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By Mason Says
#10758
Coincidently I posted this idea over at the Sci Fi Pond. Finding this topic posted by Emily in April was purely coincidence. I've been trying to advocate this hypothesis for years. It is such a grossly apparant, solution that it's not surprising many are thinking of it. Hell, I made buttons and t-shirts advocating this solution that I used to sell on ebay, years ago. It's totally do-able. The opposition to the idea seems to come from the romantics among us who see the moon as a sentimetal object. The problem is, if we don't start ejecting our waste "off world," our sentiments and romanticism for this planet will soon be offended and destroyed. See my blog posting at personal site:
http://masonsays.blogspot.com/2006/08/o ... -moon.html

It's reasonable to expect that one day we'll be up to our necks in garbage and desperate to put our waste somewhere else. Naturally we’ll want that somewhere to be “not in my backyard,” and that category will one day soon cover the entire planet. We’ll want the somewhere to be where our waste will never harm any living thing, as it has many of us over the many years. We may want to remove the waste we have already dumped and add it to the export. Its inevitable; burying what’s left of our garbage after recycling will no longer be an option sooner than we might think. On average each American uses 4.5 pounds of waste per day. Our nation buries 229 MILLION pounds of garbage per year (each of these rates only increase – where recycling has only slowed the rate, the problem sill grows). This is only the “municipal waste,” a.k.a. the stuff you put in a can at your curbside, which only represents about %20 of the entire flow all waste materials in the U.S. per year. Exporting and importing waste has become practically a trading commodity by governors and state waste commissioners. New York toped the list recently with 4.5 million tons shipped out, on trains, and on barges.

The raw human energy and the carbon monoxide smog, and the fossil fuel involved in disposal of all of the waste in our country is immeasurable, but be assured, this would be a huge and troubling number. Another immeasurable consideration is the workers, faced with the ill health effects of spending forty hours per week breathing in everything from carcinogens released from industrial and household containers, to large amounts of methane, and petrol carbons from the vehicles they work on or near.

What do we humans do? We are literally piling our problems and sweeping them under the rug of the Earth. Do we all start wearing artificial lungs on our backs? Do we convert our largest landfills into ski slopes, fall-out shelters, hang gliding launches? Sure, in the interim, that’ll be fun. But a long term solution is needed:

There it is above us. The Moon, or “our moon.” Staring us in the face. That gray and lifeless chunk of rock that may have broken off from our planet a billion years ago. Radioactive. Without atmosphere. Too hot in the sun. Way too cold on the dark side. Any dessert landscape on Earth is more attractive to look at , than this moonscape of shades of grayness. If we were one day to establish a moon colony, complete with residential homes (or survival bubbles?), the families residing there would go nuts and kill each other or leave within months, having realized their big mistake. It might be a good place for a giant Death Ray to protect us from Socialists and alien invaders from the planet Mexico (formerly Mars). The point is made that the moon isn’t worth much in a non science fiction context.

Let us send our waste there. All of our waste there. Lets use the waste up there, to begin a hydrogen atmosphere, largely of methane, and unbreathable matter, but in the future the possibility could exists that this atmosphere could be altered and repaired, and sustain life, plants only at first. (scientific advancements will be flying off the shelves during and after having achieved the moon-waste project).

We would build and design an efficient launch to get our waste into space. Perhaps a tether and elevator system between a low orbit space station to reach shuttles that would be docked and waiting loading. On inauguration day we can ship Rush Limbaugh to begin the new waste pile. A single burst of fuel can send a shuttle on its way to moon orbit within days. The dumping shuttle would be remote controlled by a waste manager’s station on the surface.

The garbage would be dumped strategically to form an artistic pattern to display back towards Earth. A resident artist will reside at the moon manager’s station to direct the art-work. Several artists will win a chance to reside and to contribute their vision over the course of more than two generations. This artistic creation will have been one of the large selling points to the people of Earth that will have paid for the project. The finished canvas of color by design will face the people of Earth for nearly eternity. It will be a reminder of this first generation, to thousands of generations to come, of those who first chose to dump their garbage on the moon and recreate its surface into something magnificent, efficient, and beautiful.
By vijayarajan
#11021
Ha ha ..I heard of "thinking out of the box"..... but this is the first time "thinking out of the world".
Even though this idea may not work due to economic reasons. Its good that u have good social accountability. Your idea may work out when the trip to moon becomes cheaper. anyway thanks for ur message.
Emily Morgan wrote:We all know that if the amount of trash on planet earth keeps increasing at the current rate, we won't have any place for it! And there is that useless moon floating around earth way up there in space. So why not send our trash up there to be buried on the moon? A little strange I know, but it could be a possibility. And I'm not sure exactly how all this would happen, like if the garbage would stay underground or not. But it has potential, don't you think?? Please take the time to reply to this!! I would appreciate it a lot!

Reward: Ummmm... I could live with the Nobel Peace Prize!! LoL!!
By scottraine123
#11134
if we put to much trash on the moon it would weigh it down then fall out of orbit and cause armegeedon
By scottraine123
#11217
no if the moon hit us there would be a huge tsumnai ebgulidin the world in water let alone wel will pushed nearer or firther asway from the sun
By lin23aqui
#19238
It's reasonable to apprehend that one day we'll be up to our necks in debris and atrocious to put our decay about else. Naturally we’ll wish that about to be “not in my backyard,” and that class will one day anon awning the absolute planet. We’ll wish the about to be area our decay will never abuse any active thing, as it has abounding of us over the abounding years. We may wish to abolish the decay we accept already dumped and add it to the export. Its inevitable; burying what’s larboard of our debris afterwards recycling will no best be an advantage eventually than we ability think. On boilerplate anniversary American uses 4.5 pounds of decay per day. Our nation buries 229 MILLION pounds of debris per year (each of these ante alone access – area recycling has alone slowed the rate, the botheration axle grows). This is alone the “municipal waste,” a.k.a. the being you put in a can at your curbside, which alone represents about %20 of the absolute breeze all decay abstracts in the U.S. per year. Exporting and importing decay has become about a trading article by governors and accompaniment decay commissioners. New York toped the account afresh with 4.5 actor bags alien out, on trains, and on barges.





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tax problems
By Robin C. Morgn
#19271
It's estimated that if all the know trash dumps and the dumps needed for the next 1000 years were put together, they would cover an area approximately 35x35 miles square (1225 sq. miles). That could be placed in the middle of Kansas or Oklahoma or Nebraska and the trash could be railed there. Cheaper and easier to maintain. Nearby could be facilities that recycle everything recycleable, which is practiaclly everything we throw away.
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