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The Archaeology of Ourselves

The Garbage Project. William Rathje (University of Arizona, Tucson)Classic Period Maya specialist1971: Applied archaeological technique to contemporary garbage of Tucson, AZLater expanded project to study garbage of several other US communities

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The Archaeology of Ourselves

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    1. The Archaeology of Ourselves The University of Arizona Garbage Project “Wait a thousand years and even the garbage left behind by a vanished civilization becomes precious to us” (Isaac Asimov, 1920-1992) “Why wait a thousand years?” (William Rathje)

    2. The Garbage Project William Rathje (University of Arizona, Tucson) Classic Period Maya specialist 1971: Applied archaeological technique to contemporary garbage of Tucson, AZ Later expanded project to study garbage of several other US communities “Garbology” Essentially ethnoarchaeology of our own society

    3. William Rathje

    4. Garbology in Action

    5. Examining social issues Previous sociological studies in Tucson investigated several social issues Example: Alcohol consumption Q: “How many bottles/cans of beer do you have in a usual week?” Results of such surveys taken as accurate Sociology studies don’t accurately reflect material remains 15% might report drinking alcohol, but over 50% of household have over 8 beverage containers/week in their trash Asparagus consumption was over-reported by 200 percent Socioeconomic differences Low-income households reported no alcohol consumption Middle-income households reported some, but underreported actual amount

    6. Linking Past to Present Diachronic study of refuse disposal practices How have our refuse disposal practices changed over time, and why? Food waste has declined over 20th century (25-30% in 1918, to 10-15% in 1973) Technological advances in food preservation Surprisingly, modern degrees of recycling are often far below earlier “pre-recycling” rates

    7. Landfill Processes Modern trash disposal a recent phenomenon Up until late 1800s: “broadcast” refuse practices “slopping-and-scavenging” Early 20th century: municipal garbage collection, garbage dumps Post WWII: Landfills (first built in Illinois, 1904) 2000: 180 million tons/year discarded in over 5,000 landfill sites $15 Billion/Year Landfills nearing capacity

    8. Landfill Structure

    9. Modern Trash Disposal

    10. Landfill Processes Garbage Project analyzed 15 landfills across US Collected and recorded 12 metric tons of garbage deposited from 1952 and 1989 Fresh Kills landfill, Staten Island (2.4 billion cubic feet; 3,000 Acres; 25 times Great Pyramid at Giza; contains more volume than Great Wall of China) Landfills analyzed stratigraphically (dated by newspapers; seasonality identified w. Christmas trees) Backhoe trenches, random sampling

    12. Landfill Processes Numerous misconceptions (very little actual research on landfills conducted by their designers; designed based on assumptions, not on data) Plastic: not so bad after all; less than 15% Styrofoam, disposable diapers: less than 3% Polls: most people believe these categories account for up to half of landfill contents Paper most prevalent material (50%+ and rising) despite recycling efforts 14% is just newspapers alone; single largest item by weight and volume in landfills Construction debris: 20 to 30%

    13. Landfill Processes Biodegradation: mostly a myth; 65% of material in landfills is biodegradable, but… Material not broken down prior to deposition; little water or oxygen penetrates (anaerobic preservation) little movement of materials once deposited; compaction of materials, but little decay; preservatives (20 year old hot dog) Only half of food and yard waste biodegrade, creating heat (temperatures of 80 to 140 degrees), methane. Landfills: supposed to act like composters, but really act as “mummifiers”

    14. 5 Myths about Garbage Fast-food packaging, Styrofoam and disposable diapers major garbage constituents – actually very little (less than 3%) Plastic is a major contributor to waste – only 16 percent. Biodegradation takes place in landfills – Not so Is this a bad thing? Decomposition could release undesirable/toxic components (e.g., lead-containing ink from newspapers). Inert landfills prevent water pollution. America is running out of safe places to put landfills. America is running out of politically acceptable places to put landfills Landfill permits more difficult to obtain than they were in the past. (NIMBY) Plenty of space for solid waste disposal for centuries

    15. 5 Myths about Garbage Americans are producing garbage at a rapidly accelerating rate. Yes and No. Difficult to measure the rate of waste generation due to the lack of data from the past. Milwaukee study: 1959 per capita waste = 1.9 pounds; late 1970s = 1.5 pounds (amount per person declining) But: American population is much larger today than it was in the past. 63 million Americans in 1890, versus 250 million today Net rate had increased by several fold.

    16. Modern Garbage

    17. Prehistoric Analogy Rathje compares our own garbage practices with those of the Classic Maya Describes Classic Maya Period as “…one of profligate waste, followed by a period of decline.” Late Classic Maya: increased recycling, decreased disposal, but too late Post-classic Maya societal collapse Rathje places our own society in a “classic” period Advises radical change, to avoid fate of the Maya

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