Garbage, trash, rubbish, or refuse is waste material that is discarded by humans, usually due to a perceived lack of utility. The term generally does not encompass bodily waste products, purely liquid or gaseous wastes, or toxic waste products. Garbage is commonly sorted and classified into kinds of material suitable for specific kinds of disposal.[1]
Collected garbage at Attero, Wijster, the NetherlandsLitter dumped in a wetland area in the United States, among water lilies and marsh plants
The word garbage originally meant chicken giblets and other entrails, as can be seen in the 15th century Boke of Kokery, which has a recipe for Garbage.[2]
What constitutes garbage is highly subjective, with some individuals or societies tending to discard things that others find useful or restorable.[3] The words garbage, refuse, rubbish, trash, and waste are generally treated as interchangeable when used to describe "substances or objects which the holder discards or intends or is required to discard".[4][5] Some of these terms have historic distinctions that are no longer present. In the 1880s, material to be disposed of was divided into four general categories: ashes (derived from the burning of coal or wood), garbage, rubbish, and street-sweepings.[6] This scheme of categorization reduced some of these terms to more specific concepts:
Garbage, the technical term for putrescent organic matter such as kitchen or food scraps, was fed to pigs and other livestock or boiled down in a process known as “rendering,” to extract fats, oils, and greases for manufacturing lubricants, or allowed to dry to become commercial fertilizer. Rubbish, a broad category of dry goods including boxes, bottles, tin cans, or virtually anything made from wood, metal, glass, and cloth, could be transformed into new consumer products through a variety of reclamation methods.[6]
The distinction between terms used to describe wet and dry discarded material "was important in the days when cities slopped garbage to pigs, and needed to have the wet material separated from the dry", but has since dissipated.[7]
In urban areas, garbage of all kinds is collected and treated as municipal solid waste; garbage that is discarded in ways that cause it to end up in the environment, rather than in containers or facilities designed to receive garbage, is considered litter. Litter is a form of garbage that has been improperly disposed of, and which therefore enters the environment.[8] Notably, however, only a small fraction of garbage that is generated becomes litter, with the vast majority being disposed of in ways intended to secure it from entering the environment.[9]
History
Humans have been creating garbage throughout history, beginning with bone fragments left over from using animal parts and stone fragments discarded from toolmaking.[10] The degree to which groups of early humans began engaging in agriculture can be estimated by examining the type and quality of animal bones in their garbage.[10] Garbage from prehistoric or pre-civilization humans was often collected into mounds called middens, which might contain things such as "a mix of discarded food, charcoal, shell tools, and broken pottery".[11]
^Susan Strasser, Waste and Want: A Social History of Trash (2014), p. 6-7.
^"Boke of Kokery - Garbage". British Library. Retrieved April 25, 2020.
^Susan Strasser, Waste and Want: A Social History of Trash (2014), p. 3-4.
^J. M. Baptista, The Regulation of Water and Waste Services (2014), p. 1: "Solid waste, also written as municipal or urban waste, commonly known as trash, garbage, refuse or rubbish, is defined as any substances or objects which the holder discards or intends or is required to discard".
^William Viney, Waste: A Philosophy of Things (2014), p. 1: "The conventional way of thinking about the creation of waste, rubbish, trash, garbage, or whichever words we like to employ to denote things without use, is that the concept like the thing is created, produced through the order or disorder we construe, manufacture or identify in the world".
^ abJames Ciment, Social Issues in America: An Encyclopedia (2015), p. 1844-45.
^William L. Rathje, Cullen Murphy, Rubbish!: The Archaeology of Garbage (2001), p. 9.
^Carl A. Zimring, William L. Rathje, eds., Encyclopedia of Consumption and Waste: The Social Science of Garbage (2012), p. 657.
^William L. Rathje, Cullen Murphy, Rubbish!: The Archaeology of Garbage (2001), p. 9.
^ abSimon Davis, "By their garbage shall they be known", New Scientist (November 17, 1983), p. 506-515.
^Sid Perkins (March 22, 2011). "Prehistoric Garbage Piles May Have Created 'Tree Islands'". sciencemag.org. from the original on June 24, 2014.
August 28, 2023
garbage, other, uses, disambiguation, trash, rubbish, refuse, waste, material, that, discarded, humans, usually, perceived, lack, utility, term, generally, does, encompass, bodily, waste, products, purely, liquid, gaseous, wastes, toxic, waste, products, commo. For other uses see Garbage disambiguation Garbage trash rubbish or refuse is waste material that is discarded by humans usually due to a perceived lack of utility The term generally does not encompass bodily waste products purely liquid or gaseous wastes or toxic waste products Garbage is commonly sorted and classified into kinds of material suitable for specific kinds of disposal 1 Collected garbage at Attero Wijster the NetherlandsLitter dumped in a wetland area in the United States among water lilies and marsh plants Contents 1 Terminology 2 Treatment 3 History 4 See also 5 ReferencesTerminologyThe word garbage originally meant chicken giblets and other entrails as can be seen in the 15th century Boke of Kokery which has a recipe for Garbage 2 What constitutes garbage is highly subjective with some individuals or societies tending to discard things that others find useful or restorable 3 The words garbage refuse rubbish trash and waste are generally treated as interchangeable when used to describe substances or objects which the holder discards or intends or is required to discard 4 5 Some of these terms have historic distinctions that are no longer present In the 1880s material to be disposed of was divided into four general categories ashes derived from the burning of coal or wood garbage rubbish and street sweepings 6 This scheme of categorization reduced some of these terms to more specific concepts Garbage the technical term for putrescent organic matter such as kitchen or food scraps was fed to pigs and other livestock or boiled down in a process known as rendering to extract fats oils and greases for manufacturing lubricants or allowed to dry to become commercial fertilizer Rubbish a broad category of dry goods including boxes bottles tin cans or virtually anything made from wood metal glass and cloth could be transformed into new consumer products through a variety of reclamation methods 6 The distinction between terms used to describe wet and dry discarded material was important in the days when cities slopped garbage to pigs and needed to have the wet material separated from the dry but has since dissipated 7 Treatment Garbage in a Clean City garbage can in Volzhskiy Volgograd Oblast RussiaIn urban areas garbage of all kinds is collected and treated as municipal solid waste garbage that is discarded in ways that cause it to end up in the environment rather than in containers or facilities designed to receive garbage is considered litter Litter is a form of garbage that has been improperly disposed of and which therefore enters the environment 8 Notably however only a small fraction of garbage that is generated becomes litter with the vast majority being disposed of in ways intended to secure it from entering the environment 9 HistoryHumans have been creating garbage throughout history beginning with bone fragments left over from using animal parts and stone fragments discarded from toolmaking 10 The degree to which groups of early humans began engaging in agriculture can be estimated by examining the type and quality of animal bones in their garbage 10 Garbage from prehistoric or pre civilization humans was often collected into mounds called middens which might contain things such as a mix of discarded food charcoal shell tools and broken pottery 11 See alsoGarbology study of modern refuse and trash LandfillReferences Susan Strasser Waste and Want A Social History of Trash 2014 p 6 7 Boke of Kokery Garbage British Library Retrieved April 25 2020 Susan Strasser Waste and Want A Social History of Trash 2014 p 3 4 J M Baptista The Regulation of Water and Waste Services 2014 p 1 Solid waste also written as municipal or urban waste commonly known as trash garbage refuse or rubbish is defined as any substances or objects which the holder discards or intends or is required to discard William Viney Waste A Philosophy of Things 2014 p 1 The conventional way of thinking about the creation of waste rubbish trash garbage or whichever words we like to employ to denote things without use is that the concept like the thing is created produced through the order or disorder we construe manufacture or identify in the world a b James Ciment Social Issues in America An Encyclopedia 2015 p 1844 45 William L Rathje Cullen Murphy Rubbish The Archaeology of Garbage 2001 p 9 Carl A Zimring William L Rathje eds Encyclopedia of Consumption and Waste The Social Science of Garbage 2012 p 657 William L Rathje Cullen Murphy Rubbish The Archaeology of Garbage 2001 p 9 a b Simon Davis By their garbage shall they be known New Scientist November 17 1983 p 506 515 Sid Perkins March 22 2011 Prehistoric Garbage Piles May Have Created Tree Islands sciencemag org Archived from the original on June 24 2014 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Garbage amp oldid 1126123640, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
