Decades of public messages about recycling in the US have crowded out discussion and implementation of more sustainable ways to manage waste

I am completely unsurprised that most people don't know how to properly sort their garbage. It wasn't too long ago that I was looking up my local trash company and found out that I was wrong about what was recyclable as well; it turns out that our disposal company cannot recycle any film-like plastics. All of those products you buy that have a plastic window so you can see the contents need to have the plastic cut out and trashed; though we all know that people are much more likely to trash the whole thing instead.

The fact that they asked people about composting probably confused quite a lot of people, too. None of the cities I've ever lived in have had a public composting program, and I know nobody who even knows how to do it. I strongly suspect most people don't even understand what it is for.

Last week my husband was gone to SDCC, and for the first time in a while I found myself not needing to take the trash out. It's not like he's particularly wasteful, but he often brings home food because he doesn't eat breakfast and only has a light snack for lunch, and he doesn't eat my cooking because he's allergic to healthy food. We don't often think about the trash from fast food because it's so ephemeral; you get it, eat the food, and then throw the packaging away about an hour after you've got it. But it all really adds up fast. And while I suppose that's somewhat acceptable for takeout, it really isn't when it comes to dining in, where they could be using plates and silverware that is nearly infinitely reusable.

And the grocery store isn't much better. Why does everything have to be sold in boxes and plastic bags with set quantities when they could just be sold in bulk with reusable containers? Imagine all the jars of pasta sauce you have bought over the years, and how wasteful it was when you threw it in the recycle bin, had it transported to a recycling center, sorted, sold and shipped back to the jar companies, melted, reformed into another jar, sold and shipped to a food company, filled, and sold and shipped back to a grocery store. Instead you could just take that same jar back to the grocery store you bought it in, refill it, and then take it back home. Congratulations; you just saved who knows how much carbon from being released into the atmosphere.

I hope to see more waste management services offer curbside composting. Several years ago a new waste management company started up in my area (small city ~100k population) offering a composting garbage service.

The company supplies compost-able bags for food waste that get picked up alongside garbage and recycling. A side benefit is that they also are the only waste management company in the area that takes yard waste for free year round since that can be composted too. They also make the compost available to subscribers for free as well.

This has had a huge positive impact on how my family handles waste, and it really seems to be a great option that many communities could benefit from implementing.