It has long been an article of faith that recycling was the best proof that we were doing something good for the planet. Many people considered it their most valuable contribution for our environmental woes. But recycling isn’t working anymore. Listen in and find out why and better yet, what you can do about it.

Recycling is the right thing to do...right?

It has long been an article of faith that recycling was the best proof that we were doing something good for the planet. Many people considered it their most valuable contribution for our environmental woes. 

But recycling isn’t working anymore

One big reason: China has essentially shut the door to U.S. recyclables. The good news is we don’t need new markets for our recycling. Because recycling is not the answer to our waste problem. The only way out of this mess is to start being more conscious of the stuff we buy and to reduce our overall waste. China decided to no longer accept much of the recycling we’ve been sending it due to high levels of contamination with non-recyclable materials. Worse, some local officials aren't telling residents this for fear that they will give up on recycling altogether.

Many of the regions of China that have been receiving our waste for years were once picturesque agricultural areas with abundant wildlife. They are now dead landscapes, their air and waters choked with pollution; a result of processing the millions of tonnes of the world’s scrap plastic material (i.e. the plastic that you and I put in our recycling bin each week).

But wasn’t recycling meant to save the planet?

Much of what we put in our bins was not being recycled. This was called ‘hopeful’ recycling. We want things to be recyclable so we put them in our recycling bin. We actually need to rethink recycling.

Now we are looking for new markets where we can send our endless masses of waste. New unspoiled parts of poor Asian countries just so we can keep believing we’re doing our part to save the planet.

Isn’t it time we all face the realities of this unsustainable industry and acknowledge the real problem: that we’re producing and consuming too much stuff?

Recycling perpetuates an unsustainable system. Having a recycling bin that gets collected each week helps us to justify buying more stuff. (The bin keeps getting collected so they must need my waste right? So I’d better keep buying stuff so I can keep filling it). We think we’re being green but our actions are just sustaining the production of packaging that is often single-use or excessive and usually made from plastic.

Design and manufacture of products is not optimized for recycling, so products and packaging made from mixed materials generally do not get recycled. E.g. the pump mechanism in a soap dispenser is made of several different materials including plastic and metal.

Recycling of most things, especially plastic, is not circular. While aluminum can be recycled endlessly, plastic is usually down-cycled, which means it gets made into a lower-grade use and cannot be recycled again. So it eventually ends up in landfill. And lower oil prices make it more economical to make products fresh, rather than from scraps.

While manufacturers need to take some responsibility, unfortunately thanks to politics and the influence of big plastic, this is a slow and complicated process and we can’t rely on it. The quickest and most effective way for things to change is through consumer demand. Recycling is not only costly, but doesn't do much to help the environment. 

We need to reduce the amount of waste we create. 

With the exception of composting (the most sustainable and truly circular form of recycling), recycling needs to be our LAST resort. 

So maybe it’s time for us to drop the ‘fluffy' green identity we’ve held on to for the last three decades and embrace a new one based on doing something authentically green and far more worthwhile for the planet. 

AND Remember to Vote and Recycle some of those politicians too!