Phraseology and Culture in English

WASTE
(where WASTE forms the first element of compound) 
N
+ (N) 
waste catchment areas 
waste management technologies and practices 
waste delivery 
waste minimisation 
waste depot 
waste minimisation targets 
waste depot locations 
waste quantities 
waste disposal 
waste separation 
waste disposal site 
waste stream 
waste handling area supervisor 
waste stream components 
waste industry 
waste treatment methods 
waste management strategy 
waste types 
(where WASTE is a component of the second or third element of the compound) 
adj
+ {adj + N + (N)} N and N + N 
baled waste 
mixed domestic waste 
building and construction waste 
municipal solid waste 
demolition waste 
precompaction of waste 
existing waste stream 
prescribed wastes 
exposed waste 
radioactive wastes 
garden waste 
regional waste disposal site 
industrial waste 
shredded waste 
inert demolition waste 
solid waste 
inert waste 
solid waste balefill 
licensed solid waste depots 
solid waste landfill 
liquid wastes 
solid waste management plan 
The meanings of these terms are context-sensitive, and are not easily re-
trievable. Neither can these words be easily transferred to other domains. It is 
worth noting the insider-outsider effect of using such jargon, which is gen-
erally contrived to prevent outsiders from gaining access to the information 
contained within such discourses. This diminishes the value of environmental 
impact assessments as tools for democratic decision-making. As noted above 
in relation to the pacification of the environment, interaction between hu-
mans and the discourse, let alone between humans and the processes occur-
ring at such waste disposal sites is made less feasible through the use of 
such language. In terms of accountability, the corporation that runs the site 
is not shown to be actively engaging in very much at all. The distancing 
effect is broader than this however – what about involvement in the whole 
operation, of the householders whose waste is disposed of at the site? 

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288
Melina Magdalena and Peter Mühlhäusler 
2.2.2. Non-technical compounds 
Compounds employed outside of specialist technical terminologies frequently 
include one component which carries emotive connotations, which can spread 
to the other. Thus, compared with the loosely synonymous term land man-
agement, where management of the abstracted land might be carried out by 
some abstracted person, “Landcare” becomes a highly emotive term which 
connotes real humans who act upon how they feel about the land with 
which they are connected. 
In the following list of compounds, land is the central idea, while the 
other components are things that can be done to it. This highlights the as-
sumption that land is a commodity which can be bought, sold and used by 
humans, who have no reciprocal obligations toward it. 
(where LAND forms the first element of compound)