Page: ______
TRASH TALK
Choices! Choices! In today’s busy world we are faced with so many choices. Some of those choices seem simple. For example, what do you say when the cashier at the grocery store says, “Paper or plastic?” The answer may seem as simple as the fact that plastic is easier to carry, but have you ever considered how your choices may be impacting the environment? Throwing away a plastic bag may seem harmless, but the results may lead to harmful environmental consequences. Making environmentally sound choices can sometimes be difficult. In this investigation, you will determine how waste disposal can impact the environment.
Objective Students will describe various methods of waste disposal in order to determine how waste disposal impacts the environment.
Activity 1: Bottom of the Barrel
1. Observe the teacher demonstration.
2. Brainstorm with your group to determine how we could classify the different types of trash removed from the trash can and work with your group to sort the trash from the trash can into the different groups. List them in the space below.
3. BRIAN POP!
4. Think about the amount and the types of trash that were removed from the classroom trash can and then think about how many classrooms are in your school building. What conclusions can you make about the amount of trash that your school produces each day? List 3
a. ______
b. ______
c. ______
Activity 2: Wasting Away Read, “Talkin’ Trash.”
TALKIN’ TRASH
It is estimated that Americans generate about five billion tons of solid waste each year. Solid waste is any garbage that we throw away that is in a solid or semi-solid state. Solid waste includes such things as paper, ash, scrap metal, plastic, and sewage sludge. Solid waste that is generated by homes, businesses, and schools are called municipal solid waste. With the growing human population, you can see why we have a solid waste crisis on our hands.
About 10 – 15 percent of this waste is considered to be hazardous. Hazardous waste is anything that is flammable, corrosive, unstable, or that contains dangerous substances such as pesticides or lead. Most of this waste is either in a solid state or stored in barrels or canisters that are considered solid waste. Some hazardous wastes can be in a gas or liquid state such as radioactive materials and pesticides. More than 70 percent of hazardous waste is generated by the chemical industry. However, small businesses and households also produce an enormous amount of hazardous waste each year.
Where does most of this solid and hazardous waste end up? The answer is in landfills. Landfills are large depressions or holes in the ground that are lined with clay or plastic and then filled with garbage. The garbage is spread and compacted daily, then covered with a layer of dirt or plastic. Although landfills create less of a health hazard than open dumps of the past, many landfills that have been built on wetlands, gravel pits, and other areas with porous soils are now experiencing problems with leaching. Leaching occurs when battery acids, pesticides, and other hazardous waste leak through soils and into the surface water and ground water. Besides problems with leaching, landfills are also expensive to operate, create noise and visual pollution, and can cause dangerous levels of explosive methane gas to build up in the layers of compacted garbage. Finally, as more and more land is needed for landfills, the problem of habitat destruction becomes greater. In order to create landfills, large areas of land must be stripped of their natural resources such as trees and wildlife.
Adapted from: Ranger Rick’s Nature Scope: Pollution: Problems and Solutions
5. View the video clip, “Modern Landfills.”
6. Which statement best describes the problem of waste disposal?
A. Leaching is harmful to the environment.
B. As the human population increases, more solid waste is generated leading to the need for more landfills.
C. Hazardous wastes include any product that is damaging to the environment.
D. Humans produce less solid waste than industry.
Activity 3: What Are the Solutions?
Now that you are aware some of the problems associated with waste disposal in landfills, you need to investigate some of the solutions to waste disposal.
7. Obtain the fact card related to alternative waste management provided by your teacher and Read the fact card with your group.
8. Work with your group to construct a visual display that provides information about your assigned alternative waste management solution. Be sure that the visual includes:
· Name of the solution
· Description of the solution
· Pro’s and Con’s of the solution
9. Complete the graphic organizer, “Trash Solutions” as you observe your classmates presentations.
Class Discussion
Think about the amount and types of trash removed from the class trash can in Activity 1. Provide suggestions as to how we could reduce or eliminate the amount of trash that would end up in a landfill.
Analysis
1. Think about the famous question that you are asked at the grocery store, “paper or plastic?” Explain how the decision you make about the disposal of that bag may impact the environment. Provide specific examples from the investigation to support your response.
______
Homework due: ______Name: ______
Here is an example…DON’T COPY THIS
Alternative Waste Management Solution / Description of Waste Management Solution / Pros (+) to Solution / Cons (-) to SolutionIncineration
Recycle/Reuse
Composting
Bury It