Posted on 09/22/2010 10:15:22 AM PDT by reaganaut1
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Most of the stuff we throw out — aluminum cans are an exception — is cheaper to replace from scratch than to recycle. “Cheaper’’ is another way of saying “requires fewer resources.’’ Green evangelists believe that recycling our trash is “good for the planet’’ — that it conserves resources and is more environmentally friendly. But recycling household waste consumes resources, too.
Extra trucks are required to pick up recyclables, and extra gas to fuel those trucks, and extra drivers to operate them. Collected recyclables have to be sorted, cleaned, and stored in facilities that consume still more fuel and manpower; then they have to be transported somewhere for post-consumer processing and manufacturing. Add up all the energy, time, emissions, supplies, water, space, and mental and physical labor involved, and mandatory recycling turns out to be largely unsustainable — an environmental burden, not a boon.
“Far from saving resources,’’ Benjamin writes, “curbside recycling typically wastes resources — resources that could be used productively elsewhere in society.’’
Popular impressions to the contrary notwithstanding, we are not running out of places to dispose of garbage. Not only is US landfill capacity at an all-time high, but all of the country’s rubbish for the next 100 years could comfortably fit into a landfill measuring 10 miles square. Benjamin puts that in perspective: “Ted Turner’s Flying D ranch outside Bozeman, Mont., could handle all of America’s trash for the next century — with 50,000 acres left over for his bison.’’
Nor do modern landfills — which are regulated by the Environmental Protection Agency — pose a threat to human health or the environment. They must be sited far from wetlands and groundwater, thickly lined with clay and plastic, covered daily with fresh layers of soil, and equipped for drawing off the methane gas
(Excerpt) Read more at boston.com ...
The greenies tried that one already. They found out they had to use natural gas to generate enough heat to run the generator and burn the trash. Seems waste paper (read newsprint) was unable to burn hot enough. Funny.
The Germans managed to get that to work - the waste feed just has to include a certain amount of... plastic.
bump
melting sand is very cheap
Much recycling is just feel good nonsense. Much glass/plastic doesn’t get recycled and in fact ends up in the dump.
The most green action is to not use disposables, and to have a home composter.
Much recycling is just feel good nonsense. Much glass/plastic doesn’t get recycled and in fact ends up in the dump.
The most green action is to not use disposables, and to have a home composter.
Well that was enlightening :-) Funny how lots of us bought into that crap a few years back, isn’t it.
When our city went to recycling, I really resented being forced to have two huge, stinky trashcans cluttering up the garage. We didn’t have to accept the recyling can but we HAD TO pay for it.
If one accumulated enough warnings for putting non-recyclables in the recyclable can - they would remove the can would still bill for it, and a second “regular” garbage can was very expensive.
Glad I moved.
Not as cheap as heating water.
heating, washing , sterilizing etc. also some glass has lead or other chemicals to give it pigment that prohibit recycling.
Illustrated by the recent news (Not a joke) that a Lutheran ELCA seminary had a ritual of blessing for a compost bin. Case closed.
By the time you get that past the green weenies of the local EPA, you will have to spend hundreds of millions of dollars to make sure the incinerator is "clean." Way greener to just dump it in a landfill and scrape a foot of dirt over it.
Speaking of composting, my community collects cardboard in several dumpsters at one location. The cardboard rots until it can be ground into a mulch. The mulch is free. It’s the only recycling project I’ve seen really work.
No, because the truck rarely goes back to a plant. It generally goes to a warehouse where the bottles would have to be unloaded and then reloaded into another truck which would take it back to the plant. These trucks are rarely deadheading, they generally haul other things on the return trip.
They would have to assign part of their plant for bottle cleaning, buy special equipment to clean the bottles, use special chemicals to clean, buy more special equipment to inspect the bottles, higher liability insurance and so on. Since they buy the bottles rather then make them it is cheaper to buy them.
I know of a local dairy company that is using glass bottles for milk. Since they have a small specialize clientele reusing works for them. On a large scale it would add to your costs.
bump
I use a canvas bag to carry home my groceries rather than plastic bags. That is my sole contribution to the environment. Since I go to the store almost every day, I figure it’s good enough.
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