Often, we talk about waste and waste. But are we aware of how pollutants they are? There are many types of waste. Some are very dangerous, such as chemicals, and others can also take thousands of years to decompose, such as plastic.
We should think about it every time we throw something in the trash. Even when we throw it into the container for recycling, since the least polluting waste is not produced, even more so if it is thrown directly into nature. Do you want to meet how long to degrade waste and the waste? Then you have entered the indicated place, because in this ecology article we clarify it with a few examples.
How long it takes to degrade waste and waste
What are the materials that take less to degrade? How long does it take to degrade a cigarette button? And a gum? SoHow long it takes to break the waste and waste? Let’s look at some examples:
- 1 year: It is what it takes to degrade The paperbasically composed of cellulose. But it has other more difficult components to “digest” by nature. If it is on the ground and it rains a lot, it degrades before. Although it will always be better to recycle it to avoid deforestation.
- 5 years: This is what it takes to disappear A gum. In addition, by oxygen action, it becomes hard. With time, several years, it is disappear and disappear.
- 10 years: Aluminum cans (beer, soft drinks, juices, etc.). A can It has steel coated with varnish and tin. A lot of rain and moisture are needed so that the oxide covers it completely and then disappears. In addition, aluminum is a material that can be recovered almost completely. The Disposable vessels of polypropylene (which contaminate less than those of polystyrene) also take a decade to degrade. The plastic is reduced to synthetic, invisible, but present.
- 30 years: Tetrabrik containers are composed of 75% per cellulose, 20% due to pure low density polyethylene and 5% aluminum. What takes more to degrade is Aluminum. Cellulose, outdoors, disappears in just over a year. Lacas and foams also take several decades. Its metal structure makes them resist in natural degradation.
- 100 years: The lighters of steel And plastic, it can take a century to disappear. The plastic especially, because in fact it normally takes more than a century as we will see below. It is very polluting and is not easily degraded. In addition, some models contain mercury and other zinc, chrome, arsenic, lead or cadmium.
Next, we comment on the waste that takes longer to detachwhich in fact take between hundreds and thousands of years.
Plastic and batteries, the waste that takes the closest to degrade
Indeed, they are plastic, batteries and vidiro The waste that takes longer to decompose and some of them are the ones that most damage to the planet. Specifically, the time that costs them to detach is as follows:
- 150 and 300 years: Plastic bags take about 150 years to degrade. That is why it is important not to use Plastic bags And, on the other hand, reuse fabric or cardboard bags over and over again or, in any case, use bioplastic bags that are naturally degraded. The shoes can be composed of leather, cloth, rubber and synthetic foams. They have, therefore, several stages of degradation. The first thing that disappears are the parts of fabric or leather. Synthetic materials do not disappear, they are only reduced. The dolls are also plastic objects and take time to disappear. The sun’s rays manage to divide these objects into small molecules, a process that can last hundreds of years. The plastic bottles, we know well, are of the most polluting objects. Proof of this are the terrible islands that are being formed in the oceans. Most are manufactured with polyethylene terephthalate (PET), a material that microorganisms cannot attack.
- 500 to 1,000 years: The batteries, if not treated properly, can be very polluting. With an added danger. If the protective layer that covers them degrades, the metals it contains and can begin a pollution process. Mercury is the most harmful metal contained in batteries. If you come into contact with water, methyl-mercury occurs, a compound that is concentrated in the food chain producing serious nervous system disorders in living beings. According to specialized studies, a pile of mercury can contaminate 600,000 liters of water, one of Zinc-Aire, 12,000 liters, one of silver oxide, 14,000 liters, and a common battery, 3,000 liters.
- 4,000 years: Glass bottles can be witnesses of exception of the passage of all that time. They are, in any of their formats, very resistant objects. With a blow, Glass objects They break, yes, but those little pieces remain in nature almost for all eternity. At least, for the eternity of our life, that of our grandchildren, biznietos … In addition, it is 100%recyclable.
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