noun
urban oil field; municipal waste as a resource
A metaphor likening municipal waste to an oil field, from which valuable raw materials can be extracted through recycling and resource recovery. Often used in environmental and sustainability contexts.
都市油田という考え方は、廃棄物を資源と見なす発想から生まれた。
The concept of 'urban oil field' arose from the idea of viewing waste as a resource.
リサイクル技術の進歩により、都市油田の可能性が広がっている。
Advances in recycling technology are expanding the potential of urban oil fields.
都市鉱山 (urban mine) refers specifically to recovering metals from discarded electronics, while 都市油田 is a broader metaphor for extracting various raw materials from municipal waste.
Compound of 都市 (city, urban) and 油田 (oil field). A modern metaphorical term coined to promote waste recycling by comparing municipal waste to an oil field.