Syllabus Edition

First teaching 2024

First exams 2026

Environmental & Social Impacts of Waste (DP IB Environmental Systems & Societies (ESS)): Revision Note

Environmental & Social Impacts of Waste

Environmental impacts of waste

  • The production, treatment and disposal of waste can have severe environmental consequences, both locally and globally

Pollution

  • Air pollution: burning waste, especially in open landfills, can release harmful gases like methane and carbon dioxide

    • These gases contribute to climate change

    • Decomposing organic waste in landfills also produces methane (a potent greenhouse gas)

  • Water pollution: improper waste disposal can lead to chemicals and hazardous materials leaching into rivers, lakes and oceans

    • This harms aquatic life and contaminates drinking water sources

  • Soil pollution: hazardous waste, chemicals and heavy metals from landfills or improper waste disposal can seep into the soil

    • These pollutants contaminate soils and harm plant growth, as well as enter food chains through plants and crops

Habitat destruction

  • Landfills and waste dumps take up large areas of land

    • This often leads to the destruction of natural habitats and loss of biodiversity

    • For example, in Ghana, the Agbogbloshie e-waste dump has not only polluted local water sources but also destroyed large areas of natural land

Social impacts of waste

  • Waste management also has important social consequences

    • These particularly affect low-income communities and countries

Health risks

  • Exposure to waste, especially e-waste and biohazardous materials, can lead to serious health issues

    • This can include respiratory diseases, skin infections and cancers

  • Low-income countries that receive waste from high-income nations often lack proper facilities to safely handle and treat waste

    • This can result in dangerous living and working conditions for local people

Environmental injustice

  • Waste exports: high-income countries often export their waste to low-income countries, which struggle to manage it safely

    • This leads to environmental injustice

    • This occurs when the negative impacts of waste are disproportionately experienced by poorer countries

  • The Basel Convention was introduced by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in 1992

    • It is an international treaty designed to:

      • Regulate the movement of hazardous waste between countries

      • Prevent the export of such waste from high-income to low-income nations

      • Protect human health and the environment from the dangers of improper waste disposal

    • However, illegal waste exporting and dumping still occurs

Impact on local communities

  • The presence of landfills or waste processing plants near communities can decrease the quality of life for local people due to:

    • Bad smells

    • Noise

    • Potential contamination of local water and soil

  • Communities near waste sites often suffer from:

    • Lower property values

    • Reduced economic opportunities

    • Poor health outcomes

Examiner Tips and Tricks

Remember that waste can be (and is often) transported across borders, causing impacts far from where it was generated.

Ecosystems & Pollution

  • Pollution occurs when harmful substances are added to the environment at a rate faster than ecosystems can process or transform them into harmless substances

    • Ecosystems naturally have the ability to absorb and manage a certain amount of waste and pollution

    • They achieve this through processes like photosynthesis and nutrient cycling

    • However, when the amount of waste exceeds their capacity, pollution builds up

    • At this point, it causes harm to the environment

Ability of ecosystems to absorb waste

  • Ecosystems as natural filters: many ecosystems can absorb and transform pollutants into less harmful substances

  • Some examples include:

    • Forests: trees absorb carbon dioxide during photosynthesis

      • They convert it into oxygen, reducing the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere

    • Wetlands: ecosystems like salt marshes and mangroves can absorb nitrogen, phosphorus and other pollutants from water

      • They act as natural filters, trapping these substances and using them for plant growth

    • Grasslands and farmlands: plants can take up nitrogen and phosphorus from the soil as nutrients for their growth

      • This can help reduce the impact of agricultural runoff

  • Ecosystem services: ecosystems provide services that help manage pollution, such as:

    • Carbon sequestration: plants absorb CO2 from the atmosphere and store it in their tissues, reducing greenhouse gases

    • Water filtration: wetlands and forests filter pollutants from water before they enter rivers, lakes, or oceans, improving water quality

      • For example, salt marshes along coastlines can absorb pollutants like heavy metals and excess nutrients

      • This reduces the flow of these substances into the ocean, protecting marine ecosystems

Limits to ecosystem absorption

  • Overloading ecosystems: when pollutants are added at a faster rate than ecosystems can process them, pollution occurs

  • For example:

    • Excess CO2: while forests can absorb CO2, human activities like deforestation reduce the number of trees

      • This limits their ability to manage rising CO2 levels

    • Eutrophication: wetlands can absorb nutrients, but when agricultural runoff contains too much nitrogen and phosphorus, these ecosystems become overloaded

      • This leads to water pollution and eutrophication

Biodegradability and half-lives

  • The term biodegradability refers to how quickly natural processes can break down a substance into harmless components

    • Biodegradable materials: substances like paper and food waste decompose quickly

      • This is because bacteria and other organisms break them down into harmless materials

    • Non-biodegradable materials: substances like plastic, glass or synthetic chemicals do not break down easily

      • They can remain in the environment for hundreds or thousands of years

  • Half-lives: this concept refers to the time it takes for half of a substance to decay or break down

  • Some pollutants, especially chemicals or radioactive materials, have long half-lives, meaning they remain dangerous in the environment for extended periods

    • Long half-lives: pollutants like pesticides (e.g. DDT) or radioactive waste have long half-lives

      • They persist in ecosystems for years or decades

      • For example, DDT has a half-life of around 15 years, meaning it can stay in the soil and water for decades, affecting wildlife, food chains and whole ecosystems

    • Short half-lives: substances like organic waste decompose quickly

      • This reduces their environmental impact

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Alistair Marjot

Author: Alistair Marjot

Expertise: Environmental Systems and Societies & Biology Content Creator

Alistair graduated from Oxford University with a degree in Biological Sciences. He has taught GCSE/IGCSE Biology, as well as Biology and Environmental Systems & Societies for the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme. While teaching in Oxford, Alistair completed his MA Education as Head of Department for Environmental Systems & Societies. Alistair has continued to pursue his interests in ecology and environmental science, recently gaining an MSc in Wildlife Biology & Conservation with Edinburgh Napier University.

Bridgette Barrett

Reviewer: Bridgette Barrett

Expertise: Geography, History, Religious Studies & Environmental Studies Subject Lead

After graduating with a degree in Geography, Bridgette completed a PGCE over 30 years ago. She later gained an MA Learning, Technology and Education from the University of Nottingham focussing on online learning. At a time when the study of geography has never been more important, Bridgette is passionate about creating content which supports students in achieving their potential in geography and builds their confidence.

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