Geodegradable Encyclopedia Article

Geodegradable

The following sections of this BookRags Literature Study Guide is offprint from Gale's For Students Series: Presenting Analysis, Context, and Criticism on Commonly Studied Works: Introduction, Author Biography, Plot Summary, Characters, Themes, Style, Historical Context, Critical Overview, Criticism and Critical Essays, Media Adaptations, Topics for Further Study, Compare & Contrast, What Do I Read Next?, For Further Study, and Sources.

(c)1998-2002; (c)2002 by Gale. Gale is an imprint of The Gale Group, Inc., a division of Thomson Learning, Inc. Gale and Design and Thomson Learning are trademarks used herein under license.

The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Encyclopedia of Popular Fiction: "Social Concerns", "Thematic Overview", "Techniques", "Literary Precedents", "Key Questions", "Related Titles", "Adaptations", "Related Web Sites". (c)1994-2005, by Walton Beacham.

The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Guide to Literature for Young Adults: "About the Author", "Overview", "Setting", "Literary Qualities", "Social Sensitivity", "Topics for Discussion", "Ideas for Reports and Papers". (c)1994-2005, by Walton Beacham.

All other sections in this Literature Study Guide are owned and copyrighted by BookRags, Inc.

Geodegradable

The term geodegradable refers to a material that could degrade in the environment over a geologic time period. While biodegradable generally refers to items that may degrade within our lifetime, geodegradable material does not decompose readily and may take hundreds or thousands of years. Radioactive waste, for example, is degraded only over thousands of years. The glass formed as an end result of a hazardous waste treatment technology known as "in situ vitrification," is considered geodegradable only after a million years.

See Also

Half-Life; Hazardous Waste Site Remediation; Hazardous Waste Siting; Waste Management