New technologies are changing the waste industry in many ways. An increasing array of new materials are entering our waste streams. Carbon fibre, for example, is being used to make cars, planes and bikes. When this material becomes mainstream, will our recycling systems be able to adapt quickly enough?
Waste management systems worldwide got caught out when vast quantities of electronic waste suddenly required treatment, so we need to think now about recovering new materials.
Bioplastics will change the way some plastics are recycled. Are composting companies ready? And nanoparticles are already found in many products, from medicines to shampoos. How we deal with these in waste water streams is a matter of some concern for the environment and human health.
Product designers and companies jumping on new technology bandwagons need to look at the long-term impact of the materials they use.
Collection and sorting systems will soon see the introduction of robotic machines to handle certain functions. What will happen when almost every piece of waste is traceable, once microchips are so cheap they can be fitted into everything? We will know in real time where that bottle, phone, chair or diaper came from, and where it is, both when being used and when discarded. This will be a revolution for collection and recycling systems.
Nevertheless, waste management today faces a real and growing emergency which technology cannot solve: billions of people still have no waste collection services, 70 per cent of all waste is dumped into our environment and some 20 million tonnes of plastics are floating into our oceans this year alone.
No amount of technology applications is going to resolve these emergencies. The basics of waste management are still as vital today as they ever have been: clean streets, ubiquitous collection, safe disposal and intelligent recycling.
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