| Abstract: | SUBDUCTION zones are considered to be sites of disposal for vast areas of the Earth‘s surface1, while new surface is generated simultaneously at rise crests2. Bostrom and Sherif3 suggest that the world‘s industrial and domestic waste be dumped into subduction zones at deep sea trenches to allow nature to complete the recycling process at geologically rapid rates of 5 to 10 cm/yr. They also point out that trenches are often sites of rapid rates of deposition and suggest that the dumped wastes would, speaking geologically, soon be buried. Francis4 suggests that canisters of toxic chemical and radioactive wastes could be dumped onto trench sediments and be expected to sink at rates of 20 m/yr, assuming that the mass of turbidites in the trench fill often spontaneously liquefies on shaking by earthquakes. The assumption is based on the supposed lack of evidence for deformed sediment in trenches. I will argue that the suggestion of Bostrom and Sherif3 is not useful for the next few dozen generations of human populations and will point out observational evidence to show that Francis‘s4 assumption is incorrectly founded. ?? 1972 Nature Publishing Group. |
| Genre: | Article |
| ProdID: | 70001421 |
| Citation Author: | Silver, E. A. |
| Citation Contributing Office: | |
| Citation Datum: | |
| Citation Day: | |
| Citation Edition: | |
| Citation Editor: | |
| Citation End Page: | 331 |
| Citation Issue: | 5371 |
| Citation Keywords: | |
| Citation Language: | English |
| Citation Larger Work Title: | Nature |
| Citation LatN: | |
| Citation LatS: | |
| Citation LonE: | |
| Citation LonW: | |
| Citation Month: | |
| Citation No Pagination: | |
| Citation Number Of Pages: | |
| Citation Online Only Flag: | |
| Citation Phsyical Description: | |
| Citation Projection: | |
| Citation Public Comments: | |
| Citation Publisher: | |
| Citation Series: | |
| Citation Series Code: | |
| Citation Series Number: | |
| Citation Search Results Text: | Subduction zones: Not relevant to present-day problems of waste disposal; 1972; Article; Journal; Nature; Silver, E. A. |
| Citation Start Page: | 330 |
| Citation Volume: | 239 |
| Citation Year: | 1972 |
| Type: | citation/reference |
| Text: | Subduction zones: Not relevant to present-day problems of waste disposal; 1972; Article; Journal; Nature; Silver, E. A. |
| URL (THUMBNAIL): | http://pubs.er.usgs.gov/thumbnails/outside_thumb.jpg |
| URL (DIGITAL OBJECT IDENTIFIER): | http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/239330a0 |
| Date Other: | Tue, 28 Sep 2010 23:09 -0500 |
| Publisher: | |
