In 2013, Americans produced about 254 million tons of聽trash鈥攐nly 87 million tons of which were recycled or composted. Meanwhile, more than half the world鈥檚 population has no access to regular trash collection, resulting in unregulated or illegal dump sites that account for more than 40 percent of the world鈥檚 waste.
To combat the escalating聽global waste crisis, couldn鈥檛 we just dispose of the world鈥檚 trash in volcanoes? Aren鈥檛 they nature鈥檚 incinerators? Probably not, according to SciShow host Hank Green.
Typically, volcano craters are filled with water鈥攌ind of like a mini-mountain lake鈥攁nd sticking around to wait for a lava-spewing eruption would be hazardous, if not downright deadly, for garbage collectors. (Drilling down into the magma chamber isn鈥檛 much safer.)
It would also be expensive to send tons of trash to far-flung volcanoes, and we鈥檇 likely see an increase in our electric bills, since some regions burn trash in incineration plants and use the heat to make electricity. Plus, videos posted by, well,聽intrepid YouTubers suggest that when trash hits molten lava, it either explodes or emits dangerous fumes.
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