, many cities are considering municipal waste combustion as an alternative waste management option. \ Municipal waste combustors have been a source of contention in many local communities and a growing research topic in the scientific community. This book represents a compilation of chapters written by experienced individuals in the areas ofemissions estimation, deposition modeling, risk assessment, indirect exposures, and uncertainty analysis. Estimation of potential human risks associated with pollutants has become an increasing concern. Most often, values required for deposition rates and annual atmospheric concentrations are estimated through the useofatmospheric dispersion models. Chapter 1compares data on the tlatterrain versus the complex terrain dispersion models such as the U. S. EPA Industrial Source Complex Short Term (ISCST) and Long Term (lSCLT). Chapter 2 focuses on the modeling of atmospheric dispersion and dry deposition of fine particulates. A specific size particle (10-20 urn) is used because of its relevance to municipal waste facilities since best available control technology effectively removes particulates above this size range. The deposition ofmaterials from the atmosphere is a critical link in the pathway by which toxic atmospheric pollutants are transported to the surface of food chain components. Chapter 3 describes the importance accounting for wet deposition in risk assessments of municipal waste incinerators.

Evaluation of Flat versus Complex Terrain Models in Estimating Pollutant Transport and Deposition in Complex Terrain. - Small Particle Deposition in Air Quality Modeling. - Accounting for Wet Deposition in Incinerator Risk Assessments. - Accounting for Dry Deposition in Incinerator Risk Assessments. - Gas-Particle Distribution and Atmospheric Deposition of Semivolatile Organic Compounds. - An Overview of Food Chain Impacts from Municipal Waste Combustion. - Current Studies on Human Exposure to Chemicals with Emphasis on the Plant Route. - Air-to-Leaf Transfer of Organic Vapors to Plants. - Uptake of Organic Contaminants by Plants. - Uncertainties in Estimating Chemical Degradation and Accumulation in the Environment. - The Food Chain as a Source of Human Exposure from Municipal Waste Combustion: An Uncertainty Analysis. - Assessing Multiple Pathway Exposures: Variability, Uncertainty, and Ignorance. - Uncertainty Analysis: An Essential Component of Risk Assessment and Risk Management. - Ambient Air Concentrations of Polychlorinated Dibenzo-p-dioxins and Dibenzofurans in Ohio: Sources and Health Risk Assessment. - Assessing Risks from Incineration of Municipal Solid Wastes. - Connecticut s Dioxin Ambient Air Quality Standard. - Contributors.