Questions tagged [waste]
materials which the initial user wants to dispose. For questions about [reuse] or [recycling] waste use those tags.
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Where to find the column "Decadence Now", which is cited in _Garbology_
My favorite book about garbage is Garbology, by US journalist Edward Humes. It discusses garbage, what we do with it, and better ways to deal with it.
The book is about a decade old, but still ...
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How to get rid of half a can of durable water repellent spray (similar to 3M Scotchgard)
(Cross-posted, together with additional questions, to a post on the /r/Anticonsumption sub-Reddit.)
I have an 8 ounce (~200 g) can of Foot Locker ultra fabric & leather protector spray. I guess ...
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Which alternatives to PFAS-contaminated cardboards for vermicomposting?
Vermicomposters add cardboard pieces to their waste in order to provide a source of carbon and to dry/ventilate the medium to avoid any hot fermentation. The amount of cardboard is usually high to ...
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What kind of lenses used for eyewear doesn’t melt in the oven?
Hello and sorry for my silly question! I want to create a pair of sunglasses made of Fimo (polymer clay). I know, maybe no one did something like this, but I'm ambitious when it comes to nonsense. To ...
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What are least harmful options for parts from disfunctional ceiling fan beyond my repair?
A ceiling fan of mine is running so slow it is no longer useful. From what I can tell this fan (here when I moved to my home) is either 9 or 14 years old. I dismantled it entirely, inspected and ...
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At-home regeneration of (microbial) cellulose into spinnable fibers
I make kombucha, and an inevitable byproduct is pellicles of microbial cellulose. Is there a practical method by which I could reform or regenerate this into fibers than can be spun into thread or ...
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Are there deposit return systems for products besides beverage containers?
Currently I'm looking into the issue of deposit return systems. Usually they are quite effective in keeping addressed items out of the environment, so I wonder why they are not expanded to many more ...
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How can I start a recycle center for electronic goods
I am from India. It's been more than 15 years that I'm using electronics and throwing it out when its done. Since 3 years, after getting aware of how electronics affect the environment, I am trying to ...
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How is "recovered ocean bound plastic" any different from recycled plastic?
I've started to see this phrase on things like credit cards and plastic bags: "contains recovered ocean-bound plastic."
At first, it sounds like something really positive -- this was made ...
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Environmentally friendly or DIY dog waste digester solution?
Last year, I made a backyard dog poop composter (like this one). This way we keep dog poop and bags out of the landfill.
The problem is, it's filling up faster than than it's breaking down. I've been ...
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When did plastics become regarded as bad for the environment?
When did plastics become regarded as bad for the environment? I would like to have some valid references.
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How do they recycle in Belgium?
I came across a passing mention of a peculiar way they recycle in Belgium (it's not paywalled as you may think, use Google Scholar). They say they sort out plastic containers, cans, and tetrapaks. But ...
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Is litter better than an unmanaged landfill?
In landfill conditions, it takes everything forever to decompose, especially plastics. Proper lining, methane capture, it's what developed countries have, and most countries are not developed. So ...
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Why is composting of food waste "better" than burning it?
Introduction
It seems natural (promoted by the media) that composting is a form of recycling while burning is *no* form of recycling. In this question I'd like to question this way of thinking.
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Does landfill paper constitute a net source of GHGs or not?
I thought it's scientific consensus that landfill paper, as any organic matter with low levels of lignin, is a net source of GHGs. But this Canadian paper of 2008 contains this unusual train of ...
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What do developed nations do with organic municipal waste?
What do developed nations do with organic municipal waste? Are there separate receptacles in addition to bins for plastics, glass, metals, etc.? Is organic waste then transported for anaerobic ...
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Should we recycle paper products?
Should we recycle paper products given what this paper pointed out?
In "Limited climate benefits of global recycling of pulp and paper" (pdf) they write:
We [...] show that additional ...
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Is mercury still found in modern e-waste?
Is mercury still found in modern e-waste? I need an authoritative reference, please. I did try to research it on my own, but got conflicting information.
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Could glomalin-enriched soil be useful for emissions reduction in garbage landfills?
Emissions from landfills, mostly CO2 and CH4, are significant. Could layers of glomalin-enriched soil placed over the heap help contain part of these emissions?
Landfill Emissions
https://www....
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What is the climate impact of discarding natural apparel in landfills?
What with fast fashion, loads of clothes are dumped in landfills, especially, I guess, in the US, given its humongous consumption of fiber goods. They are organic matter and therefore supposed to emit ...
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How long does it take for different types of textiles to decompose in a landfill?
I've looked through the first five pages of Scholar search results to my request "landfill decomposition of textiles cotton" and found zero useful information. Is there any scientific ...
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How long does it take for a cotton piece of clothing to decompose under landfill conditions? [duplicate]
How long does it take for a cotton piece of clothing to decompose under landfill conditions? I skimmed through the first five pages to my Google Scholar query "cotton degradation decomposition ...
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Is there such a thing as safe and green incinerators?
Is there such a thing as safe and green incinerators? Do those cutting-edge incinerators in developed countries like Sweden emit pollutants in quantities that can negatively affect human health and ...
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What is the recommended way to dispose of a used water filter?
I have just replaced water filters for the water filtration system recently. There are a total 5 filters. 1 of them is ceramic, the other 4 are made of other materials which could probably be opened ...
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Why is reducing the consumption of recyclables is better than recycling recyclables?
Why is reducing the consumption of recyclables is better than recycling recyclables? Some recyclables can be recycled only a limited number of times (plastics) so I partially understand it. But other ...
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Is thermal heating of soil contaminated by coal gasification plant safe in a built-up zone?
Where I stay, theres a site (see intro here) nearby that used to be a coal gasification plant (produces coal gas for lightning etc.). The plant contaminated the soil with PAHs and heavy metals with ...
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Does plastic really degrade in a landfill?
There seems to be a lot of debate about whether, and how, plastic degrades in a landfill.
There are many different types of plastic, from polypropylene to polystyrene. With this variety, it seems ...
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How to dispose ultra-processed food?
A friend of mine just recently started avoiding any ultra-processed food because of health concerns. However he already had some in his storage room and some have passed their expiration date.This ...
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Is manual sorting of household waste more effective than mechanical separation?
In theory people can separate waste much better than a machine, since they have more knowledge about the waste itself.
In practice, with all my good will, I find that following the directions for ...
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Are there any insect-based waste-separation techniques?
I'm learning about how black soldier flies and insects in general are used to turn organic waste into more insects, which are then harvested for protein-heavy feed for poultry and fish.
A lot of ...
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How to reduce the environmental impact of drinks containers
I would like to help the owners of a pub (based in Milan, Italy) to decrease the environmental impact of the waste they produce.
My intent is to make them buy the same food content (especially drinks)...
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Did any country, city, or village implement a coffee separate collection with success?
Coffee is a wide produced and consumed drinking all around the world.
After the use, exhausted coffee filters (wet coffee powder) are a very nutrient fertilizer.
This brought some people to collect ...
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How much land needed to dispose of blades from wind turbines?
I saw a news article saying that Wind Turbine Blades Can’t Be Recycled, So They’re Piling Up in Landfills. This is definitely unfavourable, but I really want to get a better sense of the scale of the ...
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Can I recycle greasy metal in the US?
In the United States, I know that paper and plastic are often not recyclable if they are greasy.
Can I recycle metal that has vegetable grease on it surface? I'm thinking of canisters that once ...
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How do I dispose trash without using plastic bags?
Everyday, we dispose of our trash using plastic bags. This prevents the trash (especially liquids) from leaking out and contaminating our garbage disposal systems. Obviously, things such as paper bags ...
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Are composting toilets better than septic systems?
As a sustainability advocate I've always assumed that composting toilets were "better" than septic systems in almost any application.
However I've been reading up a bit on both system types (see ...
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Which materials dumped into landfills are the largest sources of methane?
Recent research has shown that landfills (garbage dumps) can be major emitters of methane.
The largest methane emitters in California are a subset of landfills, which exhibit persistent anomalous ...
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Is Tawashi really suitable for dishwashing?
As a step to reduce my waste I planned to make a tawashi to replace artificial dishwashing sponges. I had a t-shirt not suitable to be donated, waiting to be upcycled, so I made t-shirt yarn out of it ...
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Is putting plastic in the garbage better than putting it in the recycling bin?
It has been two years since China has cracked down on importing recyclables, and it appears the U.S. has had to stockpile, incinerate, landfill, or divert most of its recyclables stream to other, less-...
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What are the ecological effects of buying "imperfect produce"?
I have seen a few sites such as imperfectproduce.com, fullharvest.com, and hungryharvest.com. They sell food that they claim would otherwise go to waste because it would be hard to sell through ...
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Plastic incineration vs discarding considerations
Firstly, let me say, I am not pro-either. I just hear about people trying to save the environment (and putting an end to bad municipal 'dump site' behaviour) by rather burning their trash. This is ...
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Is it more environmentally friendly to use laptops or desktop PCs?
I've often wondered whether it's more environmentally friendly to use a desktop or a laptop.
To compare purely the electricity usage, I can of course calculate how long I leave my computer turned on, ...
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How to encourage people to sort waste properly
We have put a fair amount of effort into reducing the impact of our staff canteen in our office. One part of this is introducing separate food waste and recyclables bins. However many canteen users ...
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Best Uses for Scrap Aluminum
Much to my dismay, my apartment building recently canceled their recycling program. My household generates a fair amount of waste aluminum cans that we were previously sending to the local recycling ...
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How should I dispose of scrap lumber from renovating?
I recently purchased a home in Wisconsin, USA, and in the process of making repairs and upgrades I find I'm generating a fair amount of scrap lumber each month. I keep whatever I think I'll be able to ...
- 11.8k
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How many times do you need to re-use cloth napkins to offset their impact?
My local municipality has a "Waste Watchers" program that provides resources for reducing the quantity of waste sent to landfills. One of their tips is to use cloth napkins instead of paper napkins.
...
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What's the impact of throwing plastic in the bin?
There's a lot of fuss about reducing plastic usage, and one of the main reasons seems to be that otherwise it will end up in the environment, particularly the ocean. But if I dispose of the plastic ...
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What are the uses of bones from the different animals bred industrially?
The food industry grows animals for meat, but some parts cannot be sold for human consumption.
What is the final use of bones from the different animals grown industrially? pigs, beef, poultry etc.
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Is burning PVC with municipal waste 'acceptable' nowadays?
I started to write a comment under the question Is there an efficient way to dispose of credit cards? about the dangers of burning PVC, because this can lead to dangerous chlorine compounds in the ...
user2451
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Is it better to put something potentially unrecyclable in the recycling bin or to put something recyclable in the waste bin?
This may sound like a weird question, but the other night I was about to throw away a plastic package which didn't have any recycling information on it, and I hesitated before throwing it in the waste ...
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