Emerging and Eco-friendly Approaches for Waste Management
Shuchi Saxena, Anand Kumar Pandey
Abstract
The exponential increase in waste accumulation with the increase in population at a global level is posing a great threat to the environment. Along with this, poor management and disposal systems, in turn, increase the adversity. Management of such enormously growing waste is a need for the scenario. Various organic and inorganic contaminants present in the waste possess the potential to harm the environment and need proper treatment before they encounter an environmental niche, to reduce their adverse effects. Conventional physical, chemical and biological treatments though can break these contaminants but are either less efficient or in turn cause damage to the environment due to the utilization of harsh chemicals, temperature or pressure conditions. High-efficiency eco-friendly treatments like enzymatic degradation, bioremediation, phytoremediation and composting can not only reduce the produced waste to a great extent but can also produce valuable products like biofuels, biofertilizers, etc. Henceforth, the present chapter illustrates the conventional as well as emerging eco-friendly approaches which can be utilized at a global scale to minimize the increasing threat of waste accumulation. Moreover, updated researches and waste management trends have been discussed to present an actual status of the eco-friendly approaches in waste management.