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Technology

Grade 8

Recycling

Module 17

Our land – a garbage dump

Our land - A garbage dump?

In the typical South African household people haul bags of waste out to the rubbish bin which is collected by municipal crews in waste removal trucks. Is this the end of it?

As the population of South Africa increases by the day, so too do the mountains of waste. This results in too much waste for the landfills that municipalities operate. Luckily there are people who are concerned about where all this waste goes and where it will go in future.

Recycling is not the only solution to the waste problem but it is something everybody can do to help make the world a better place. It involves the re-use of household and industrial materials, such as plastic and paper products. It not only helps to cut waste, but also reduces our use of resources and lessens the pollution that results from processing those sources. Many people in South Africa collect recyclable material like paper, glass, plastic and metal to earn money. Others simply throw their recyclable waste in special containers to be recycled. It does not matter how you help the process of recycling materials, as long as you do it. It is good for the environment.

Activity 1

To demonstrate knowledge and understanding of what recycling is and the route rubbish should go

LO 1.1

1.1 Define the term “recycling”.

1.2 Draw a flow-chart of the route plastic, glass, paper and metal waste normally follows from the shop to the landfill.

1.3 Draw a flow-chart to indicate the route that waste containers should follow to help save our environment.

1.4 Draw the recycling emblem on a folio paper.

1.5 Write a paragraph entitled: Reasons for recycling .

Activity 2

To perform tests to see what materials and what quantities of waste are generated at home in order to form an opinion about the impact of products of technology on the quality of people’s lives and the environment in which they live

LO 3.2
  • Take three empty cardboard boxes and label them PAPER, METAL (CANS) and PLASTIC. Collect and weigh recyclable waste for one week in your home and place it in these boxes. Use the table below and weigh the amount of waste each day. Place the waste in three different bags after you have weighed it and place them in mass waste containers in your town.

Table 1

Household Recycle Data

Recyclable waste Sun Mon Tue Wed Thurs Fri Sat Total
Metal (kg)
Paper (kg)
Plastic (kg)

Combine the data of all members of the class and calculate the total kilograms of waste collected by the class. In table 2 you can now calculate the total value of the waste your class has collected.

Table 2

Household Recycle Data

Recyclablewaste Total Quantity (kg) Price per KG Total
Metal (aluminium) R8,20
Paper 55c
Plastic 85c

2.1 Calculate how much a person will earn who collects 750 kg of metal a week.

2.2 Design a graph to illustrate the data from table 2.

2.3 Which material creates the most waste?

2.4 Which material is the most profitable to collect and sell?

Activity 3

To demonstrate an understanding of how materials (plastics) can be recycled

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Source:  OpenStax, Technology grade 8. OpenStax CNX. Sep 13, 2009 Download for free at http://cnx.org/content/col11052/1.1
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