Comment Re:Recycling costs money (Score 1) 111
And contrary to what you've been told plastic can be recycled (do some research, educate yourself). The municipalities would have you believe otherwise because they don't want to be stuck with the bill of sorting and processing. It is costly and no one wants to do it, neither consumers or recyclers.
How much diesel is burned in the trucks that collect the recycling? How much of what they collect is actually used in a meaningful way? It may be the case that the bigger net benefit for "the environment" is to simply bury the stuff in a hole (landfill) or burn it for energy (like many countries in Europe)
But that's not the biggest problem, the biggest problem is keeping people from throwing this stuff into the environment where it doesn't degrade, the solution? Ban it
Yes, putting it any kind of bin is better than just throwing it in the street or roadside. This requires initial effort from two parties: The individual, to hold onto their trash until they see a bin, and the local council, to make sure there actually are bins around. A third party is involved too - the manufacturer of the trash. Whether this is the fast food companies or the chip company of the soft-drink bottler, they should be encouraged to make products that are easy to recycle, or have minimal packaging, or provide recycling facilities. The rules in the article are about trying to prevent these businesses from simply lying on their packaging to give the false impression that the packaging actually gets recycled.
