Waste

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Waste

According to the waste audit data collected at Clark College, most of the waste is classified as trash. The quarterly audits classified the waste according to trash, aluminum/plastic, paper, glass, and compost. In all the audits, the college recorded trash at more than 70%. In spring and fall audits, the trash was 79% while in the winter audit; it was recorded at 78%. Waste from aluminum/plastic ranged from 10 to 14% with the highest audit recorded during spring. Waste from paper ranged from 3 to 7%. Spring audit recorded the lowest figure. Waste from glass never exceeded 1% during all the audits. Compost waste was 3% for the fall and spring and 4% for the winter.

The county classifies waste into distinct categories including organic, glass, metal, paper, wood and C&D, and plastic. Other waste such as animal excrement, hazardous waste, e-waste, medical waste, and household batteries are classified as ‘other’. Based on this classification, most of the waste comes from organics, which include food scraps and yard debris. The waste from organics is 22.7%. Wood and C&D waste is at 19.2% and waste from paper is 14.6%. Plastic, metal, and glass waste makes up 13.7%, 6%, and 2.5% respectively.

 I did an analysis of the waste around the school. I classified most of the waste as trash and compost waste. I only had few items for recycling. Estimates indicated that most of the waste could remain in landfills for thousands of years. This included most of the plastic. The findings also indicate lack of awareness concerning the disposal of some of the materials used. Most of the waste in the institution concerns food and drinks. People eat and drink a lot. Most of these food items are stored in plastic containers or wrappers.

There is a clear need to educate the people and make them aware concerning waste and good waste management. Some of the waste that is classified as trash can be used as compost. Other type of waste can be recycled. People need to be aware of the effect that waste has on their environment and on their future. Some of the students record that they have never used some of the things that they throw away. This increases the amount of waste disposed. People need to know more about landfills and the effect they have on the environment. Some of the things used can be replaced with items that are more durable.

The findings from the various waste sources are a reflection of the American society in general. America is a heavy consumer and it has a lot of waste. It does not know how to handle some of the waste. Once the waste is on landfills it can increase at very fast rates. This highlights the necessity of proper garbage disposal to ensure that some of the waste is recycled or used as compost. Most of the people do not think about what they consume or about the waste, they produce. Others are aware of the correct disposal of waste. They will strive to ensure that they dispose of the waste correctly but they will not take any measures to reduce it. The improvement of waste disposal technologies in the homes and institutions has led to the false impression that there is no waste. However, this is not the case.

Waste is a real problem today. It is present in everybody’s home, institutions, and places of work. Some people have found effective ways of using waste through the generation of energy. However, this is not the case everywhere since people lack the motivation and the technologies to do so. The only effective way of dealing with waste is to reduce consumption.