Sustainability and Energy Use Research Paper

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WEEK 5 ASSIGNMENTWeek 5 AssignmentPart 1Question 1The average weekly garbage content of a vegan happens to be lower compared to the percentages of different materials generated in the United States. For instance, the percentage of the materials that the vegan could have had in his or her garbage have been approximated to be between 4%-12%. According to the Environmental Protection Agency - EPA (2022), the garbage materials (which are inclusive of, but they are not limited to wood, metal, and yard trimming) in 2018 had a percentage of 6.19%, 8.76%, and 12.11% respectively. Therefore, the average weekly garbage content of the vegan for the said year would have been approximately between 0.08% and 0.23%. In terms of mass, EPA (2022) found that the mass of solid waste generated from wood was 18,090,000 tons, the mass of glass was 12, 600,000 tons, while the mass of yard trimmings generated for the year 2018 were 35,400,000 tons. Per week, this would be equivalent to 347,884.62 tons, 235576.92 tons, and 680,769.23 tons respectively.Question 2It is important to note that solid waste materials undergo a lot of different processes before they are disposed. These processes are inclusive of, but they are not limited to; collection, processing, recycling, biological treatment, incineration, and/or landfill disposal depending on their garbage content. In terms of collection, the three main materials contained in the vegan’s garbage were composted differently. For instance, EPA (2022) data shows that there was no wood that was composted in 2018. With regard to yard trimmings, the said agency found that yard trimmings were composted at a rate of approximately 63% or 22,300,000 tons. On the other hand, metals such as ferrous metals were not composted at any rate in the said year. With regard to recycling, data from EPA (2022) shows that wood was recycled at a rate of 17.1% or 3.1 million tons, yard trimmings were not recycled at any rate, and ferrous metals were also not recycled. During incineration or combustion with energy recovery, data shows that wood was combusted at a rate of 8.3% or 2.8 million tons, yard trimmings were combusted at a rate of 7.4% or 2.6 million tons , while ferrous metals were combusted at the lowest rate of 6.7% or 2.3 million tons (EPA, 2022). The said materials were also landfilled at different rates in 2018. For instance, the total amount of wood that was received at landfills was 12.2 million tons at a rate of 8.3%.

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Yard trimmings were landfilled at a rate of 7.2% where approximately 10.5 million tons were taken to landfills. Like yard trimmings, ferrous metals such as steel was also landfilled at a rate of 7.2% or approximately 10.5 million tons in 2018.In NY State, solid wastes are handled differently (Department of Environmental Conservation, n. d). For instance, any facility that thermally heats or combusts unadulterated or uncontaminated wood should have a Part 360 registration. In addition, the said facility should not produce more than 1400 tons of unadulterated or contaminated wood in a day. Further, New York State requires that the amount of unadulterated or…

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…products are produced than are needed by consumers. As a matter of fact, various strategies have in the past been deployed in an attempt to trigger increased consumption. Advertisements are made via the use of various mass media devices and formats with the sole intention being to hook new consumers. Increased consumption leads to shortages in oil and as a consequence, coal products are burned so as to satisfy the demands of globalization.Question 3If we were to work towards sustainability, our present consumption patterns and energy use would change. For instance, if energy-efficient bulbs were to be used, the level of energy consumption that is used in residential and commercial facilities would decrease. In addition, sustainable production and consumption through sustainable harvesting and transport of food would also reduce the amount of energy used (Sustainable Development Goals, 2020).Part IIIWith regard to concepts related to environment and ecological principles, the concept that I found difficult to understand happens to be sustainability. In essence, I did not understand how we can be able to meet our needs without overproduction of resources. This is more so the case given that natural resources happen to be insufficient - compared to the rate at which the population as well as the rate of consumption is growing. According to Tucker (2017), sustainability helps to ensure that earth’s resources are protected and managed for the benefit of future generations. However, sustainability faces a lot of hurdles and challenges in as far as implementation is concerned. Further research would be required on how to overcome the said….....

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