Risk Analysis & Management
Through a meticulous analysis of risk factors and a strategic approach to management, this framework aims to navigate the inherent challenges of waste management, striking a balance between necessary economic activities and the imperative to safeguard environmental and public health.
Risk Assessment Factors
Risks emerge from the likeliness of harm, which is the result of the application of a harming mechanism, to something that is exposed to the potential process. There are three concepts to be assessed in the identification of what constitutes a risk:
- Hazardousness. This refers to the mechanisms by which harm might occur, inherent to the waste itself. It is a measure of the waste's potential to cause damage, based on its physical, chemical, or biological properties.
- Exposure. This considers the magnitude of resources that might be harmed by the waste, inherent to the context in which the waste exists. It assesses the degree to which humans, ecosystems, or other assets come into contact with the hazardous properties of waste. A high exposure level indicates a greater magnitude of eventual harm, considering factors such as the scale of populations close to waste sites or environmental conditions.
- Probability. This evaluates the likeliness of the exposed resource to be harmed by the mechanism of hazard. It involves estimating the chance that the hazardous properties of waste will actually cause damage, taking into account factors like the effectiveness of waste management practices and barriers to exposure.
Therefore, risk assessment requires an identification of hazards inherent to waste and an understanding of the context in which they exist. It includes a comprehensive analysis of how waste’s properties can interact with the surrounding environment.
Illustrating Risk Assessment
Consider a scenario involving industrial chemical waste being stored near a small town:
- Hazardousness. The waste contains a high concentration of toxic substances known to cause serious health issues, such as respiratory problems and skin irritation. The identified properties make it hazardous in two different ways.
- Exposure. The waste is stored in a facility located 2 kilometers from the nearest residential area of the small town, with a population of 5,000 people. The facility has basic safety measures in place, but there are no advanced containment systems to prevent leakage or exposure in the event of an accident.
- Probability. Given the basic safety measures at the storage facility, there is a significant chance of accidental leakage or exposure if an incident occurs. However, considering the lack of prior incidents and some level of management practices in place, the probability of such an event causing harm is moderately low.
Risk Management Dynamics
In waste management strategies, the dynamics of risk encompass an assessment of the impacts of the processes and a comparison with an objective target. The possible harm associated with waste and its management processes. Understanding the interplay of these concepts is crucial to architect a solid framework to set the standards for waste management strategies.
Present Risks - Strategy Results = Residual Risks
- Present Risks. This refers to the risks associated with waste in its current state. These risks include all the mechanisms by which environmental pollution, health hazards, and other potential harms can arise from the characteristics of waste and its context.
- Strategy Results. This is the measure of how effectively a waste management strategy reduces the present risks, encompassing not only the reduction in the inherent risks of the waste but also any new risks introduced by the waste management processes themselves.
- Residual Risks. This refers to the risks that may remain after a waste management strategy has been implemented. It's the risk that may persist at the end of the waste's lifecycle.
It is important to acknowledge that residual risks are almost always existent. There are only a few exceptions in which risks are completely eliminated. This is not a problem in itself, as long as residual risks are kept below the level of acceptance, as defined by regulation.
Strategy & Risks Interplay
An overview of the mechanisms by which a waste management strategy operates is crucial in understanding how and why such strategies are successful, and to what extent. Strategy results can be estimated by analyzing how they affect the three factors of the risk assessment equation:
| Affected Factor | Process | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Hazardousness | Modification of waste properties to eliminate or reduce the mechanisms by which it can cause harm. | Treatment processes such as chemical neutralization or thermal treatment can reduce the toxicity or hazardousness of waste materials, making them less harmful to the environment and human health. |
| Exposure | Reduction of exposure of applicable resources from the potentially harmful effects of waste. | Landfilling with proper containment measures, such as liners and leachate collection systems, can minimize the exposure of the surrounding environment and populations. Additionally, relocating waste away from populated areas can also reduce exposure. |
| Probability | Reduction of the likeliness of occurrence of an event in which waste can harm an exposed resource. | Implementing recovery strategies significantly reduces the likelihood of materials to cause harm, as it creates an economic incentive to profit from resources and therefore not transfer their effects to third parties. |
A Holistic Approach to Risk Assessment
Consider a scenario where a facility that manages hazardous waste. Initially, the waste's hazardous properties might include its toxicity and corrosiveness, the exposed resource being the surrounding communities and environment, and the probability of harm being high before its proper collection and control. Through a waste management strategy that involves chemical neutralization and secure landfilling, risks are significantly reduced. However, the reduction of hazardous properties provided by chemical treatment is only a fraction of the net risk reduction provided, as landfilling creates a variation in the environment of waste, from its free form, to a permanent control under secure conditions.