 | By Adam BerryCommunications Intern |
Looking at American consumption behaviors, you might think we have an infinite amount of resources. The cycle goes consume, throw away, and repeat. We see recycling as a secondary option, but compared to some countries in Western Europe, we’re lagging behind.
These countries recycle as much as we throw away.
The European Union is a member of the Zero Waste International Alliance. The ZWIA pledges to eliminate waste instead of managing it without burning or burying the waste. In their mission, they want recycling to reflect “natural cycles, where all discarded materials are resources for others to use.” This is a mindset that is missing in the United States. To us, recycling is marketed as a moral obligation that if you don’t do so, you should feel guilty. These EU countries see the depth and the full extent of the program.
Can recycling get easier in the US? It seems like it couldn’t get any easier. Usually the option to recycle is just as easy as throwing trash away. In many parts of the United States, citizens don’t even have to separate recyclable waste into different plastics and other materials. Why is permanent waste so primary in our minds? We only throw something away if we think we cannot get any use out of it. Recycling is giving waste a new purpose. In contrast, Germany and Austria recycle two-thirds of their waste. This is especially impressive considering in 2001 these countries were only recycling 23% of their waste. The recycling gap between us and them has to do mainly with psychology.
On the average German Suburb block, you will see five to ten different colored containers to separate waste. Instead of having only two options- to recycle or throw away- there is a one in five chance to dispose of trash by throwing away.
Similarly, in the Netherlands and Switzerland, domestic waste disposal is a bit more complex and has a bias towards recycling. The programs in countries like these have a bias towards recycling through public incentive. Some cities throughout these countries take this to the logical extreme and use trash metering- where citizens are charged by the amount of waste sent to landfills.
The United States would be better off by adopting some of these programs proven to work around the world. Unfortunately, history has shown the US has problems adopting widespread new programs due to its unique structure. The United States is larger and more rural than any of the countries discussed. Federalism allows different states and localities the ability to manage waste- there are 133 counties and independent cities in Virginia alone. Getting the thousands of localities across the country on the same or similar page is hard if not impossible.
It’s apparent that the mindset surrounding recycling needs to change first. Recycling is only going to get more necessary as raw materials become more expensive to acquire. As we face this future, the United States is going to have to make some changes to the ways we manage- and think about- waste.
Adam Berry is the Communications Intern with the Virginia Chapter of the Sierra Club. In this column, he plans to outline the inefficiencies of North American consumerism and provide solutions for our wasteful behaviors– this is Trash Talk.