hazardous waste

American  

[haz-er-duhs weyst] / ˈhæz ər dəs ˈweɪst /

noun

1. any industrial by-product or discarded commercial product that is potentially harmful to the environment or people and other living organisms because it is ignitable, corrosive, reactive, and/or toxic.

   You can’t throw these flammable old cans of paint thinner in with your regular trash—they need to be treated as hazardous waste.

   We are in compliance with all state regulations that pertain to the containment and disposal of hazardous wastes.

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hazardous waste Scientific  

/ hăz′ər-dəs /

1. A used or discarded material that can damage the environment and be harmful to health. Hazardous wastes include heavy metals and toxic chemicals used in industrial products and processes as well as infectious medical wastes and radioactive materials such as spent nuclear fuel rods.

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Etymology

Origin of hazardous waste

First recorded in 1945–50

Example Sentences

Manufacturing batteries is “extremely energy intensive,” involves more dangerous chemicals and results in more hazardous waste.

From The Wall Street Journal

At least 37 people were arrested Wednesday at a homeless encampment in Oxnard as officials worked on removing 33 tons of hazardous waste.

From Los Angeles Times

Union Pacific Railroad removed more than 33 tons of debris and hazardous waste, totaling 11 truckloads, according to the release.

From Los Angeles Times

Also, when Camp Century was decommissioned around five years after Project Iceworm was scrapped, the Army left hazardous waste behind, such as up to 52,000 gallons of diesel and radioactive materials, residues from the small nuclear reactor that had powered the base.

From Los Angeles Times

The arrests come over a year after the prosecutor's office in the port city of Durres opened investigations into more than 100 containers of hazardous waste, which allegedly came from a Turkish-owned steel mill in Elbasan.

From Barron's