Earth Science – First Quarter
Environment
Module 7 – Waste (like me)
Lesson 1 – Types of Waste
Waste is anything that we get rid of, throw away or do
not use. While some items inarguably cannot be used again,
many are tossed before their time. Today, waste is a huge
problem, affecting every part of our environment, from our
waterways to our atmosphere, our grassy fields to our forests, our
plants to people. Waste is broken down into four parts as written
below:
Four Different Types of Waste Generated by Humans
1. Liquid Waste
Liquid waste is commonly found both in households as
well as in industries. This waste includes dirty water, organic
liquids, wash water, waste detergents and even rainwater.
Waste water may also contain organic substances and
nutrients that are of value to agriculture, or may be hazardous die
to the chemicals or pathogens it contains like liquid waste blood
from hospitals.
2. Solid Waste
Solid waste can include a variety of items found in your
household along with commercial and industrial locations.
o Plastic waste – This consists of bags, containers, jars,
bottles and many other products that can be found in
your household. Plastic is not biodegradable, but many
types of plastic can be recycled.
o Paper/card waste – This includes packaging materials,
newspapers, cardboards and other products.
o Tins and metals – appliances, product packaging, paint
cans.
o Ceramics and glass – figurines, jalousie, wine or liquor
bottles. Glass can be recycled indefinitely.
3. Organic Waste
Organic waste is another common household. All food
waste such as raw peelings and stems, garden waste such as
grass clippings, branches and leaves; manure and rotten meat
are classified as organic waste. Over time, organic waste is
turned into manure by microorganisms. However, this does not
mean that you can dispose them anywhere.
Organic waste in landfills causes the release of
greenhouse gases like methane, so it must never be simply
discarded with general waste.
4. Hazardous Waste
These wastes CANNOT be disposed of in regular
garbage. Any product which is labeled WARNING, CAUTION,
POISONOUS, TOXIC, FLAMMABLE, CORROSIVE, REACTIVE
or EXPLOSIVE should be considered hazardous. For example,
buried wastes can filter down through the soil and contaminate
groundwater. Plumbing systems can be damaged when corrosive
chemicals are put down the drain. Burning hazardous wastes
simply distributes them over a larger area and releases them into
the air. Pouring hazardous liquids on the ground can poison soil,
plants and water.
Examples of theses wastes are batteries, fluorescent
bulbs, electronics and small appliances, oil, gasoline, and auto
fluids.
Lesson 2 – Impacts of Waste to Human Health and the
Health impacts of Improper Waste Disposal
Modernization and progress have had its share of
disadvantages and one of the main aspects of concern is the
pollution it is causing to the earth – be it land, air, and water. With
increase in the global population and the rising demand for food
and other essentials, there has been a rise in the amount of
waste being generated daily by each household. This waste is
ultimately thrown into municipal waste collection centers from
where it is collected by the area municipalities to be further
thrown into the landfills and dumps. However, either due to less
resources or inefficient practices, not all of this waste gets
collected and transported to the final dumpsites. If at this stage
the management and disposal is improperly done, it can cause
serious impacts on health and problems to the surrounding
environment.
Waste that is not properly managed, especially
excretions and other liquid and solid waste from households and
the community, are a serious health hazard and lead to the
spread of infectious diseases. Unattended waste lying around
attracts flies, rats, and other creatures that in turn spread
disease. Normally it is the wet waste that decomposes and
releases a bad odor. This leads to unhygienic conditions and
thereby to a rise in the health problems.
Waste dumped near a water source also causes
contamination of the water body or the ground water source.
Direct dumping of untreated waste in rivers, seas, and lakes
results in the accumulation of toxic substances in the food chain
through the plants and animals that feed on it.
Disposal of hospital and other medical waste also
requires special attention since this can create major health
hazards. This waste generated from the hospitals, health care
centers, medical laboratories, and research centers such as
discarded syringe needles, bandages, swabs, plasters, and other
types of infectious waste are often disposed with the regular non-
infectious waste.
Environmental impacts of Improper Waste Disposal
 Methane – a big factor of Climate Change
A major environmental concern is gas release by
decomposing garbage. Methane is a by-product of the anaerobic
respiration of bacteria, and these bacteria thrive on landfills with
high amounts of moisture. A second problem with these gases is
their contribution to the enhanced greenhouse gas effect and
climate change. Methane comes from two main sources:
biological and geological. Biological methane can be released
from decay of organic waste, whereas geological sources include
natural seeps from fossil fuels and leaks from natural gas and
coal mining operations.
 Loss of Biodiversity
Demands for new landfill sites results in the clearing of large
amounts of vegetation and alterations to the natural environment.
This can displace hundreds and thousands of species which live
in the surrounding habitat. Over time, excessive land clearing can
result in extinction of many species and a significant loss of
biodiversity.
 Pollution
If a landfill site is not properly managed, a toxic pollutant
known as leachate can escape into the surrounding
groundwater, causing environmental problems for plants and
animal living nearby. Leachate is a liquid pollutant caused by
waste breaking down that contains high levels of heavy metals,
chemical compounds, pesticides, and solvents which filter down
into the bottom of a landfill site. The growing level of waste
generation can increase the risk of leachate production.

How can we eliminate waste and help the environment?
We can help by learning about and practicing the three
Rs of waste management: Reduce, reuse, and recycle.
Practicing all three of these activities every day is not only
important for a healthy environment, but it can also be fun too.
Everyone can become a key player in making our world a safe
and healthy place.
 REDUCE
Reducing waste is a matter of planning ahead. In the case of
food, for example, there are many ways to reduce waste.
o Only buy what you need
o Bring your water bottle to school/anywhere you go rather
than buying water that comes in plastic bottles.
o Bring your eco bag, lunch box, and food containers
when buying food from carenderias or restaurants.
o Start a compost pile in the backyard. That way, instead
of heading to landfill where it won’t decompose for
hundreds of years, food gets a second life as a great
fertilizer. You can then use your garden to grow food,
and avoid having to buy fruits and vegetables that come
in packaging.
 REUSE
o Shop secondhand. It helps others make money off their
unwanted items. At the same time, it keeps old items out
of the landfill and saves the resources and energy
needed to make new ones.
o Be creative. For example: turning unused mason jars
into decorative ornaments at home, sew some old jeans
into an apron, etc.
o Turn used paper into art supplies or scrap paper for
making shopping lists.
 RECYCLE
Don’t just toss everything in the trash. Lots of things (like
cans, bottles, paper, and cardboard) can be remade into either
the same kind of thing or new products. Making new items from
recycled ones also takes less energy and fewer resources than
making products from brand new materials.
Here is a list of things you may be able to recycle
o Aluminum cans
o Cardboard
o Electronic equipment
o Glass (particularly bottles and jars)
o Magazines/Newspaper
o Metal
o o Paper
o Plastic Bags & Bottles
o Steel Cans
SUMMARY
 Waste is anything that we get rid of, throw away or do
not use. There are four types of waste, namely: solid,
liquid, hazardous, and organic
 The waste humans generate has been detrimental to the
environment for quite some time now. Humans are
generating too much trash and cannot deal with it in a
sustainable way. Waste that is not biodegradable and
cannot be properly be recycled is filling our oceans and
landfills, thus killing wildlife animals. If we are not
careful, it will soon be the reason of our demise.
 We may imagine our impacts as ‘human-in-nature’—
polluting oceans, stripping mountains—but don’t forget,
nature is also present within daily human life. Even in
our urban spaces, nature is embedded all around us,
from the cotton in our clothes to the wood in our
furniture.
 Though we people have caused grave imbalances in
nature that now threaten us, we believe that people also
have the capacity to make meaningful change for or only
home and all those who share it. Let’s not forget that we
are all deeply interconnected with nature, and that we,
too, can be heroes for the planet in our own ways!
What is an EcoBrick?
An Ecobrick is a plastic bottle stuffed
tightly with clean and dry non-recyclable
materials. EcoBrick is a suitable building block for
any construction such as garden spaces, walls,
and full-scale buildings. These bottles have been
used around the world for over 20 years as an
insulative building brick. EcoBricks are also used
to make colorful furniture.
EcoBrick is a sustainable way to reuse
non-biodegradable plastic waste to keep plastic
out of the ecosystem and prevents the
contamination of the environment. Making
EcoBricks is not encouraging the use of plastic
but rather temporarily storing them as we
humans, figure out a way to cut plastic out of our
lives altogether.
Doing EcoBricks is simply forming a
habit of rather than throwing our garbage in the
trash can, just put it in a disposable bottle. This is
an easy way to make a small impact.