Relationship between poverty and environment Term Paper

Relationship between poverty and environment - Term Paper Example A market for recycling of materials is shown to be a market opportunity because of bilateral trade agreements between US and Mexico. A conclusion is arrived saying that Mexico has to upgrade existing facilities to meet increasing demands of the population for safe waste and efficient disposal infrastructures. Your name here Subject Professor’s name Date submitted How does Mexico treat its hazardous wastes? Introduction Hazardous waste is a by-product of industrialization and the lifestyle changes of the people and higher standards of living. The lifestyle changes have changed the quality of life and it also means that we are creating more wastes than ever before. Wastes and how to correctly dispose of it has become both a big problem to the country. On the other hand, it has also opened a market of an income opportunity for recycling and disposal. Waste disposal has been the subject of interests and studies of international organizations, governments and professionals from uni versities on how to account for management of hazardous elements. Mexico, as a developing country is not exempted from the problem of hazardous waste disposal, and for purposes of this study, an insight of the waste management practices of Mexico will be reviewed. An exploratory research design will be applied in the study and the collection of data will be done through secondary sources that are published in the internet websites, books and literatures about the matter. Review of literature What is hazardous waste? The term refers to a substance, â€Å"solid, liquid, or gaseous waste materials, which if not improperly managed or disposed of, may pose substantial hazards to human health and the environment. According to the definition of economii.com., â€Å"a waste is considered hazardous if it exhibits one or more of the following characteristics: ignitability, corrosiveness, reactivity and toxicity†. Under certain conditions, wastes become hazardous because substances lik e liquids, solvents and friction sensitive substances easily ignite and create fires. Corrosive wastes such as tanks, containers, drums and barrels are acidic and capable of corroding metal. Reactive wastes are not stable under normal conditions and can create explosions, toxic fumes, gases, or vapors when mixed with water. The US Environment Protection Agency defines hazardous waste as â€Å"any of a number of solids, liquids, or contained gases generated by many modern industrial process† Examples of common hazardous wastes are spent auto batteries, spent solvents and sludges from industrial wastewater treatment units. Waste management practices Universally accepted procedure of waste management includes source reduction, recycling, treatment and disposal. Taken from economii, following processes are defined: Recycling is the use or reuse of hazardous waste as an effective substitute for a commercial product or an ingredient or feedstock in an industrial process. Treatment is any method, technique or process that changes the physical, chemical, or biological character of any hazardous waste so as to neutralize such waste; to recover energy or material resources from the