APES 16 & 18 broken down

• HIV / AIDS

  • AIDS is caused by HIV
  • Leaves the body vulnerable to infections by attacking the immune system
  • Leading cause of death of people ages 15-49
  • Retrovirus. No vaccine to prevent or cure it
  • Costly drugs can slow the viral progression
• Tuberculosis (TB)

  • Highly contagious bacterial infection of the lungs and spreading since 1990
  • On the rise due to lack of screening and control programs, bacterial genetic resistance, increased person-to-person contact, population growth, air travel, urbanization
  • Airborne, coughing with blood
• Viral diseases and Parasites are killers
• Viral diseases

  • Influenza or Flu Virus (killed the most worldwide)
  • HIV (2 Million people yearly)
  • Hepatitis B Virus
  • COVID
  • Ebola
  • West Nile Virus
  • Zika Virus
• Viruses can move from animals to humans (New field: Ecological Medicine)
• Good hygiene practices to reduce chances of infection

  • Wash your hands with soap and water
  • Do not share razors or towels
  • Cover cuts and scrapes until healed
  • Avoid contact with infected people
  • Do not touch your eyes, mouth, and nose
• Infectious disease related deaths

  Dropped from 35% to 16% from 1970 to 2015 due to immunization of children
• Average annual deaths from infectious diseases on children under age of 5 reduced from 12 million to 4.9 million between 1990 and 2015
• World Agencies

  • United Nations - promotes dialog between countries with goal of world peace (International Health matters)
  • World Health Organization (WHO) - Improvement of human health by monitoring and assessing health trends
  • World Bank - Provides technical and financial assistance to developing countries
• Transmissible - Contagious or communicable infectious diseases transmitted between people (Common cold, TB, Gonorrhea - sexual, COVID)
• • Non Transmissible - Not caused by organisms and developed in the body (Most cancers, cardiovascular diseases, asthma, diabetes)
• • Epidemic - large-scale outbreak of an infectious disease
• • Pandemic - global outbreak
• Genetic immunity due to overuse of antibiotics - make bacteria stronger and untreatable
• Most serious biological hazard we face are infectious diseases
• Examples of infectious diseases

  • COVID
  • AIDS
  • Flu
  • TB
  • Diarrheal diseases
  • Malaria - mosquitos (global warming widens niche)
• Infectious


  Pathogen invades the body and then multiplies (Viruses, Bacterias, Parasites)
• Types of infectious diseases

  • Transmissible - Contagious or communicable infectious diseases transmitted between people (Common cold, TB, Gonorrhea - sexual, COVID)
  • Non Transmissible - Not caused by organisms and developed in the body (Most cancers, cardiovascular diseases, asthma, diabetes)
• Epidemic

  Large-scale outbreak of an infectious disease
• Pandemic


  Global outbreak
• In 1900, infectious diseases were the leading cause of death in the world
• Genetic immunity due to overuse of antibiotics

  Make bacteria stronger and untreatable
• Climate change

  Increase range of disease vectors
• HIV/AIDS is a blood-borne disease, can be transmitted through open wounds, and is an autoimmune disease
• Magic Johnson has HIV/AIDS
• Toxic Substance Control Act of 1976


  Regulate toxic substances from cradle to grave - from production to disposal
• Types of Hazards

  BIOLOGICAL

  • Pathogens, organisms that causes diseases to other organisms 
  • Ex: covid - differnt variants - r selected 

  CHEMICAL

  • Toxins, chemicals or elements that can cause harm or diseases
  • Ex. poison 

  NATURAL

  • Natural disasters, Fire, Earthquakes, Tsunamis, Floods, Tornadoes, Hurricanes, Volcanic Eruptions

  CULTURAL

  • Unsafe working conditions, Criminal assaults (urban areas), Poverty (take more risk to survive), Religious Persecution

  LIFESTYLE CHOICES

  • Smoking, Poor diet, Unsafe Sex, Poor life choices
• Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976 (RCRA)

  Covers only 5% of hazardous waste produced in the US. Cradle to grave too
• Storing Hazardous Waste

  -Burial

  Low cost, Widely used - landfill

  -Deep-well Disposal

  Can contaminate groundwater, Easy - injection wells

  -Surface Impoundments

  Lined ponds, pits, or lagoons - to remove the water 

  -Secure Landfills

  $$$$$
• Comprehensive Environmental, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA)

  Superfund. Cleans up leaks, contamination, etc. Only 391 out of 1323 superfund sites are cleaned in 2016. 113 Superfund sites in NJ while only 97 in California
• 1992 Basel Convention


  Bans participating countries from shipping hazardous waste to other countries
• 2000 Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants


  Protect human health and environment from chemicals that remain intact for longer period of time
• In 2020, Sweden ban of hazardous chemicals will become effective in which the burden to show chemicals are safe is placed on the industry
• Detoxification

  • Collect then detoxify to lessen impact
  • Physical and chemical method
  • Bioremediation: Use microorganisms to treat pollutants - decompose
  • Phytoremediation: Use plants to treat pollutants
  • Plasma gasification: Use plasma arc torch - in ash there are toxic metal
• Handling Hazardous Waste

  1. produce less hazardous waste - recycle
  2. convert to less hazardous substances
  3. put in in storage
• E-Waste

  • Electronic waste
  • Fastest growing solid waste problem in the US and the world
  • US produces roughly 50% of world’s E-Waste and only recycles about 14%
  • Only in 13 states manufacturers are responsible for recycling
  • Increasing Sale + Short Life Cycle (Planned Obsolescence) 
  • Recycling increased to 30%, contains valuable nonrenewable materials
  • Toxic heavy metals and chemicals exposed workers (Shipped to China)
  • 2014: E-waste contained more than 1/10 of all gold mined that year and also source of iron, copper, and aluminum
• Hazardous Wastes are Toxic

  • Threatens human health and the environment
  • Toxic, Corrosive - break down thing (acids), Flammable, Combustible, Carcinogenic - cause cancer
  • Classes of HW
  • Organic compounds
  • Toxic heavy metals
  • Radioactive Waste - lead blocks radiation
• Landfills - Bury Them

  • Compacted layers of waste between clay or foam
  • Bottom liners and containment system collect leachate 
  • Can collect methane for energy
  • Paper, yard waste, plastics, metals, wood, glass, and food waste can be placed
  • Less developed countries don't do the above and leave them in open field - leach into groundwater 
  • sand lets the leachate goes down at the bottom and u can suck it out from there - move
  • When u burn methane you get a combustion reaction h20 and co2
• Incinerators - Burn Them

  • Burn solid waste to make them smaller and can easily be stored
  • Pollution heavy (air and water)
  • Adds to greenhouse gas emission
  • Can use to heat water and generate electricity
  • Waste-to-Energy incinerators produce less air pollutants than landfills
  • TOXIC ASH
• Recycling Plastics

  • Plastics are composed of resins created from oil and natural gas
  • 7% by weight is recycled in the US
  • Many types of resin and difficult to separate
  • 2014: First recyclable thermoset plastic (plastics that cannot be remodeled even with heat)
  • Pros: Net economic, health, and environmental benefits
  • Cons: Costly also single pickup system and sorting recyclables by type