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Waste disposal

How do waste plants pick through all our unsorted recyclables?

by Caleigh Wells
Aug 14, 2023
Single-stream recycling is convenient for consumers, but difficult for recycling companies. It requires a long and complicated process to make trash valuable.
The pile at the beginning of the day represents some of the recyclables from roughly 5 million daily consumers.
Caleigh Wells/KCRW
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Wastewater workers wish for a fatberg-free holiday

by Jill Replogle
Dec 26, 2022
Our sewers work overtime at this time of year.
A wastewater treatment plant in Oakland, California. Wastewater workers are urging people to be mindful about disposing of grease and oil, which can wreak havoc on sewer systems.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
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Survey finds consumers are concerned about waste from fast-food containers

by Andy Uhler
Apr 27, 2021
That concern won't necessarily translate into a change in consumer behavior.
Young respondents in particular self-reported paying attention to a company’s sustainability practices.
Mario Tama/Getty Images
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Shanghai chips away at its mountain of trash

by Jennifer Pak
Oct 25, 2019
After nearly four months of a mandatory waste-sorting plan, the city declares better than expected results.
Shanghai has made it mandatory for residents and businesses to sort their waste.
Jennifer Pak/Marketplace
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Is this the end of recycling?

by Kai Ryssdal and Bennett Purser
Mar 19, 2019
The Chinese economy could be killing recycling in the U.S.
An employee walks people through the recycling process at a closed loop plant in London, United Kingdom in 2010.
Dan Kitwood/Getty Images
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In New York City, getting rid of joyless junk can be complicated and costly

by Leila Goldstein
Feb 14, 2019
It's the urban underbelly of the Marie Kondo effect.
Manhattan’s Salvation Army on 46th Street has 20 trucks to pick up donations and two additional dump trucks to haul away unsalable items.
Leila Goldstein/Marketplace
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What happens when a landfill runs out of space?

by Alexis Marshall
Jan 8, 2019
According to the Waste Business Journal, by 2021 the average landfill will only have 15 years of life left.
A truck empties its load of waste at the Shelford Landfill, Recycling & Composting Centre.
Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images
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Lebanon copes with garbage crisis and sustainability

by Kai Ryssdal
Jul 28, 2015
After a stinking week, disposal resumes in Beirut, but will the solution last?
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