The environment performs four vital functions:
- Supplies resources
- Assimilates waste
- Sustains life by providing genetic and biodiversity resources
- Provides aesthetic services
An environmental crisis occurs when the environment is unable to perform these functions effectively.
According to NCERT, environmental problems arise when the rate of waste generation exceeds the environment's capacity to absorb and assimilate it.
Therefore, when the environment fails to perform its waste assimilation function, it results in an environmental crisis.
Hence, the correct answer is:
It assimilates waste.