Waste Not, Want Not

By Marie-Claire Lander

Let’s talk garbage! While it’s not something on everyone’s mind around the dinner table, it bears thinking about. France’s environmental concerns are real, and responsible citizens are looking for ways to safely and responsibly dispose of their garbage and unwanted goods. So, let’s embark on this dirty subject and look at some interesting vocabulary surrounding garbage and its disposal.

Let’s start with les ordures (garbage/trash/rubbish) and les détritus (scraps). In the video below, the speaker explains that seagulls are avid consumers of both:

Bah, c'est des oiseaux basiques qui volent au-dessus de l'eau et qui souvent uivent ne serait-ce que les détritus et les ordures.

Anyway, they're just regular birds that fly above the water and that often go after anything, even if it's just scraps and garbage.

Captions 24-25, Jean-Marc La plage - Part 1
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Détritus can sometimes mean “litter,” as there is no specific term for that type of waste:

On peut voir sur cette plage qui est très propre, elle est équipée comme il faut pour tout ce qui est détritus.

We can see on this beach, which is very clean, it's set up the way it should be for everything concerning litter.

Captions 26-27, Jean-Marc La plage - Part 2
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Though it mainly refers to garbage, ordure can also be used as an insult:

T'es vraiment la dernière des ordures.

You're really the worst scumbag ever.

Caption 59, Le Jour où tout a basculé À l'audience - Arnaque en couple ? - Part 3
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The best way to deal with détritus and (non-human) ordures is to dispose of it in poubelles (garbage cans):

On a des belles poubelles qui sont vertes, une très bonne initiative d'ailleurs.

We have some nice green garbage cans, a very good initiative by the way.

Caption 28, Jean-Marc La plage - Part 2
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The contents of the poubelles will end up in a déchetterie/déchèterie (waste collection center):

On dispose des objets dans une déchetterie.

Items are disposed of in a waste collection center.

Responsible citizens showing genuine concern for the planet may wonder what to do with their organic waste, such as old Christmas trees, which les ordures ménagères (household waste collection) won’t accept:

Nombreux sont ceux qui ne savent jamais quoi faire de leur sapin après Noël puisque les ordures ménagères n'en veulent pas toujours.

There are many who never know what to do with their fir trees after Christmas since household waste collections don't always want them.

Captions 14-15, TV Tours Une seconde vie pour vos sapins de Noël?
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Unfortunately, many Christmas trees end up being dumped illegally in des décharges sauvages (illegal dumps):

Un petit peu partout, euh... des décharges un petit peu sauvages.

A little bit all over, uh... dumping that is somewhat uncontrolled.

Caption 18, TV Tours Une seconde vie pour vos sapins de Noël?
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In Brittany, some people turn their déchets (waste) into “gold” by starting une filière de compostage (a composting stream):

Certaines tentent même de valoriser ces déchets dans une filière de compostage.

Some are even trying to capitalize on this waste in a composting stream.

Caption 33, Le Journal Marée verte en Bretagne
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In addition, French people are becoming more and more creative at finding ingenious solutions to reduce mounting waste by setting up des ressourceries (upcycling centers):

Aujourd'hui, c'est l'inauguration de la ressourcerie du vingtième arrondissement

Today is the inauguration of the upcycling center of the twentieth arrondissement

Captions 2-3, Actu Vingtième Le bleu dans les yeux, recyclerie de Belleville
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Others try to extend the life of their devices by repairing them:

On est censé faire réparer des objets qui ont quelques problèmes.

We're supposed to bring items that have some problems for repair.

Caption 2, Actus Quartier Repair Café
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Repairing objects instead of les jeter (throwing them away) prevents faire du gâchis (creating waste):

C'est important d'essayer de conserver les objets le plus longtemps possible au lieu de faire du gâchis.

It's important to try to keep objects for as long as possible instead of creating waste.

Captions 6-7, Actus Quartier Repair Café
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C'est d'inciter les gens à dépanner eux-mêmes, à chercher avant de jeter.

It's to incite people to fix things themselves, to try before throwing away.

Captions 47-48, Actus Quartier Repair Café
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Not only is it best to avoid throwing away manufactured goods, it’s also important to avoid gaspillage (squandering/wasting) natural resources such as water:

On va construire et opérer des usines de nourriture partout à travers le monde, et cela sans utiliser aucun produit de pesticide et aucun gaspillage d'eau.

We're going to build and operate food factories all over the world, and this without using any pesticide product or any wasting of water.

Captions 20-21, Agriculture verticale TerraSphere
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And what should we do with les eaux usées (waste water)? Clean it of course!

Mais on peut lui demander des tas d'autres choses, comme nettoyer les eaux usées, manger les déchets.

But we can request loads of other things from it, such as cleaning waste water, eating waste.

Captions 20-22, Il était une fois: Notre Terre 25. Technologies - Part 7
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So il n’y a pas de temps à perdre (there is no time to waste)! Now that you have expanded your vocabulary surrounding waste—déchets, gaspillage, ordures, eaux usées, gâchis—and are more aware of solutions such as déchetteries, ressourceries, and compostage, you will be better equipped to follow our Yabla videos on the subject, and maybe…help save the planet.

Topics Vocabulary