A Quick Quiz

Trash Quiz

This quiz was created in January 2011 for the Fayetteville High School Service Learners. It can easily be adapted to your community. It is an excellent tool to get the attention of the adults in your community. It will motivate adults to ask questions about their trash and recycling programs. Questions lead to better accountability and better use of taxpayer dollars. (To see the answers for this quiz, just move your mouse cursor beneath each question.)

  • 1. What was the population of Earth at the time the Declaration of Independence was signed?
  • Less than one billion (1776).
  • 2. What was the population of Earth at the time of the American Civil War?
  • About one billion (1861-1865).
  • 3. What was the population of Earth at the time women won the right to vote?
  • About two billion (1920).
  • 4. What was the population of Earth at the time President John F. Kennedy began his first term?
  • About three billion (1961).
  • 5. What was the population of Earth about the time your parents were born?
  • About four billion (1974).
  • *Before the 20th century, no human had lived through a doubling of the human population. Today there are people who have seen it triple.
  • 6. What is the population of Earth expected to reach in 2011?
  • Seven billion.
  • 7. What is the population of Northwest Arkansas expected to be in 2050?
  • One million.
  • 8. How many people today have no access to clean drinking water?
  • Two billion.
  • 9. How does that lack of access affect us here in the U.S.?
  • It creates worldwide instability and unrest.
  • 10. How many planets would it take if everyone on Earth consumed the same amount of materials and resources as we do in the US?
  • Four to six, but we have only ONE Planet Earth.
  • 11. Please match the percent with the waste stream below. (Move your cursor over the space to the right of each material to see the correct answer.)
    • Paper28.214.1
    Food scraps14.113.7
    Yard waste13.76.5
    Wood6.58.3
    Rubber, leather, textiles8.328.2
    Plastic12.34.8
    Metals8.612.3
    Glass4.88.6
  • *What item takes up the most space in your trash at home?
  • 12. Each American generates, on average, how many pounds of garbage each day?
  • Four pounds.
  • *Using that number, how many pounds of garbage does your class generate each day? Each week? Each month?
  • 13. How many tons of garbage does Fayetteville throw away each week?
  • 975 tons.
  • 14. How much garbage did Fayetteville throw away the week of Christmas 2010?
  • 808 tons.
  • 15. How many tons of garbage does Fayetteville throw away annually?
  • 90,679 tons—enough to fill Razorback Stadium, which stands seven stories tall.
  • 16. Where does Fayetteville's garbage go once it leaves your curb?
  • The Tontitown landfill.
  • 17. What percentage of Fayetteville's trash gets diverted from the landfill via reduction, recycling, composting, etc.?
  • Sixteen percent.
  • 18. What is San Francisco's diversion rate?
  • Seventy-seven percent.
  • *What do you think Fayetteville can do to increase its diversion rate?
  • 19. Why is the Fayetteville Accountability Resolution, passed in January 2011, important?
  • Click the red "Truth About Trash" button in the upper right for the answer.
  • *Have you been some place with recycling policies you'd like to see implemented in Fayetteville?
  • 20. What percentage of plastic bottles in the US get recycled?
  • Twenty-eight percent.
  • 21. Why doesn't Fayetteville recycle 3-7 plastics?
  • Fayetteville recycling staff can't find a stable domestic market. There are stable domestic markets for everything Fayetteville recycles.
  • 22. What do the following items get made into?
    • Milk jugs
    • Plastic lumber, flower pots, and recycle bins.
    • Plastic water bottles
    • It’s spun into a fiber for fleece clothing or carpet.
    • Glass
    • Glass gets remade into glass.
    • Aluminum cans
    • Aluminum cans get remade into aluminum cans.
  • 23. How does someone in the recycling industry know there is a slump in the housing industry?
  • Less demand for newspaper. Newspaper is used to make cellulose insulation.
  • 24. How does someone in the recycling industry know there is a slump in retail sales?
  • There is less cardboard delivered to recycling centers.
  • 25. What items are recycled more than any other in the US?
  • Auto batteries (95.7 percent), office paper (74.2 percent), and steel (66 percent).
  • *Does your family use reusable shopping bags? Why or why not?
  • *What does your family do with food scraps? Yard waste?
  • *Does your family have a compost pile?
  • *Would you be interested in learning more about composting and taking on that responsibility at your home?
  • 26. Why are we allowed to put a can of dry paint in a landfill but not a can of wet paint?
  • Wet paint adds to the liquid goop in the landfill, known as leachate. Leachate must be collected and treated.
  • 27. Why are we allowed to put chopped-up tires in a landfill but not whole tires?
  • The tires capture air and float to the surface, becoming a haven for rats and mosquitoes.
  • *Do you think recycling should be mandatory? Why or why not?