a term applied to pollutants which are not biodegradable or are only biodegradable with difficulty [CUB]
If you describe someone or something as recalcitrant, you mean that they are unwilling to obey orders or are difficult to deal with. The danger is that recalcitrant local authorities will reject their responsibilities = stubborn + recalcitrance re·cal·ci·trance the government's recalcitrance over introducing even the smallest political reform. = stubbornness. refusing to do what you are told to do, even after you have been punished = unruly (present participle of recalcitrare , from calcitrare , from calx )
marked by stubborn resistance to and defiant of authority or guidance; "a recalcitrant teenager"; "everything revolves around a refractory individual genius
Of a substance that is degraded at an extremely slow rate if at all when released into the environment Consequently, this type of material tends to accumulate in water, soil, and biota
\rih-KAL-sih-truhnt\, adjective: Stubbornly resistant to and defiant of authority or restraint
marked by stubborn resistance to authority; "the University suspended the most recalcitrant demonstrators" marked by stubborn resistance to and defiant of authority or guidance; "a recalcitrant teenager"; "everything revolves around a refractory individual genius