Garbage In Garbage Out
Exercise:
1). (a) Which kind of garbage is not converted into compost by the redworms?
Ans: Garbage substances like polythene bags, plastic items, broken glass particles that are non degradable cannot be converted into compost by the redworms.
(b) Have you seen any other organisms besides redworms, in your pit? If yes, try to find out their names. Draw pictures of these.
Ans: Yes, alongwith redworms bacteria and organisms that depend on dead and decaying living things(saprophytes) can be seen in the pit.
2). Discuss :
(a) Is garbage disposal the responsibility only of the government?
Ans: Along with the government and local authorities it is the duty of every citizen to help in garbage disposal.
(b) Is it possible to reduce the problems relating to the disposal of garbage?
Ans: Yes, it is possible to reduce the problems relating to disposal of garbage by adopting certain means like
i) Not throwing the garbage anywhere like roads, parks, grounds.
ii). By throwing the garbage at proper places.
iii). by separating the garbage that can be reused and not reused.
3). (a) What do you do with the leftover food at home?
Ans: Left over food and other kitchen waste from the home are dumped into a composite pit to convert them into manure.
(b) If you and your friends are given the choice of eating in a plastic plate or a banana leaf platter at a party, which one would you prefer and why?
Ans: I will prefer banana leaf over a plastic plate as banana leaf can be easily converted into manure.
4). (a) Collect pieces of different kinds of paper. Find out which of these can be recycled.
Ans: Papers collected from newspaper, notebools, magazines etc can be recycled whereas plastic coated paper cannot be easily recycled.
(b) With the help of a lens look at the pieces of paper you collected for the above question. Do you see any difference in the material of recycled paper and a new sheet of paper?
Ans: The surface of the recycled paper is rough whereas surface of new paper is smooth.
5). (a) Collect different kinds of packaging material. What was the purpose for which each one was used? Discuss in groups.
Ans: Packaging material like thermocole, foam sheets, paper cuttings, cardboard are used to protect the articles.
(b) Give an example in which packaging could have been reduced?
Ans: Packaging of clothes, toys, shoes can be reduced.
6). Do you think it is better to use compost instead of chemical fertilisers? Why?
Ans: Compost is eco-friendly and harmless. It maintains the fertility of the soil. It helps in recycling. The production of compost is easy and cheap.
   Chemical fertilizers destroy the natural composition of the soil and have ill-effects on the human health. The production of chemical fertilizers are expensive.
Additional Questions:
True or false
i). Garbage has both the useful and non-useful components.
Ans: True
ii). A redworm can eat food equal to its weight in one day.
Ans: True
iii) Some kind of plastics can be recycled.
Ans: True
iv). We should burn plastic bags.
Ans: False
v). Paper can be recycled.
Ans: True
Fill in the blanks
i). Redworms have a structure called a gizzard.
ii). Burning of leaves produces harmful gases
iii). We should not put garbage in plastic bags.
Answer the following.
1). What is vermicomposting?
Ans: The method of preparing compost with the help of redworms is called vermicomposting.
2). What is a landfill?
Ans: Landfill is an area where the garbage collected from a city or town is dumped.
3). Define composting.
Ans: The rotting and conversion of some material into manure is called composting.
4). What are the disadvantages of using plastic?
Ans: The disadvantages of using plastic are as follows.
i). All kinds of plastics give out harmful gases, upon heating or burning. These gases may cause many health problems.
ii). People often fill garbage in plastic bags and threw it away. When stray animals look for food in these bags, they end up swallowing these. Sometimes, they die due to this.
iii). the plastic bags thrown away carelessly on roads and other places get into drains and the sewer systems as a result drains get choked and water spills on the roads.
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