Maine is the state with the highest recycling rate in the United States, with an impressive 74% of its waste being recycled. This is due to a combination of factors, such as nature tourism, its proximity to Canada, and its deposit return system (DPS). Maine also recycles the most per resident, with an average of 285 pounds of recycled waste per capita. For policymakers to create a system that encourages real circularity, they must combine intelligent recycling and waste management policies with investment in local infrastructure.
Government agencies in states where they recycle the most have stronger control over their recycling initiatives, influencing both consumers and businesses to recycle. The recycling industry in the United States is broken. With waste materials that cannot be sold and landfills already flourishing, many consider the entire industry to be confusing and complex, at best, and a lost cause, at worst. However, some local governments are trying to address program deficiencies with diverse policies. Over the past 20 years, as more and more waste materials were diverted from landfills, recycling rates increased. The single-flow system means that consumers place all recyclable materials (and anything else they hope can be recycled) in a single container.
This has created “imperfect” recycling habits and general confusion among consumers about what is recyclable and what isn't. It's easier for the consumer, but the result has been a pollution rate of about a quarter of that of the U. S. UU.
Recyclables. It is up to us, as consumers, as well as on policy makers, corporations and government agencies, to reduce waste and improve recycling regulations to respect planetary limits. Some local governments are trying to address program deficiencies with diverse policies. For example, West Coast city San Francisco diverts 80% of its waste to landfills, the highest rate of all major U. S.
cities. This is due to a city ordinance that requires both residents and businesses to separate their waste into three groups: blue for mixed recyclable materials, green for compostable products (including food scraps, dirty paper and garden waste) and black for garbage destined for landfill. In addition, Boise has an innovative recycling initiative for plastic films that were not previously recyclable. Republic collects recyclable and organic materials from more than 8,000 businesses in the city and processes the first one while sending the second one to the Zero Waste Energy Development Company to transform it into energy or compost. Residential recycling on sidewalks continues to improve through several subprograms, including street sweeping, sidewalk garbage collection, and clean-up events. New York City is also on this list because of a new bill that hopes to force manufacturers to foot the bill for recycling paper, plastic, glass and metal through extended producer responsibility (EPR).
This could encourage companies to create more sustainable packaging and products to reduce tariffs. The municipality could use the fees collected to offset recycling costs. To take advantage of this global market for high-quality recycled materials that is growing, national recycling processes must be reformed. Whether through better technology in facilities such as those in Denver and Boise, innovative public-private partnerships such as in California's three cities or through legislation that sets precedents such as in New York City - cities must lead the way to modernize and save the U. UU.
