Green dots placed on the outside of product packaging indicate that it must be recycled, or face paying high fees. The emphasis on purposeful separation is underscored by a system of fines imposed on households who miss-sort their trash, the government often penalizing those who contaminate an entire batch of recycling. Color-coded bins are placed everywhere, from parks and schools to public transit stops and residential collection sites: The secret to their success lies in a culture of environmental stewardship that has been slowly instilled through government mandates-enforced by fines-on both citizens and the manufacturers who produce the trash. So how does Germany manage to nearly double our recycling efforts? On the lighter side, Germans recycle 66 percent of their municipal waste trash, leading both the EU and the world.
Over-the-top packaging, our culture of mass consumerism, and the idea that profit is more important than our earth continues to ensure that our landfills continue to fill. residents toss in about three times what they did in 1960. But if we consider the amount we now recycle, which was essentially zero in the 60s, U.S. households have been steadily increasing their trash output-almost double per capita since 1960, according to the EPA. was out-recycled by most of western Europe, several countries in Asia, and Australia. In a report compiled by Eunomia, at number 25, the U.S. Ranked against the entire world, the United States just barely squeaked onto the list of top 25 MSW recyclers. In our age of innovation and awareness, the United States recycled or composted only 35.2 percent of its municipal solid waste (MSW), according to the Environmental Protection Association.
In 2017, the United States sent 139 million tons of trash to landfills.
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