Q 1.

(A) Which kind of garbage is not converted into compost by the redworms?
(B) Have you seen any other organism besides redworms, in your pit? If yes, try to find out their names. Draw pictures of these.

SOLUTION:

(A) Non-biodegradable wastes like plastics, metals, aluminium are not converted into compost by the redworms.
(B) Spiders, small insects, small bugs, flies and moulds can be seen in the pit along with the redworms.

Q 2.

Discuss :
(A) Is garbage disposal the responsibility only of the government?
(B) Is it possible to reduce the problems relating to disposal of garbage?

SOLUTION:

(A) No, garbage disposal is not the responsibility of the government only. Proper disposal of garbage should be a concern of every citizen. It becomes the responsibility of every citizen to reduce the amount of garbage produced and help in the proper disposal of garbage by following some simple steps such as four R's (reduce, reuse recycle and recover), using separate bins for biodegradable and non-biodegradable waste etc.
(B) Yes, it is possible to reduce the problems relating to disposal of garbage by following some simple steps :
(i) Avoid using plastic bags. Encourage the shopkeepers to use paper bags or always carry a cloth or jute bag while shopping.
(ii) Save paper. Use both sides of paper to write.
(iii) Use separate bins for biodegradable and non-biodegradable wastes.
(iv) Use kitchen waste to make compost for your garden.
(v) When you go out, do not throw paper, wrappings or leftover food here and there. Throw it in dustbin.
(vi) Encourage your family, friends, neighbours, etc., to follow proper disposal practices.

Q 3.

(A) What do you do with the left over food at home?
(B) If you and your friends are given the choice of eating in a plastic plate or a banana leaf platter at a party, which one would you prefer and why?

SOLUTION:

(A) We can put the left over food at home in the pit for vermicomposting. Vermicomposting is a method of preparing compost with the help of redworms. If enough food is left (e.g., after a party), we can give it to poor people.
(B) We would prefer banana leaf platter over plastic plate because of the following reasons :
(i) Banana leaf platter is biodegradable and can be easily converted, into compost whereas plastic plate is non-biodegradable and cannot be easily disposed off.
(ii) Plastic material may contain harmful chemicals which can make the contained food toxic. Thus, eating in a plastic plate may prove harmful to health.

Q 4.

(A) Collect pieces of different kinds of paper. Find out which of these can be recycled.
(B) With the help of a lens look at the pieces of paper you collected for the above question. Do you see any difference in the material of recycled paper and a new sheet of paper ?

SOLUTION:

(A) Almost all kinds of paper collected from newspapers, magazines, envelopes, notebooks, etc., are bound to be recyclable.
(B) It is very difficult to find out the difference in the material of recycled paper and a new sheet of paper. Although it is generally believed that the recycled paper is of low quality but it is not always true.

Q 5.

(A) Collect different kinds of packaging material. What was the purpose for which each one was used? Discuss in groups.
(B) Give an example in which packaging could have been reduced?
(C) Write a story on how packaging increases the amount of garbage.

SOLUTION:

(A) Different kinds of packaging materials with their purposes are :
(i) Plastic bags – used for packaging of toys, gifts, sarees
(ii) Cardboard – used for shoe boxes
(iii) Jute bags – used for school bags, shopping bags
(iv) Wooden box – used as flower basket, fruit basket
(B) (i) Packaging with plastics is not environment friendly, so plastic packaging should be avoided.
(ii) Packaging paper can be reused to reduce the garbage production.
(iii) Buying goods in bulk can also reduce packaging.
(C) Packaging is done to protect material from tampering and to maintain its freshness. Sometimes it is also done for beautification like in gifts' wrapping. A large volume of packaging material goes waste and thrown in dustbins in form of wrappers. Non-recyclable packaging material (e.g., plastic covers) cannot be easily disposed off. This increases the production and packaging cost and also increases the amount of garbage produced.

Q 6.

Do you think it is better to use compost instead of chemical fertilisers? Why?

SOLUTION:

Yes, it is better to use compost instead of chemical fertilisers because :
(i) Compost is easy to prepare whereas manufacturing of chemical fertilisers is a complicated and costly process.
(ii) Compost is environment friendly. It does not harm environment whereas chsemical fertilisers degrade the environment quality.
(iii) It is biodegradable, i.e., it can be degraded easily as compared to chemical fertilisers, which are non-biodegradable.
(iv) Compost are made up of organic wastes while chemical fertilisers are made-up of inorganic substances.