Only five percent of the material was in the correct condition to be recycled.
Of the 40 million tons of plastic waste generated in the United States last year, only five to six percent—or about two million tons—was recycled, according to a new =”https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5eda91260bbb7e7a4bf528d8/t/62726edceb7cc742d53eb073/1651666652743/The+Real+Truth+about+the+U.S.+Plastic+Recycling+Rate+2021+Facts+and+Figures+_5-4-22.pdf” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener”>report, conducted by the environmental groups Beyond Plastics and The Last Beach Cleanup. About 85 percent went to landfills, and ten percent was incinerated. The rate of plastic recycling decreased since 2018, when it was at 8.7 percent, per the study.
“The paltry 5-6 percent U.S. plastic recycling rate in 2021 should be a wake-up call to the false promise that plastic recycling is a credible solution to plastic waste and pollution,” the report states. “It’s time to implement real solutions, particularly the reduction of single-use plastic food service items that have the highest likelihood of polluting our environment.”
U.S. plastic waste exports, which are included in recycling rates, decreased from 1.84 million tons in 2017 to 0.61 million tons in 2021 as countries such as China began ceasing to accept America’s waste, per the report. The U.S. doesn’t have the capability to recycle all of its own plastic, Jan Dell, founder of the Last Beach Cleanup, tells the Guardian’s Katharine Gammon.
“We don’t have factories to do it,” she tells the publication. “It’s also very water-intensive, so we’re not going to build more plastic recycling facilities in the U.S.”
But despite a lack of recycling facilities, plastic waste has increased five-fold in the U.S. from 1980 to 2018. In 1980, the U.S. produced 7.4 million tons of plastic waste, and 38 years later, that number grew to 35.7 million tons, per the report.
At its peak in 2014, plastic recycling rates only reached 9.5 percent. Yet the authors write the low level of plastic recycling doesn’t seem to lie in the act of recycling itself, because paper recycling has increased from 21.3 percent in 1980 to 68.2 percent in 2018.
Instead, they blame a “decades-long misinformation campaign to perpetuate the myth that plastic is recyclable.” Additionally, Judith Enck, the president of Beyond Plastics, tells Earther’s Angely Mercado that the three arrow recycling symbol is misleading, because most municipalities recycle only certain types of plastics.
“Consumers are understandably confused,” Enck tells the organization. “They see the recycling logo, so they put the plastic packaging in their recycling bin.”
When residents co-mingle recyclable plastics with non-recyclable plastics, they contaminate loads, which then “usually get bundled for landfills or incineration,” per the study.
Even plastics that do make it to recycling facilities aren't all recycled, the authors report, stating that 30 to 36 percent of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles are wasted during the recycling process.
“We need new laws on the books that reduce the amount of plastic packaging,” Enck tells Earther. “Because these companies are not going to reduce enough on their own, and consumers are left with little choices.”
7,765 comments
Franciscobeets
Considered alongside other sources I have been reading this one consistently rises to the top, and a stop at adapteralley maintained that top ranking, the informal ongoing comparison between sources is something I do whenever reading on a topic and this site keeps coming out near the top of those comparisons over many sessions.
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Adding this site to my regular reading list, the post earned that on its own, and a quick stop at xvmade sealed the decision, the kind of place worth checking back with from time to time because it consistently produces material that holds up against a critical reading too which I really value.
WilsonDigix
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Ibrahimsop
Reading this in a moment of low energy still kept my attention, and a stop at cleancabin continued that engagement under suboptimal conditions, content that survives the reader being tired is content with extra reserves of pull and this site has the kind of writing that holds up even when I am not at my reading best.
TomPeR
Looking through the archives suggests this site has been doing this for a while at this level, and a look at indexinghive confirmed the long term consistency, sites that have maintained quality across years rather than just a recent stretch are sites with serious editorial discipline and this one has clearly been at it for a while.
Bryannug
Appreciated how the writer anticipated the questions a reader might have along the way, and a stop at caffeinecorner continued that thoughtful approach, you can tell when content has been edited with the reader in mind versus just published as a first draft and this is clearly the former approach across what I read.
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A piece that did not lecture even when it had clear positions, and a look at kovaria maintained the same teaching without preaching tone, finding the line between informing and lecturing is hard and most sites land on the wrong side of it but this one has clearly figured out how to inform without becoming preachy.
Eddiepek
Bookmarked the page and the homepage too because clearly there is more to explore here, and a quick stop at chaiandchic only made that more obvious, this is the kind of place I want to dig through over a weekend rather than rushing through during a coffee break tomorrow morning before getting back to work.
Chrisgof
Looking at this objectively the editorial quality is hard to deny even setting aside personal taste, and a stop at reportroost maintained the same objective quality, the gap between what I personally enjoy and what is objectively well crafted exists and this site clears both bars simultaneously which is rarer than it sounds.
Fletcherpremn
Probably going to mention this site in a write up I am working on later this month, and a stop at clustercanyon provided more material for that potential mention, content worth referencing in my own published work rather than just personal reading is content with the highest endorsement level and this site has earned that endorsement.
Erikurife
Took the time to read the comments on this post too and they were also worth reading, and a stop at verovista suggested the community quality matches the content quality, when the conversation around a piece is as good as the piece itself you know you have found a real corner of the internet.
DuncanLon
Now appreciating the small but real way this post improved my afternoon, and a stop at questkit extended that small improvement effect, content that produces measurable positive impact on the texture of a reading day is content with real value and this site is producing those small positive impacts at a sustainable rate apparently.
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Liked the careful selection of which details to include and which to skip, and a stop at storagestation reflected the same editorial judgement, knowing what to leave out is just as important as knowing what to include and this site has clearly figured out where that line sits for the topics it covers regularly.
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Compared to the usual results for this kind of search this site stands well above the average, and a quick visit to ordernest kept the standard high, you can tell within seconds whether a site is going to waste your time or actually deliver and this one clearly delivers without any false starts.
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A nicely understated post that does not shout for attention, and a look at pearlpath maintained the same quiet quality, understatement is a stylistic choice that distinguishes serious writing from attention seeking writing and this site has clearly committed to the understated approach as a core editorial value rather than just a phase.
CordellQuode
A thoughtful read in a week that has been mostly noisy, and a look at europeelevate carried that thoughtful quality across more pages, finding pockets of considered writing in a week of distractions is one of the small wins of careful curation and this site is providing those pockets at a sustainable rate.
Tracedrace
Taking the time to read carefully here has been worthwhile for the past hour, and a look at blog33me extended the worthwhile reading, the calculation of return on reading time spent is something I do informally and this site has been producing positive returns across multiple sessions during the last week of regular visits and reads.
JamelWraps
High quality writing, no marketing speak and no buzzwords that mean nothing, and a stop at appelite kept that going, simple direct content that actually communicates something is harder to find than it should be and this is one of the rare places that gets it right consistently across many different posts.
Larrynaw
Started believing the writer knew the topic deeply by about the second paragraph, and a look at driftden reinforced that confidence, the speed at which a writer establishes credibility through their writing is a useful quality signal and this writer establishes it quickly and quietly without resorting to credential dropping or self promotion.
BenNam
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Recommend this to anyone who values clear thinking over flashy presentation, and a stop at neovanta continued in the same understated way, this site has its priorities in the right place which makes it worth supporting through repeat visits and recommendations rather than just one passing read today before moving on quickly elsewhere.
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SonnyGab
Started this morning and finished at lunch with a small sense of having spent the time well, and a look at blogbarn extended that satisfaction into the afternoon, content that fits naturally into the rhythm of a working day rather than demanding a dedicated reading block is increasingly the kind I prefer.
StefanGem
Reading this slowly and letting each paragraph land before moving on, and a stop at lattelegend earned the same patient approach, content that rewards slow reading rather than speed is content with real density and the writers here are clearly producing work that benefits from the careful eye rather than the rushed scan.
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AviFeelo
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Now adding a small note in my reading log that this site is one to watch, and a look at orderswift reinforced the watch status, the few sites I track deliberately rather than encounter accidentally are sites I expect ongoing returns from and this one has cleared the bar for that elevated tracking based on what I read.
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SamSor
Skimmed first and then went back to read carefully, and the careful read paid off in places I had missed, and a stop at printparlor got the same treatment, the rare site whose content rewards a second pass is content I want more of in my regular rotation rather than disposable single read articles.
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Easily one of the better explanations I have read on the topic, and a stop at modernmosaic pushed it even higher in my mental ranking of useful resources, the kind of site that beats the average not by trying harder but by simply caring more about what it puts out daily which always shows.
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Reading this with my morning coffee turned into reading the related posts with my morning coffee, and a stop at kidskiosk stretched the morning further, content that pulls breakfast into a reading session rather than just accompanying it is content that has earned a higher claim on my attention than the average article does.
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