Waste Management: Strategies, Challenges and Future Directions

The management of waste is a sensitive issue which affects everyone all over the globe. With the advent of globalization and urbanization, the amount of waste generated has increased to an extent never seen before. Such an increase has come with threatening consequences. To make human life easier, several innovations have been introduced in recent years, such as the development of plastic goods and electronic items, which have led to an exponential growth in waste. Most waste is untreated and unutilized, and as such it is burned, mismanaged and dumped in landfills. This has endangered our ecosystem, polluted water bodies and caused ecological imbalance in the biosphere. Overall, this waste is spoiling the beauty of our planet and polluting the environment. To overcome this situation, many efforts have been made by the scientific community and municipal bodies to no avail. Thus, there is a great need for efficient scientific waste management approaches as well as advanced technology that can convert waste into value-added products. There are many ways to tackle this, but more research and development in this area is required to achieve desired results. This book explores a new aspect of managing waste and developing efficient technology to convert this waste into value-added products. It reviews challenges and advancements in waste management technologies and gives direction for future planning. It also provides cutting-edge knowledge on classification and management of waste, recycling and upcycling of waste into value-added products or carbon nanomaterials, utilization of waste towards enhancing the global economy, the role of microorganisms for the treatment of waste, the role of nanotechnology in waste treatment and water purification, and management of e-waste and biomedical waste. This book will emerge as a reference guide that overviews up-to-date literature in the field of waste and its management, challenges, converting technology and future possibilities.