Chapter 12 Waste NotesGuiding Questions

p. 303-309
(1) What is solid waste? How much of it do we
produce in the U.S. each year?
Any discarded material that is not a liquid or
gas. More than 10 billion tons of it produced each
year.
(2) Why has the amount of waste produced doubled
in the U.S. since the 1960s?
Products are made to be used once and then
thrown away.
(3) Compare and contrast biodegradable versus non-
biodegradable materials. Provide an example of each
as well.

(4) Where does most of our solid waste come from
(about 70%)?
The United States
(5) What is municipal solid waste? What makes up the
largest portion of this waste (Figure 12-8)?
The trash produced by households and
businesses. Paper is the most common form.
(6) What percentage of our trash is recycled?
25% of our trash is recycled.
(7) Where does our trash that is not recycled go (you
can use Figure 12-9)?
57% goes to landfills and 16% gets incinerated.
(8) Describe three problems with storing waste in
landfills.
It can seep into the water and contaminate it.
Methane gas is produced. And Air pollution can
happen.
(9) When is NC estimated to run out of landfill space
(use Figure 12-12)?
5 to 10 years
(10) Describe two problems with incinerating waste.
It can release deadly toxins in the air.