Waste from Vehicles and Building Sites

1Automobile waste

Garages and vehicles produce automobile waste:

• used engine oil and brake fluid;
• old tyres and tubes;
• car batteries, which contain acid and lead;
• scrap metal, old filters, oily rags and broken glass.

Dangers: used oil poured on the ground or into a drain spreads over water and poisons fish, soil and drinking water; even a small amount pollutes a lot of water. Burning tyres makes thick, poisonous black smoke. Battery acid burns skin, and lead is a poison.

Safe handling:

• Collect used oil in closed containers and send it for recycling.
• Reuse old tyres to make sandals, flower pots, swings or walls that hold back soil.
• Return old batteries to dealers or recyclers.
• Sell scrap metal to recyclers, and welders can make it into new things.

2Construction waste

Building sites produce construction waste: broken bricks, stones and concrete, sand, empty cement bags, wood offcuts, nails, iron bars, pieces of iron sheet, paint tins and glass.

Dangers: nails and sharp metal cause injuries that can lead to tetanus; dust hurts the lungs; rubble blocks drainage channels and causes flooding; paint tins leak chemicals.

Safe handling:

• Reuse broken bricks and stones as hardcore under floors and paths.
• Use wood offcuts for small furniture or firewood.
• Sell metal to scrap dealers.
• Keep paint tins and chemicals apart as hazardous waste.
• Keep the site tidy and never block drainage channels.

3Stay safe

Garages and building sites are not playgrounds. Always wear shoes near them, never touch oil or batteries, and never burn waste of any kind.

Try it yourself

1. Name two kinds of automobile waste.
2. Why must used engine oil never be poured into a drain?
3. Give one way to reuse broken bricks.
4. Why is burning old tyres dangerous?
5. Name the source of each: (a) an empty cement bag (b) used brake fluid

Answers

1. Any two of: used oil, brake fluid, old tyres, car batteries, scrap metal, oily rags, old filters.
2. It spreads over water and poisons fish, soil and drinking water.
3. As hardcore under floors or paths.
4. It makes thick, poisonous smoke that pollutes the air and harms people's lungs.
5. (a) construction (b) automobile.