Waste Segregation

The sorting of waste into separate bins is called waste segregation. You can segregate waste by clubbing waste into categories and bins. Here are some basic categories to start you on your way.

  • Paper
  • Cardboard (including packaging for return to suppliers)
  • Glass (clear, tinted – no light bulbs or window panes, which belong with residual waste)
  • Plastics
  • Textiles
  • Wood, leather, rubber
  • Scrap metal
  • Compost (goes into the composting bin)
  • Special/hazardous waste
  • Residual waste (light bulbs, window panes)
  • E-waste (computer bits and electronic devices to be thrown away)

You can call a recycler <–(Google Link) or locally recycle it.

Waste sorting/segregation is a great way to reduce your waste. If you don’t sort your waste, all of it will go to a landfill, where it’ll stink and rot and make the place smell horrible! So make sure you get multiple bins for these categories and throw waste in respectively.

It’s great to waste segregate!

 

PS. Information was taken from en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waste_sorting. Link use is not advised for people below 10 years.

Can a handful of dirt save us from Climate Change?

How old are you? (this will help you read and understand it better)

For people below 10 years old

The first thing you should understand is that there is way too much carbon in the air. The extra carbon starts trapping heat from the sun and heats up the earth. This is called Global Warming (or Climate Change). Now, normally, all of this carbon would remain underground, as plants take in carbon dioxide to make food, and pump it into the soil so that bacteria has something to eat. But nowadays, all of that carbon has escaped into the air and made the air polluted!

So how do we solve this problem?

When we plant trees, we make sure that the carbon stays underground and makes all the bacteria healthy. So get out some shovels and seeds, and start planting!

For people above 10 years old

The soil originally had a lot of carbon in it, which was great for micro-organisms that thrive with carbon. Approximately 1,500 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide has been released into the atmosphere, where it causes major problems for us – like global warming. Soil is filled with live forms. In fact, a handful of soil contains more organisms than all the living humans in the world!

They’re mostly filled with micro-organisms like protozoa, fungi et cetera. They enrich the soil and make it healthy. In turn, the carbon keeps them healthy too. It’s a wonderful cycle. Since plants use carbon dioxide in photosynthesis, they pump it into the ground. 

We rely on healthy soil for 95% of what we eat. When soil is damaged it releases the carbon into the atmosphere. The soil in most places around the world have already lost about 50% of their original carbon.

Have you heard of the Paris Agreement? It was an agreement to reduce greenhouse gases. They said that if we increase soil carbon by o.4%, we could make the world a much healthier place.

So how do we solve this problem?

  1. Plant trees ( A LOT OF TREES)
  2. Do NOT use fertilizers to do away with insects.
  3. Do use composts and natural Khaad (Indian Term).
  4. Try growing a diverse range of plants instead of just one kind.
  5. Spread word about these problems concerning soil.

Look up:

Plastic Around Us

Take a second to look around you, especially if you’re in your own house. Now, scan through and see the number of plastic items around you. From bottles and pencil stands to computers and furniture, you may have as many as twenty plastic things in the room.

Now, let’s club them into categories. This will help us see what we can reduce, reuse and recycle.

  • E-waste – computers, laptops and tablets made of plastic? If it’s old, give it to an e-waste recycler near you, and make sure it is disposed of safely, or it could cause trouble.
  • One-time-use – cutlery, thermocol plates, plastic water bottles fall in this category. They must be crushed after use (as it says on the bottle) as the plastic is bad quality and disintegrates (breaks down slowly). You can’t see it, but if you reuse that old bottle, you aren’t doing any good to neither yourself nor to the planer. Send it to a plastic recycler immediately.
  • Good Quality Plastic – Plastics like tupperware are good quality, and are not likely to disintegrate or ruin the contents. But if it’s broken beyond repair, make sure it goes straight into a recycling bin.
  • Biodegradable Plastic – This, by far, is my favourite kind. Biodegradable means that you can stick it in a hole in the ground, cover it up with mud, and some time later, it’ll disappear and become part of the soil! For this kind, try keeping it in your garden soil. But don’t leave it lying there! Cover it up with enough soil for it to blend with the soil. Learn about biodegradable things.
  • So much more! – there are loads of categories for plastic. So here’s a research project to help you learn more about them –

Research Project – on the many categories of plastic. Learn of at least five.

9 Ways to Deal With the Problem

  1. Avoid one-time-use items.
  2. Buy stuff second-hand (It’s not a sign of cheapness as many think, it means you care for Earth).
  3. Get metal or glass bottles for everyday use – (unlike plastic – glass can be recycled as many times as you want – and its quality will remain the same! How cool is that?)
  4. Instead of one-time-use items, use biodegradable ones. (Many airlines serve this sort of cutlery. If you own your own catering business – switch to biodegradable!)
  5. Don’t use plastic bottles for storage multiple times, though you can reuse it for other crafty purposes.
  6. Click on the recycling links in this article to give away your old things to recyclers near you.
  7. Switch to a bamboo toothbrush. There are many alternatives to plastic things, so choose them instead.
  8. Segregate your waste – divide it into ‘kitchen waste’, ‘paper waste’ and ‘plastic waste’ and recycle each separately.
  9. Educate yourself and others around you about the problem.

Biodegradable & Non-Biodegradable

Biodegradable means that you can stick it in a hole in the ground, cover it up with mud, and some time later, it’ll disappear and become part of the soil! But how?

The bacteria in the soil loves feeding on all those things you put in the ground. They’re okay with the taste! Soon enough, your item will have disappeared. Most of the time, this process takes a long time to work, but don’t worry, it’ll happen gradually, but it’ll happen.

This feeding by bacteria is called decomposition (dee-com-po-zi-shin) and is very helpful in getting rid of waste. Unfortunately, not everything is biodegradable, and that’s why we need to manage our waste.

Some Biodegradable Things

  • Paper
  • Kitchen waste (rotten fruit, banana peels, old food)
  • Clothes (if made from cotton)

The thing you see most is – if it comes from nature, it can go back.

That’s why nature’s cycle never had the problem we suffer – waste overflow.

This is where non-biodegradable things come in. The stuff that isn’t directly from nature – like plastic – doesn’t biodegrade AT ALL.

We don’t know how to get rid of it, and that’s why everyone is trying their best to reduce the plastic in their surroundings.

Some Non-biodegradable Things

  • Plastic products
  • Metal scraps and used tins
  • Computer hardware (e-waste)
  • Styrofoam
  • Thermocol

Scientists and environmentalists all over the world are trying to find the solution to this problem. From plastic-eating-worms to making roads out of plastic waste, they all are putting in major efforts to reduce waste.

Did you really need a brand new copy of a book – instead of buying one second-hand? Do you really require that many pens and pencil cases? Do you really think taking a plastic bag won’t have an impact on earth? Well, it will.

Remember that saving earth starts and ends with you.

What is Global Warming & why should you care?

How old are you? (this will help you read and understand it better)

For people below 10 years old

Everytime we use electricity (turning the lights on, using a computer for a long time etc.), we give out nasty little things called CO2 (carbon dioxide). Carbon dioxide (car-bun-d-I-ox-side) goes up into the air and causes a lot of trouble. It traps so much heat that the earth starts getting warmer. The winters won’t be so cold, and the summers will be very hot. It can dry up water and make you feel sweaty and icky, and totally annoys you. Nobody likes that! After some time, it may make you fall sick because the heat will get too much. So how do you stop it? Click here to find out!

For people above 10 years old

Global warming is a huge problem in day to day life. But what is it? Everytime we use electricity or burn fossil fuels, we emit carbon (CO2) emissions. These emissions enter our atmosphere and traps heat. At some point, it was good for us. The carbon layer pretty much protected us from another ice age. But now, there is too much carbon in the air, because of humans. The extra carbon fumes actually trapped so much heat that the climate has changed. Hence, the term Climate Change (aka global warming). The winters won’t be so cold, and the summers will be very hot. The levels can get dangerously high and is unhealthy living conditions for us. So how do you stop it? Click here to find out!

What We Can Do

  • Turn off the lights when not in use.
  • Switch to Solar Power (sun powered electricity)
  • Don’t waste water or food.
  • Eat locally produced food.
  • Take a bicycle to local places instead of cars and motorbikes.
  • If you use a car, switch to CNG instead of petrol.
  • Plant as many trees as you can.
  • Get an air purifier if the smog (smoke+fog) in your area is high.
  • Reduce your screen-time. The computer also emits CO2!
  • Recycle paper.

For more ways to help out, do an eco-task everyday! Here is a link to our project site – https://goo.gl/4H6Mbn – select ‘Eco Tasks’ from the menu header for your task and to find out more!