Waste fires and risk of secondary fires

Abstract

Fires at waste storage sites are common at all stages of waste management chain. These events releases toxicants to air, water and soil. There are several environmental challenges associated with waste management sector and the risk of secondary fires is one of them. Landfills and recycling centers are two major high-risk groups for instigation of secondary fires. Improper sorting of waste and structural over-capacities are two big challenge of waste management sector that needs to be addressed. There is need to streamline the flow of waste and source separation of waste at the sites functioning, up-stream of the waste management chain. GIS modeling together with remote sensing could be employed for quantification of these risks