Learn Hardcore French: Le tri des déchets est important pour protéger la planète. - Sorting waste is important to protect the planet.

The verb is trier = to sort / to separate (e.g. Je trie les déchets = I sort the waste).
The noun le tri = the sorting / the sorting process.

So Le tri des déchets literally means “The sorting of waste” or more naturally “Sorting waste” as a concept or activity.

Why is it Le tri des déchets and not Le tri de déchets?

Des here is de + les (of + the), not the indefinite des meaning “some”.

de + les déchets → des déchets = “of the waste” / “of the garbage”
This points to waste in general, as a category.

If you said le tri de déchets, it would sound more like “the sorting of (some) waste”, focusing on an unspecified quantity of waste.
Le tri des déchets is the standard phrase for “waste sorting” or “sorting garbage” as a general practice.

Why is it important and not importante? Shouldn’t it agree with planète, which is feminine?

The adjective important must agree with the subject of the verb est, not with a word in the prepositional phrase.

Subject: Le tri → masculine singular
Adjective: important → masculine singular form

La planète is inside the prepositional phrase pour protéger la planète. It does not control agreement of important.

So:

Le tri des déchets est important. ✅
If the subject were feminine, then you’d see importante:
- La protection de la planète est importante. ✅

What does des déchets literally mean, and how is déchets different from ordures or poubelle?

Literally:

déchets = waste, trash, rubbish, garbage (general word)
des déchets here = of the waste (de + les) in this fixed expression.

Nuances:

les déchets: waste in general (household, industrial, etc.).
les ordures: garbage/trash, often household rubbish; a bit more concrete.
la poubelle: the bin or trash can, not the trash itself.

So Le tri des déchets is about waste sorting in general, not about the bin itself.

Why do we say Le tri des déchets est important instead of Il est important de trier les déchets? Are both correct?

Both are correct, but they’re structured differently and have a slightly different emphasis:

Le tri des déchets est important.
- Literally: The sorting of waste is important.
- Emphasizes the activity as a concept (le tri) as the subject.
Il est important de trier les déchets.
- Literally: It is important to sort waste.
- Uses the impersonal Il est important de + infinitive structure.
- Emphasizes the action (what people should do).

In everyday speech, Il est important de trier les déchets is very common when giving advice or instructions.
In more formal or written language, Le tri des déchets est important is also very natural.

Why is it pour protéger la planète and not pour la planète protéger?

French word order is stricter than English. When you use pour + verb to express purpose, the verb must stay in its infinitive form right after pour:

pour protéger la planète = in order to protect the planet ✅
pour la planète protéger ❌ (this is ungrammatical in French)

So the pattern is:

pour + infinitive (verb) + object
- pour manger
- pour aider les gens
- pour protéger la planète

Why do we use protéger (infinitive) after pour?

In French, pour followed by a verb to express purpose or goal requires the infinitive:

pour protéger = (to) protect / in order to protect
pour comprendre = to understand / in order to understand
pour économiser de l’énergie = to save energy

You would not conjugate the verb after pour in this structure:

pour protège ❌
pour protège la planète ❌
pour protéger la planète ✅

Why is it la planète with the definite article, when in English we just say “protect the planet” or even “protect planet Earth”?

French uses definite articles more often than English, especially for:

abstract or general nouns
unique things (like la Terre, le soleil, la lune)

Here, la planète is treated as a specific, known thing (our planet), so French naturally uses the definite article:

protéger la planète = to protect (the) planet Earth / the planet
protéger l’environnement = to protect the environment

In English, you may or may not say the, but in French you almost always need la here.

What is the difference between Le tri des déchets est important pour protéger la planète and Le tri des déchets est important pour la planète?

Both are correct, but the meaning is slightly different:

… pour protéger la planète
- Focuses on the purpose:
  - Sorting waste is important in order to protect the planet.
… pour la planète
- Focuses on the benefit or effect on the planet:
  - Sorting waste is important for the planet.

They’re close in meaning, but pour protéger la planète explicitly states the action (protecting), while pour la planète just says it’s beneficial for the planet.

How would you say “Sorting waste was important” or “will be important” in French?

You just change the tense of est (from être, to be):

Le tri des déchets était important.
- Sorting waste was important.
Le tri des déchets sera important.
- Sorting waste will be important.

The rest of the sentence can stay the same, or you can keep the purpose clause:

Le tri des déchets était important pour protéger la planète.
Le tri des déchets sera important pour protéger la planète.

How is the whole sentence pronounced? Are there any silent letters or liaisons I should know?

IPA-style approximation (France French):

Le tri des déchets est important pour protéger la planète.
→ /lə tʁi de deʃɛ ɛz‿ɛ̃pɔʁtɑ̃ puʁ pʁɔteʒe la planɛt/

Key points:

Le: /lə/
tri: /tʁi/
des: /de/
déchets: /deʃɛ/ (final -ts is silent)
est important:
- est = /ɛ/
- Liaison: est important → /ɛz‿ɛ̃pɔʁtɑ̃/ (you hear a /z/ sound)
pour: /puʁ/
protéger: /pʁɔteʒe/ (final -er = /e/)
la planète: /la planɛt/ (final -e not pronounced; final -t is pronounced here)

Could we say Le tri des ordures instead of Le tri des déchets?

You can say Le tri des ordures, and it would be understood as sorting the trash/garbage, especially household trash.

However, Le tri des déchets is:

broader (includes different kinds of waste: recycling, organic, industrial, etc.)
the more standard, neutral phrase you’ll see in environmental contexts and on official posters.

So for general environmental talk, Le tri des déchets is the best and most common choice.