home near a waste disposal and treatment center

Question

Hello,

I wanted to know if there is a health risk for a 4 months old CF child to live near a central waste treatment and landfill.
thank you for your reply

Answer

Hello,
As we do not have in our expert panel any specialist in environment, waste collection centers and processing centers, the answer will be given based on information obtained on the Internet. (See below references in the "Additional comment (public)).

The drop-off centers provide for the collection of waste made by households and are mostly managed by communities. They then provide the choice of the best pathway for waste: recycling, materials recovery, incineration or disposal in a landfill. Some highly toxic wastes are not accepted by waste disposal facilities.

The incineration facilities take delivery of the traditional collections (including garbage) of municipalities. Boiler-furnaces incinerate waste at a temperature of 900 ° C. The heat generated from burning waste to create energy in the form of steam that can power homes with heating and electricity through a turbine generator, used in part for the center and whose surplus is sometimes sold to electricity companies. Scrap and bottom ash from combustion are routed to centers to be recycled in the steel industry and public works. The smoke is first passed by electrostatic charge that capture the dust of heavy metals. This dust called "ash" are collected in a silo ash. Then a catalytic reactor destroys nitrogen oxides by injection of ammonia and dioxins and furans on catalytic bed at 250 ° C. Two washers then sprinkle the water and milk of lime to the capture of hydrogen chloride. Venturi modules complement the capture and filtration through an injection of sodium sulfur oxides. The wash water is collected and treated in the sewage purification center. The pollutants are removed in a sludge that is pressed to form "cakes" dehydrated. Before their release into the atmosphere, the gases are continuously analyzed. The flue gas cleaning residues from incineration of garbage picked up during processing, ash cakes, are routed to storage centers for ultimate waste class 1.
Analyzer continuously measures monitor exhaust emissions centers and measures are generally available to the general public on the Internet

In France, with the changing regulatory and investment that followed, the quantities of pollutants emitted by municipal waste incinerators have significantly declined in recent years. From 1995 to 2006, emissions of dioxins from waste incinerators have been divided by a factor greater than 100 grams from 1090 grams in 1995 to 8.5 in 2006 while the amount of waste incinerated has increased During the same period.
Meanwhile, the metal emissions have decreased drastically. Emissions of mercury, for example, was divided by 7 since 1995, thanks to improved treatment of incinerator smoke, but also because the garbage now contain less mercury.

In conclusion, the regulations put in place measures to reduce pollution hazards and control exhaust emissions. I encourage you to consult the results of the center near where you live. The influence on the health of your son is probably null or only minimal.

Sincerely,
Dr. Sophie Ravilly

23.05.2011

Source of information on the French website:

www.developpement-durable.gouv.fr/La-reglementation-applicable.html
www.developpement-durable.gouv.fr/Les-emissions-des-incinerateurs.html
www.developpement-durable.gouv.fr/L-impact-sanitaire-des.html