toxic waste site
2
4.4
- noun
- /ˈtɒksɪk weɪst saɪt/
- Specialized
- EPA's own internal assessments of program priorities admit that the toxic waste site problem is overrated and that too much of the agency's resources are spent on it.
Examples
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More than half a million toxic waste sites are littered across the American landscape, most of them in industrialized areas like Somerville.
Academic text (2001) -
Her town is surrounded by two EPA Superfund toxic waste sites, a waste-treatment facility, and several petrochemical plants.
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Well, I would bet anything he's living at that toxic waste site.
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Though not as well known as the tragedy of Love Canal, Woburn's problem has generated more scientific research of more types than any other toxic waste site.
Academic text (1993) -
Public health officials worry that some communities might exaggerate the risks of a toxic waste site or hold erroneous beliefs about the health effects of substances.
Academic text (1993) -
Woburn, Massachusetts, a working-class, lower-middle-income town 12 miles north of Boston, has become a famous toxic waste site and a beacon for citizen activists concerned with diseases caused by environmental agents.
Academic text (1993) -
In Illinois, we have 26 of the nation's most dangerous toxic waste sites.
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Some of the worst toxic waste sites in the country are in your backyard, literally.
Synonyms
4
5.1
A place where people leave dangerous chemicals, often illegally
1
5.7
A place where people dumped dangerous chemicals that need cleaning
A place where people dump poisonous waste, often illegally or unsafely
A place where people dump poisonous materials that must be cleaned because they can harm people or nature
Antonyms
How Polluted
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly compositional: 'toxic' (harmful), 'waste' (discarded material), and 'site' (place) combine to denote a place where harmful discarded materials are stored or disposed of. This is a standard noun phrase/compound pattern found across languages and is immediately inferable by a B1 learner who knows the three constituents.
Etymology
Toxic waste site names a place where dangerous trash is kept. Picture leaking barrels and dead plants: toxic means 'poisonous', waste means 'trash', and site means 'place', so the phrase means a place where harmful materials are stored or dumped.