- DEFINE:
–biological nutrients
Nutrients are that beneficial to the earth’s surface and atmosphere where living organisms can be found i.e. the Surface of the earth, atmosphere, and hydrosphere.
–technical nutrients
Technical nutrients are found in the land where human technological activities take place that further extends into and interferes with the biosphere. This could also be known as a technological modified environment, an environment by man for his own benefit where substances are taken from the earth and are further altered just so they can be turned into vast quantities. However, these resources cannot be easily returned back to the soil. Eg- Metal is a technical nutrient.
–monstrous hybrids.
These are products made from both; technical and biological nutrients that cannot be easily separated, which makes the product harder to recycle or reuse. The only solution of getting rid of these monstrous hybrids is to throw them out into landfill.
- What are some examples of unmarketable materials?
Materials that do not fit into either of the categories; technical or organic nutrients can be hazardous as they need to be detoxified before thrown into the landfill. They require creative measures so they don’t harm the environment around us. Some examples of these unmarketable materials include Nuclear waste, PVC, PET (Polyethylene terephthalate) etc.
- What is the main difference between Cradle-to-Grave and Cradle-to-Cradle life cycles?
In Cradle to cradle, the resources and nutrients could be naturally restored. For example, nomads earlier strayed from place to place in search of the right recourses but mainly for food. The materials they used in their day to day life was clothes made from animal skins, baskets made of roots and twigs etc. As these materials were assembled from local and natural sources they were easy to decompose.
However, cradle to grave cycle consisted of a larger number of population which meant more productions as there is more demand for materials, that further leads to more wastage. This means nutrients are being taken from the soil without having them replaced at an equal rate. People had to find ways to get rid of any kind of waste produced by one, therefore creating landfills was the fastest and quickest option.
