Water Basics
This is defined as any material discarded as no longer useful or required.
What is waste?
The natural breakdown of organic matter into simpler compounds.
What is decomposition?
These are large, engineered pits where waste is buried and managed.
What are landfills?
The first "R" in waste reduction, focusing on avoiding waste generation.
What is reduce?
A model for waste management that follows a product’s journey from production to disposal
What is cradle-to-grave?
The term for garbage produced by homes and businesses.
The term for garbage produced by homes and businesses.
A type of waste that can decompose and return nutrients to the soil.
What is biodegradable waste?
Facilities where waste is burned to reduce its volume or generate energy.
What are incinerators?
A method of turning materials into new products to prevent waste.
What is recycling?
This approach prioritizes conserving materials through reuse and recycling instead of disposal.
What is the materials management approach?
This describes waste materials that originate from living organisms.
What is organic waste?
This method turns food scraps and yard waste into nutrient-rich material for soil.
What is composting?
A byproduct of waste incineration that consists of ash and other residual materials.
What is slag?
A process where materials are converted into products of lower quality or value.
What is downcycling?
The process of creating energy or usable products from waste rather than disposing of it.
What is resource recovery?
This term refers to man-made or natural materials that do not easily break down in the environment.
What is inorganic waste?
The process of extracting usable materials from waste for reuse.
What is resource recovery?
The practice of converting waste into usable forms of energy, like electricity or heat.
What is waste-to-energy incineration?
The opposite of downcycling, where materials are converted into products of higher value.
What is upcycling?
This type of waste management approach aims to maximize resource use and minimize waste.
What is the circular economy?
The series of steps a waste product follows from its generation to final disposal.
What is the waste stream?
The accumulation of substances, like pesticides, in organisms at higher levels of the food chain.
What is bioaccumulation?
The traditional way of managing waste, emphasizing disposal after use.
What is the waste management approach?
This term refers to using natural resources for the first time, rather than recycled ones.
What are virgin resources?
A critical issue where harmful substances accumulate in organisms over time through food chains.
What is bioaccumulation?