Assessment of Waste Production and Heavy Metal Emission from Energy Production Sector of Zahedan City

Background and purpose: Due to the lack of accurate statistics on the amount of waste generated in the energy production sector in Zahedan, before any planning, one should identify all waste producing centers associated with the energy sector and also the quantity and quality of their waste in Zahedan. Materials and methods: This research is a cross-sectional descriptive study. It examined the produced wastes in the electrical energy generation sector. A questionnaire was prepared and completed for each unit that possibility produces these wastes. Moreover, in the studied units, the weigh percent per unit was determined by separating production waste, and collecting and weighing them. Results: In gas power plant of Zahedan, production of burned oil was approximately 480 liters and the annual consumption of turbine oil and compressor oil was 40 liters. In the diesel power plant, 2,200 liters of burned oil is produced for each generator after 1,500 hours of work. Concentration of heavy metals of Cr, Cd, Zn, Pb, Cu, and Ni in the burned oil sample of the gas power plant was 43.2, 0.01, 0.20, 1.3, 2.7, 0.2 mg/l, respectively and in the diesel power plant were 36.3, 0.08, 0.09, 0.9, 4.7, 1.1 mg/l. Conclusion: In the studied samples, several cases of heavy metal pollution were identified. Therefore, proper planning for appropriate management of these units is necessary for any possible leakage and environmental pollution transport. Furthermore, in order to minimize the adverse impacts of hazardous wastes on the environment and people in Zahedan, integrated hazardous wastes management should be practices in electrical energy generation plants. Moreover, one must consider the measures required to exposure, transport, and safe maintenance before managing or eliminating this type of waste.