Category: Recycling

Per the EPA, 292.4 million tons of waste were generated during 2018. Of that, approximately 94 million tons were recycled or composted. That’s only a third of the trash that’s generated is actually recycled or composted. If you take out composting rates, only 69 million tons were recycled. There’s a lot of room for improvement, […]

During 2018 and 2019, researchers from the University of Missouri and the University of Bologna (Italy) took time to find out how much waste was being generated during school lunches. Upwards of 53% of the foods in a school lunch were ending up in the trash. Compare this to 30% in Spain, 29% in Italy, […]

Why do some people still hesitate to embrace recycling? Between 2015 and 2018, the number of tons recycled increased by 2.2%. You might think that’s good news, but there’s a problem. While the number of tons went up, the overall recycling rate, including food and yard waste recycling, dropped. Decreases are attributed to these two […]

Think about the average lifespan of electronics. Most people will say you’re doing great if you can keep your laptop or cell phone going for five years. A printer is usually lucky to make it past nine years. Monitors have an average lifespan of eight years. Refurbished items have shorter lifespans.What happens when it’s time […]

California’s Short-Lived Climate Pollutants Bill (SB 1383) goes into effect in 2022. One of the most significant changes will be the requirement for food scraps and edible food waste to be composted instead of thrown away. Starting on January 1, 2022, food scraps, yard trimmings, and other forms of organic waste will be collected through curbside […]

Recycling goes back farther than you might think. In the 1800s, collectors were known as “ragmen.” They would go from home to home looking to purchase people’s old rags. The ragmen sold those rags to industries that turned them into paper.At the same time, workers at local garbage sites would sort through the trash that […]

Almost 5 pounds of waste is generated by one person every day in the U.S. That’s more than 292 million tons per year. Of that waste, about 69 million tons were recycled correctly, and about 25 million tons of food waste was composted. That still left around 198 million tons going to landfills.In the 2006 […]

In 2018, over 292 million tons of waste were generated in the U.S. It breaks down to almost 5 pounds per person, per day. Everyone needs to make an effort to reduce waste. It’s not just a problem for consumers. It’s something that hotels, restaurants, industrial companies, retailers, schools, government agencies, manufacturing plants, and consumers […]

How well do the residents in your state do when it comes to recycling? In “The 50 States of Recycling: A State-By-State Assessment of Containers and Packaging Recycling Rates,” Maine and Vermont ranked the highest. They were followed by Massachusetts, Oregon, Connecticut, New York, Minnesota, and Michigan.Michigan did well with a recycling rate of 48% […]

It’s easy to recycle cardboard and paper, but people don’t always understand the process. When you recycle paper, what happens to it? Tossing empty boxes, cereal boxes, greeting cards, egg cartons, mail, and printer paper into a curbside bin takes little time. Bills that have confidential information are often shredded first by the resident. The shredded […]