Trash - It's a Problem In Everyone's Back Yard

Below are some simple facts about the trash problem in America. Further below that are pictures of that trash problem. Take it in. Realize that the trash problem is getting out of control in this country, if not the whole world.

• Americans produce approximately 1,600 pounds of trash per year. This is only personal trash, and not even trash that is produced at work! This is about 4-5 pounds a day per person.
• 300,000 tons of plastic bags hit the landfills each year. Only 1% of the total 1 billion plastic bags used each year are recycled. It can take some of these plastic bags up to 1,000 years to decompose. Pretty scary.
• Between the holidays of Thanksgiving and New Years, each week an additional million tons of waste is generated.
• Diapers account for 7.6 billion pounds of waste per year in the U.S. It can take a diaper over 500 years to decompose.
• It can take over a million years for styrofoam to decompose. Many cities have started to make products made of styrofoam illegal.
• The majority of the trash thrown away are paper products.
• A third of what you end up buying will end up in your trash can.
• The EPA predicts that all landfills will start to leak into the environment.
• The U.S. produces 40% of the waste in the world, but only makes up 6% of the world population.
• Less than 20% of most major electronics are recycled.
• Each year, over 51 billions pieces of litter land on U.S. roadways, costing $11.5 billion dollars each year in clean up.
• Cigarettes account for the majority of litter found on the ground.
• Over 75% of Americans admit to littering within the last 5 years.
• Even though the amount of landfills decreased in the last few decades, trash generated increased by 80% between the years of 1979 through 1995.
• A landfill off the coast of Staten Island can be seen from space!
• Approximately 4 million tons of junk mail is received by Americans per year, with the majority of that mail ending up in landfills.
• Only 2.5% of food waste was composted in 2008, but the rest of it ends up in landfills.

There are a variety of things you can do to help the trash problem:

• Recycle! Governments everywhere offer a variety of recycling programs. You can take your trash someplace to turn in (maybe making a bit of money that way), or some even offer roadside pick up.
• See that mattress up there? I called my city to have it picked up, and it was free. Most governments offer a free trash pick up for bulky items. If you get the litter picked up, then it would discourage others to litter.
• Work with your neighbors to keep your neighborhoods clean of litter! This is especially true for those nasty alleyways.
• Avoid products that take forever to decompose! Plastic bags, styrofoam products, etc. take a long time to break down. Choose natural products or products you can use over and over.
• Don't throw away those electronics either. They can be recycled and reused as well.
• Buy recycled products. Buying those products will encourage more recycling and reduce waste and the use of more materials. It may cost more, but it's worth it for the environment.
• Before throwing something out, especially newspapers, bottles, etc., check to see if it can be recycled, and recycle it!
• Give away items to charity rather than throwing them out. Someone could reuse them for many years to come. You can even hold a yard sale as well.
• If you have to throw something out, find a trashcan to throw it into. Throwing it out on the streets only make it worse.
• Teach your children better ways. Your kids will learn from you, so teach them to take care of their planet!