Environmental Studies · General Awareness

Waste Management and Pollution

2,230 Questions

Waste management and pollution control address waste-to-energy technologies, hazardous disposal, and organic recycling methods. The questions cover landfilling, bioremediation, and marine debris indicators. This topic holds significant weight in UPSC, State PSC, and SSC general studies and environmental exams.

Waste-to-energy technologiesHazardous waste disposalBiogas storage methodsOrganic waste compostingPlastic pollution

Waste Management and Pollution Questions

Multiple choice evs garbage in, garbage out preparation of compost sewage disposal solid waste management

Composting is carried out from

  1. Sewage sludge

  2. Rubbish

  3. Garbage and sewage sludge

  4. Industrial wastes
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation
Compost is the nutrient rich organic matter that is formed by the decomposition of plant and animal material. The process of making compost is called composting. The microbes break down the organic matter into humus that contains nutrients beneficial to plants. Compost is used to increase the fertility of the soil and aid the growth of plants. Compost can be made from various raw materials that are biodegradable. This include vegetable peels, kitchen waste, garbage and even sewage sludge too as it contains the bacteria that carry out the decomposition of organic matter.
So, the correct answer is 'Garbage and sewage sludge'.
Multiple choice solid waste and its management conservation of environment

Action required to control soil pollution and to reduce soil pollution is called as

  1. Solid waste management

  2. Solid disposal

  3. Both A and B

  4. None of the above
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Solid waste management is all those activities and action required to manage waste from its inception to its final disposal. This includes amongst other things, collection, transport, treatment and disposal of waste together with monitoring and regulation. 

Multiple choice solid waste and its management conservation of environment

Which of the following is not a method of source reduction?

  1. Making packages that weigh less

  2. Recycling

  3. Municipal composting

  4. Incineration
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Source reduction refers to activities that reduce the amount of waste generated at the source. Recycling, composting, and lightweight packaging are forms of source reduction or waste diversion, but incineration is a waste disposal method.

Multiple choice solid waste and its management conservation of environment

Which of the following solid waste can be easily decomposed?

  1. Nuclear waste

  2. Biodegradable

  3. Non-biodegradable

  4. All of the above
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Biodegradable waste consists of organic materials that can be broken down by microorganisms into simpler substances.

Multiple choice solid waste and its management conservation of environment

Rag pickers remove

  1. plastic, polythene, paper and metal wastes

  2. rags, cardboard, glass articles

  3. both (a) and (b)

  4. food articles.
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation
Rag pickers remove recyclable materials from the wastes such as plastic, polyethene, paper, metal wastes, rags, cardboard, glass articles etc. because all these items can be recycled and reused. For example, the paper is recycled into a usable form, metals and plastic can be melted and recycled any number of times, glass articles are recycled to form new articles as the quality of glass is not affected on recycling. 
Food articles are biodegradable and hence, they are not recycled.
Hence, options A and B are correct.
So, the correct answer is 'both (a) and (b)'.
Multiple choice solid waste and its management conservation of environment

In which solid waste disposal method, solid waste is reduced to fine particles in grinding machines?

  1. Incineration

  2. Pulverization

  3. Compositing

  4. Landfilling
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Pulverization is a waste treatment process where solid waste is shredded or ground into smaller particles to facilitate easier handling, composting, or landfilling.

Multiple choice solid waste and its management conservation of environment

The 3 R principle in waste management involves

  1. Reduce, Regain, Reuse

  2. Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

  3. Reduce, Reform, Reset

  4. Reduce, Retain, Regain
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

The 3R principle stands for Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle, which are the core pillars of sustainable waste management.

Multiple choice solid waste and its management conservation of environment

Collection' is first fundamental function of;

  1. Solid waste management

  2. Solid waste disposal

  3. Environmental Management

  4. All of above
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

In the hierarchy of solid waste management, the collection of waste from households or businesses is the first fundamental step before transportation, processing, and disposal.

Multiple choice solid waste and its management conservation of environment

In recyclable pakaging system, containers are used to collect storage of waste, bringing up to disposal site, unloading and returning to original location, known as

  1. Stationary Container System

  2. Hauled Container System

  3. Colloidal Solids

  4. Collection System
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

In a Hauled Container System, the container is hauled to the disposal site, emptied, and returned to the original location, which is common in industrial or large-scale waste management.

Multiple choice solid waste and its management conservation of environment

Which of the following is an important step before the last step of solid waste management?

  1. Collection

  2. Recovery

  3. Disposal

  4. None of the above
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

There are various steps which are involved in the safe management of the solid waste. Reduce, reuse, recycling, sorting, processing, recovery and disposal are major steps of integrated waste management. The important step before the last step is the energy recovery. The forms of wastes which can be recovered to obtain energy can be segregated and the remaining waste forms can be disposed. This reduces the energy which will be required for the transport and the final disposal of the waste.

Thus, the correct answer is option B. 

Multiple choice solid waste and its management conservation of environment

 ............ is the most common method of disposal in most European countries.

  1. Automated vacuum collection

  2. Curbside collection

  3. Pyrolysis

  4. None of the above
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Curbside collection is the method of waste disposal in the European countries. There are special bins which are used for the collection of the wastes from the residential areas. The wastes are then recollected in special trucks. These trucks are used for the transport of the wastes to the areas outside the premises of the city.

Thus, the correct answer is option B. 

Multiple choice solid waste and its management conservation of environment

 ............. is a disposal method in which solid organic wastes are subjected to combustion.

  1. Landfill

  2. Incineration

  3. Recycling

  4. None of the above
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Incineration is a waste treatment process that involves the combustion of organic substances contained in waste materials. Incineration can be described as thermal treatment. Incineration of waste materials converts the waste into ash, flue gas and heat. 

Thus, the correct answer is option B.

Multiple choice solid waste and its management conservation of environment

Incineration is also known as 

  1. Thermal treatment

  2. Landfill

  3. Decomposition

  4. None of the above
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Incineration is a waste treatment process that involves the combustion of organic substances contained in waste materials. Incineration can be described as thermal treatment. Incineration of waste materials converts the waste into ash, flue gas and heat. 

Thus, the correct answer is option A.

Multiple choice solid waste and its management conservation of environment

 Waste minimisation can improve

  1. Efficient production practices

  2. Economic returns

  3. Quality of products produced

  4. All of the above
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Waste minimization is a holistic approach that improves efficiency, reduces costs (economic returns), and often leads to better process control, which improves product quality.