WHAT IS GARBAGE?
It is not that easy as is considered to be to answer this question which
might initially raise in mind the question “what does this mean”
In everyday life, it is impossible to restrict the solid wastes which
are named as garbage into a concrete definition and limit them with certain
materials. That is, there may be different definition depending on the
person, institution and institutions which generate, discard to get rid
of, collect, utilize and dispose the garbage, as well as those depending
on sical, economic and cultural structures of residential areas created.
According to those who generate and want to get rid of solid wastes, anything
which does not make any sense for them is a garbage. To give an example,
garbage is anything eaten or the fruit, vegetables and other food from
which things to eat and drink are produced, as well as the parts of materials
used in production or consumption which do not have any use, items which
become unusable, as well as those which loose their values.
Garbage may be the skin of orange, a piece of bread, crushed tomato, spoiled
apple, broken chair, corrupt iron, expired battery, glass bottle, glass,
paper, toy, packaging materials, and feces of dogs and cats fed at home.
Part of the organic materials which are included within this general framework
and are named and discarded as “garbage” since they “ do not mean anything”
means a cheap “animal feed”, or animal feces “fertilizer” with a high
nutritive value for those who live in the ghettos of rural areas.
Inorganic materials producer of which wants to take out of the production
area for similar reasons, “scrap” and “old items” which sustain their
lives and constitute the source of livelihood for the Seeker Tradesmen
is accepted as “raw material” or “semi manufactured” material which are
to be regained by the economy for the industrialists of countries like
Turkey, which experience the problem of scarce resources.
From the point of view of persons, institutions and organizations which
are assigned with the task of collection and disposing the garbage, all
of wastes which are let to places denoted as “dump”, are required to be
disposed of without posing any harm on humans and environment are called
the “garbage”
Moving from these different approaches, we can define the “garbage” as
solid material and purifiable mud producer of which desires to discard
and which are required to be regularly disposed in order to protect the
health and peace of the society.
Garbage has plenty of types...
It is possible to classify solid wastes, which we will name as “garbage”
hereinafter, under certain groups depending on the production places,
contents, material structures, chemical and biologic properties as well
as their methods of disposition.
ISTAC, which is in charge of transporting, storing to sensatory to landfills
and, disposing with various methods the solis wastes of Istanbul and producing
compost fertilizer and electric energy from them, classifies and disposes
the garbage of Istanbul under four groups, which are:
* Domestic Solid Wastes,
* Medical Solid Wastes,
* Hazerdous Solid Wastes, and
* Construction debris and rubble
We generate ten thousand tones of garbage daily…
Istanbul’s daily average garbage production is around 10.000 thousand
According to ÝSTAÇ data, when such solid wastes as “old items” and “scraps”
that can be used in the industry collected by the seekers from dump areas
and the construction debris and rubble discarded illegally to empty areas
are added to this amount, it can be seen that Istanbul’s per capita garbage
production is around one kilogram.
Content of the garbage produced in Istanbul varied depending on seasons
and regions similar to its amount. Average values concerning the content
of the garbage produced at 10.000 tones daily as average are as follows:
Type Average Amount Percentage
Organic Material 4.500 Tones 45 %
Paper 1.450 Tones 15,5 %
Ash 1.500 Tones 15 %
Plastic 950 Tones 9,5 %
Textile 560 Tones 5,6 %
Ceramic- Bricks -Inert Material 440 Tones 4,4 %
Glass 380 Tones 3,8 %
Metal 220 Tones 2,2 %
Total 10.000 Tones 100.00 %
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What
is garbage? 
