What is Abatement? July 7, 2016 Abatement is reducing or eliminating the amount of refuse arriving in landfills through practices such as recycling or source reduction. This action is also used in the removal of hazardous materials such as asbestos or lead to prevent any short or long term issues that may affect humans or animals. The main idea of abatement is finding alternative ways to remove refuse from the landfill or causing serious harm to all organisms. Recycling and source reduction are great applications…

What is Accretion? July 11, 2016 Accretion is the accumulation of sand or land mass over time along coastal regions. This occurs through a combination of ocean currents and the movement of oceanic and continental plates, or through human activity. Naturally, sand builds up in areas from the movement of water currents and tectonic plates, forming mounds. Accretion has benefited humans in extending land out from shorelines and being able to make more land for human activity and living. This has also posed a problem;…

What is an Aerated Static Pile or ASP Composting? July 7, 2016 Aerated Static Pile – or ASP Composting – is a form of organic composting used by farms in dealing with large volumes of livestock manure and animal feedstock. It has also proven useful among municipalities and communities in addressing compostable municipal solid waste items like food waste or yard debris. In this system, pipes are placed underneath with a blower attached to push and pull air through the mound of organics. These pipes…

What is Agricultural Runoff? July 6, 2016 Defintion Agricultural Runoff is water from farm fields due to irrigation, rain, or melted snow that flows over the earth that can absorb into the ground, enter bodies of waters or evaporate. This runoff can contain pesticides, sediment (soil particles), nutrients (phosphorus, nitrogen and potassium from fertilizers) and metals, which can contaminate sources of water. Want to Know More? Agricultural runoff is typically a nonpoint source pollution, which means it is hard to exactly locate where the pollution…

What is Agricultural Waste? July 11, 2016 Agricultural waste is refuse produced by farms in the production of agriculture. This is made up of poultry and livestock manure; residuals from output and marketing of poultry, cattle, and fur-bearing animals; and the remains from the production and harvest of grain, vegetable, and fruit. This refuse can have severe effects on the environment by how it is created, stored, or reused. Some of this refuse is reused as fertilizer and can be washed out of fields by…