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China’s ban on importing recyclable plastic waste

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This story is part of Planet or Plastic? and is produced in partnership with National Geographic Society.

When President Donald Trump signed legislation renewing the federal marine debris program, he blamed Asia for fouling the world's oceans. He named Japan, China, and "many, many countries" for dumping plastic waste that floats over to the West Coast.

"And we're charged with removing it, which is a very unfair situation," he said.

What Trump didn't acknowledge is that plastic waste polluting the seas cannot be assigned entirely to Asia alone. East and West are inextricably connected by their plastic trash, as wealthy nations sell their recycled plastic scrap to Asia for the simple fact it's easier to ship it around the world than process it at home.

That convenience was cast in a new light last January, when China, the biggest importer, stopped buying most recycled waste. After 25 years as the world's salvage king, China refused to buy any recycled plastic scrap that wasn't 99.5 percent pure-a move that upended a $200 billion global recycling industry with profound consequences on both sides of the world. (Read more about that here.)

Bales of trash piled up in California, in the U.K., in Australia, and elsewhere, as exporting nations scoured the world for new buyers. Across Southeast Asia, recyclers operating in Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, and Malaysia bought, but were quickly overwhelmed by, the sheer volume that China once easily absorbed.

By the time Trump called out Asia "as abusers" for "making our oceans their landfills," Malaysia was drowning in plastic scrap. Malaysia's environment minister did not miss the irony in the president's remarks.

"I hate seeing my country as the dumpsite for the developed world," said Yeo Bee Yin, whose full title is Minister for Energy, Technology, Science, Climate Change, and Environment. She declared that "no developing nation should be the dumping site for the developed world."

And in an interview with National Geographic, she added a scold to the United States: "You have to mind your waste in your own backyard. Especially the non-recyclables."

The accumulation of plastic in the oceans has worsened as two trends reveal a bleak picture of the future of waste. The planet's growing heap of trash in general is forecast by the World Bank to grow by 70 percent in 30 years. And, the astonishing growth of plastics production-half of the 7,800 million tons ever produced has been made since 2004, with 40 percent of it disposable-is outpacing almost all other manufactured materials as well as the ability of developing nations to deal with it. In other words, garbage is only going to get worse.

At his White House bill-signing ceremony, Trump did make a relevant point about Asia's own trash. In 2015, when the first global measurement of plastic waste revealed an average of 8.5 million tons flow offshore every year, China topped the list of 192 coastal countries as the largest polluter of plastics. Among the next 19 countries on a Top 20 list, 11 are in Asia.

Among rivers that carry the most plastics out to sea, compiled for a 2017 study published in Nature, 15 of the top 20 are in Asia. Six are in China. Asia has serious problems with plastic pollution. But shipping waste to Asia only makes it worse.

Imported plastic waste adds, on average, another 12 percent to the plastic waste China generates domestically every year, according to a study published in Science Advances last June. In 2016, that translated into 8.1 million additional tons on top of the 67 million tons of domestic trash created in China.

Carroll Muffett, president and CEO of the Center for International Environmental Law, a nonprofit based in Washington and Geneva, says China's closing the door to trash "exposes the myth that the United States is capable of dealing with its own plastics problem."

"The way we have been dealing with our waste problem is to export it," he says. "It makes our plastic problems invisible by shifting them. It also demonstrates that it is not simply an Asian problem."

How the recycling mess emerged

If the aluminum can is the world's most perfect recyclable container, plastic is the opposite. Aluminum can be recycled innumerable times to make new aluminum cans. Plastic can be recycled only a limited number of times, and is difficult to recycle. Each variety of plastic requires a different recycling process, and plastics are made from thousands of different formulas.

Even the seven most common types of plastic used in consumer manufacturing-stamped on the bottom with a number inside a triangle-are replete with inconsistent resin composition, color, transparency, weight, shape, and size that complicate and often rule out recycling. For example, a #1 soda bottle has different melt properties than a #1 lettuce container, making the lettuce container a contaminant for the soda bottle. Colored soda bottles cannot mix with clear soda bottles. Yogurt containers cannot mix with milk jugs, even though both are white. Filmy cling wrap can be recycled in theory, but is too often contaminated by food. The limitations are too many to count.

Sorting all that out is a huge chore. "That's where the economics go haywire," says Douglas Woodring, founder of the Hong Kong-based Ocean Recovery Alliance.

Wealthy nations can't even think about hand-sorting certain plastics, even though it is sometimes the only effective way to maintain purity as plastic is reprocessed. It's long been more economical for American recyclers to bale plastic scrap and ship to Asia, where labor is cheap and environmental standards present a lower hurdle to mount.

"I never thought plastic recycling would work," says Roland Geyer, an engineering professor at the University of California, Santa Barbara and author of the study "Production, use and fate of all plastics ever made. " "There is a viable business model around metal, but plastics never has had that. It's too low-value, too contaminated, with too many different polymers mixed together. And you can only make it work with a really low cost of labor."

For a time, China, as the center of the global recycling trade, made it work. As it became the world's leading manufacturer of cheap clothing and other synthetic goods, its appetite for plastic feed stock grew. After shipping goods to the West Coast, China had empty ships to fill on the return trip and offered rock-bottom shipping prices to West Coast recycling companies to sell their plastic trash. The United States quickly became one of China's largest customers.

By 2016, half the world's plastic scrap intended for recycling was traded internationally. China has imported 45 percent of the world's total waste since 1992. (When Hong Kong, which reverted to Chinese sovereignty in 1997 after 156 years as a British colony, is added in, China's share becomes 70 percent.)

Today, Recology, San Francisco's employee-owned recycling company, pays $300-to-$500 to ship a container of recycled plastic across the Pacific-a fraction of the $3,500-to-$4,000 price tag for transporting that same container across the United States to plastic processing plants that are mostly located in the South, according to Robert Reed, a company spokesman.

"A high level of uncertainty exists in the recycling markets today," Reed says. "No one has a crystal ball to see or predict what is going to happen tomorrow, next week, next month, or next year."

Steve Wong, chairman of a recycling firm in Hong Hong and a one-time big player in the Chinese recycling market, estimates that China's waste purchases this year amount to just one percent of the eight million tons it once bought every year.

In the meanwhile, the U.S. is among the countries on the hunt for other Asian buyers, as Asia remains its primary destination for its exported trash. Between January and June of this year, 81 percent of American trash exports were shipped to Asia, according to an analysis by Greenpeace Unearthed, an investigative journalism project in the U.K. funded by Greenpeace. To cite one example, American recyclers sold 101 tons of plastic waste in Thailand in the first six months of this year-a 1,985 percent increase over the 4,409 tons sold during the same period in 2017. Sales of trash to Malaysia, Vietnam, Turkey, and South Korea also showed sharp increases by June of this year.

Malaysia becomes ground zero

With China's door to plastic waste effectively closed, hundreds of small-operation Chinese plastics recyclers relocated to other Southeast Asian countries. They set up new factories, often illegally. They began buying imported plastic trash for reprocessing. In the first half of the year, imports of plastic trash increased by 56 percent in Indonesia, doubled in Vietnam, and rose in Thailand by 1,370 percent, according to an analysis of trade data by the Financial Times.

In Malaysia, Yeo watched in dismay as plastic waste made a massive detour across Southeast Asia, and overnight turned Malaysia into the world's largest importer of plastic trash. Between January and June, Malaysia received hundreds of thousands of tons of plastic scrap-215,000 from the United States,115,000 tons from Japan, 95,000 from the U.K., and 37,000 from Australia, according to figures provided to National Geographic by Yeo's office.

As Chinese recyclers relocated, their goal, described in Plastics Today, an industry newsletter, was to melt plastic scrap into pellets to sell to China, betting that the pellets cleaned up enough in the process to get past Chinese customs inspection. At China's border stations, however, things have not gone quite that smoothly. Inspectors have not only been on the lookout for contamination, but also for smuggled low-grade plastic waste hidden in pellet containers. As of June, China had begun 134 criminal investigations involving 254,000 tons of smuggled trash.

Meanwhile, as the renegade plants began melting scrap, their new hosts moved to shut them down. Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand, India, and Indonesia imposed a slate of restrictions on imported non-recyclable plastic, including bans, inspections, freezes on new licenses, new taxes and fees, and raids on illegal operations.

In Malaysia, Yeo and two other ministers also shut down 30 factories that had been importing plastic waste illegally. Yeo says the government is taking steps to permanently ban non-recyclable plastics and allow imports of only high-value recycled plastic.

"At the height of my anger, I wanted to send it back to the country of origin," she says. "What I realized is there is no tracking. There is a gap between what the citizens know about their waste and what actually happens to their waste. The United States is the biggest exporter of plastic waste to Malaysia. I believe Americans must know what happened and take shared responsibility as global citizens."

Yeo has been on the job only a few months. She was appointed after national elections in May changed the ruling party for the first time in 61 years. Watching what she describes as the "mushrooming of illegal factories" in her country inspired her to push for more comprehensive reforms and turn Malaysia greener, with zero single-use plastics, by 2030.

The government is phasing out plastic shopping bags, starting with charging a fee on them. For a country of 32 million people, where the Malaysian Plastics Manufacturing Association estimates citizens use, on average, 300 plastic shopping bags a year, that's called a good start. Tesco Malaysia, a division of the U.K.'s supermarket chain, announced it would give discounts to customers who reuse shopping bags. Yeo also announced a ban on straws dispensed at restaurants in Malaysia's federal territories that takes effect in 2020.

"What we are envisioning is not only reducing our plastics usage, but transforming the plastics industry in Malaysia," Yeo says. "Is there something we can do to provide a solution to the world?"

If it seems unusual for the new government to be focused so ambitiously on plastic waste while facing other major challenges, including cleaning up a world-class financial scandal that drove the former government from power, Yeo says China's ban forced Malaysia's hand.

"It was a good wake-up call," she says. "What the China ban told the world is that we must rethink plastic use globally and we of this generation must solve the problem. By 2050, our world will have more than 10 billion people. Can you imagine how much plastics will have accumulated by then?"

National Geographic is committed to reducing plastics pollution. Learn more about our non-profit activities at natgeo.org/plastics. This story is part ofPlanet or Plastic?-our multiyear effort to raise awareness about the global plastic waste crisis. Learn what you can do toreduce your own single-use plastics, andtake your pledge.

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China's ban on trash imports shifts waste crisis to Southeast Asia

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This story is part of Planet or Plastic? and is produced in partnership with National Geographic Society. When President Donald Trump signed legislation renewing the federal marine debris program, he blamed Asia for fouling the world's oceans. He named Japan, China, and "many, many countries" for dumping plastic waste that floats over to the West Coast.

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Waste-free Shampoo designed by a 14-year-old

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How A 14-Year-Old Turned His Plastic-Free Shampoo Idea Into A Waste-Free Product Business

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“It’s just one straw.”

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"It's just one straw, it's just one disposable cup, it's just one plastic bag" - 7.4 billion people

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The Caribbean Garbage Patch

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'The most disgusting thing I've seen in the water'

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The giant build-up of plastic bottles, cutlery and polystyrene plates was captured by underwater photographer Caroline Power.

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"At Crayola, the health and safety of our employees and the students, families and teachers who use our products every day, is of the utmost importance. Given the ever-evolving nature of the coronavirus in the US, with school districts continuing to make the decision to close and the public being encouraged to limit exposure, we are temporarily pausing all ColorCycle marker donation shipments. The ColorCycle program will remain paused and we will determine when we can start receiving donation shipments again. Thanks for your understanding."

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"At Crayola, the health and safety of our employees and the students, families and teachers who use our products every day, is of the utmost importance. Given the ever-evolving nature of the coronavirus in the US, with school districts continuing to make the decision to close and the public being encouraged to limit exposure, we are temporarily pausing all ColorCycle marker donation shipments.

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Recycle your writing utensils!

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Recycle your... writing utensils? - CityNews Winnipeg

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An 11-year-old Winnipeg girl is keeping markers out of landfills with an initiative she hopes spreads citywide.

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"Buy a bracelet, pull a pound"

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The 4ocean Bracelet - Every purchase pulls a pound of plastic from our

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4ocean offers bracelets made from recycled materials. Every bracelet purchased funds the removal of one pound of trash from the ocean and coastlines. Join the movement.

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Spread the words with social media such as Instagram

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Help stop Salish Sea orca extinction - David Suzuki Foundation

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The plight of the 75 remaining southern resident killer whales, or Salish Sea orcas, is grabbing headlines. They're teetering towards possible extinction. In fewer than 20 years, their population has dropped by more than 20 per cent. We know what to do. But we need massive co-operation and passionate advocacy.

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Indigenous collaboration

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Indigenous Protected and Conserved Areas - David Suzuki Foundation

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Indigenous Peoples across Canada are taking a leadership role in protecting places that are essential to them and securing spaces where they can actively practice Indigenous ways of life.

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Sustainable Transportation

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Canada is a vast country and transportation is vital to connect us. Our vision is for connected, efficient and sustainable communities that thrive.

Getting transportation right

Transportation systems are the backbone of our cities and rural communities. In a country as vast as Canada, transportation is vital to connect us to each other.

When communities are connected efficiently and sustainably, they thrive. Spending less time in traffic means more time for the people and activities you love - and a healthier lifestyle.

The Foundation advocates for all people of Canada to have access to:

1. More efficient transit

2. Active transportation such as biking, walking and accessible pathways for those with limited mobility

3. Electric vehicles

Where we are now

As many areas of Canada experience increased gridlock, the Foundation welcomes the federal government's commitment of Phase 2 public infrastructure funding - $20.1 billion over 11 years starting in 2017 - to solve this problem.

We expect this funding will engage provinces, territories and municipalities on national climate change solutions.

To meet our Paris Agreement commitments, Canada needs to invest in sustainable transportation for long-lasting, healthy communities.

When communities invest in transit, we not only cut down air pollution and traffic, we get back lost time for the things that really matter in our lives. - Gideon Forman

Vancouver

Investing in Metro Vancouver's transit plan is projected to reduce average commuting time by 20 to 30 minutes.

Toronto

80 per cent of Toronto residents support a safe network of bicycle lanes.

Montreal

In Montreal, more than 115 000 trips are made each day by bike from May to September.

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Sustainable transportation - David Suzuki Foundation

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Canada is a vast country and transportation is vital to connect us. Our vision is for connected, efficient and sustainable communities that thrive. Getting transportation right Transportation systems are the backbone of our cities and rural communities. In a country as vast as Canada, transportation is vital to connect us to each other.

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Styrofoam waste to activated carbon

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A plan to recycle the unrecyclable | Ashton Cofer

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T-shirt Bags!

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Plants these guys!

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You can make a difference!

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Grade 4 student inspires mayor to reduce plastics

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A Grade 4 student was invited to speak with Mississauga Mayor Bonnie Crombie and inspired new policy to reduce single-use plastics.

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Futuristic Library in Quebec

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When you enter Varennes Public Library, you might think you're on board a spaceship. "It could be considered a library of the future," says student and library patron Jasmine Leclerc.

The futuristic library - which can autonomously manage its heating, lighting and electricity systems - makes the small city of Varennes proud. Every day, more than 150 people come to enjoy the library.

Varennes, population 21,000 and 30 kilometres southeast of Montreal, is a renewable energy pioneer in Quebec. The library sits at the city's centre - a shining beacon with a cathedral-style roof covered with 428 solar panels - and aligns directly with the sun's path across the sky.

With a wide array of windows letting in natural light and a geothermal system in the basement, it's clear that energy efficiency and clean electricity is at the library's heart.

Maybe in the future all buildings could be like this.

Jasmine Leclerc

Hidden among the solar panels, an air intake forces a current of fresh air to the basement where it gets warmed by the outgoing flow of stale air through a rotary heat exchanger. This fresh air - warm during winter months and colder in summer - is silently dispersed into the library through an array of vents under the bookshelves. The thick floor and the books themselves work as additional thermal insulation, which helps minimize temperature fluctuations.

For the City of Varennes, this building represents possibility and revolution: a big, institutional building that is proudly net-zero energy.

Jasmine is hopeful. She sees Varennes Public Library as a leader not only in the community, but also in Canada. "Maybe in the future all buildings could be like this," she says.
Renewable energy is empowering communities across the country. Charged Up is the story of you - of all of us - on a mission for a cleaner, healthier, charged-up Canada. Charge up Canada with renewable energy

You can power positive change

Monthly donors help us plan long-term projects and respond quickly to crises. Now that's radically Canadian! Are you in?

Donate monthly

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This net-zero library in Quebec inspires us all - David Suzuki Foundation

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When you enter Varennes Public Library, you might think you're on board a spaceship. "It could be considered a library of the future," says student and library patron Jasmine Leclerc. The futuristic library - which can autonomously manage its heating, lighting and electricity systems - makes the small city of Varennes proud.

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Plastic ban

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Europe is proposing a ban on single-use plastic items such as cutlery, straws and cotton buds in a bid to clean up the oceans.

The European Commission wants to ban 10 items that make up 70% of all litter in EU waters and on beaches. The list also includes plastic plates and drink stirrers.

The draft rules were unveiled Monday but need the approval of all EU member states and the European Parliament. It could take three or four years for the rules to come into force.

The legislation is not just about banning plastic products. It also wants to make plastic producers bear the cost of waste management and cleanup efforts, and it proposes that EU states must collect 90% of single-use plastic bottles by 2025 through new recycling programs.

The European Commission estimates that these rules, once fully implemented in 2030, could cost businesses over €3 billion ($3.5 billion) per year. But they could also save consumers about €6.5 billion ($7.6 billion) per year, create 30,000 jobs, and avoid €22 billion ($25.6 billion) in environmental damage and cleanup costs.

Related: China trash ban is a global recycling wake up call

The Rethink Plastic Alliance -- an association of environmental organizations -- called the proposals "a leap forward in tackling plastic pollution" but criticized some perceived shortcomings.

The proposals do not set targets for EU countries to reduce the use of plastic cups and food containers, it said.

"This could result in countries claiming they are taking the necessary steps as long as any reduction is achieved, regardless of how small," the alliance said in a statement.

The proposal also faced criticism from the plastics industry.

Plastics Europe, which represents manufacturers, said it supported the "overarching objective" of the proposal but said there must be more resources dedicated to "waste management" to ensure better collection of used plastic.

"Plastic product bans are not the solution," it said in a statement, and noted that "alternative products may not be more sustainable."

Related: Starbucks offers $10 million for ideas on a better cup

On a global basis, only 14% of plastic is collected for recycling. The reuse rate is terrible compared to other materials -- 58% of paper and up to 90% of iron and steel gets recycled.

Research shows there will be more plastic than fish by weight in the world's oceans by 2050, which has spurred policy makers, individuals and companies into action.

Starbucks also announced in March it was launching a $10 million grant challenge to solicit designs for a cup that's easier to recycle.

CNNMoney (London) First published May 28, 2018: 11:00 AM ET

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Europe plans ban on plastic cutlery, straws and more

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The European Commission wants to ban 10 items that make up 70% of all litter in EU waters and on beaches. The list also includes plastic plates and drink stirrers. The draft rules were unveiled Monday but need the approval of all EU member states and the European Parliament.

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Orangutan trying to protect its home

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This was the heartbreaking scene caught on camera in West Kalimantan, Indonesia, recently as a construction crew demolished a section of the Sungai Putri Forest, a known habitat of critically endangered Bornean orangutans.

Luckily, International Animal Rescue (IAR) was nearby, and was able to save the orangutan and relocate him to a remote, protected area of forest. But his desperate plight shows just how far these animals have been pushed at the hands of humans.

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Orangutan Tries To Fight Off Excavator That's Destroying His Home

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This was the heartbreaking scene caught on camera in West Kalimantan, Indonesia, recently as a construction crew demolished a section of the Sungai Putri Forest, a known habitat of critically endangered Bornean orangutans. Luckily, International Animal Rescue (IAR) was nearby, and was able to save the orangutan and relocate him to a remote, protected area of forest.

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Antarctic

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You may think of the Antarctic as pristine wilderness. Nope: It's already showing the effects of human activity thousands of miles away. But it's not too late to save it: https://cnn.it/2LtOSHV...

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In the arctics

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In Norway's Svalbard Islands, a polar bear and her cub struggle to find food.

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Decomposible six-pack rings

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Saltwater Brewery "Edible Six Pack Rings"

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Rain Power!

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When it rains, it powers. Learn more about Chinese investment in renewables: https://wef.ch/2knPJ1f

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BestBuy recycling program

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our electronics recycling program at best buy canada

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Our Electronics Recycling Program - Best Buy Canada

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Our Electronics Recycling Program at Best Buy Canada

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How long does it take to decompose?

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E-Petitions

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There is no obligation on the part of any Member of Parliament to sponsor an e-petition. Neither the House of Commons nor any Member of Parliament sponsoring a petition endorses the views or information contained in any e-petition posted on this website.

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Edible Spoon

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A Spoon You Can Eat Is a Tasty Alternative to Plastic Waste | Short Film Showcase

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Little things you can do

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Little Things You Can Do To Help Stop Global Warming [LABS]

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Final Straw

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Santa Fean creates Final Straw in an effort to eliminate plastic straws

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Can plastic wastes help save the planet?

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Can plastic roads help save the planet? BBC News

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Precious Plastic

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Keeping Plastic out of the ocean

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How We Can Keep Plastics Out of Our Ocean | National Geographic

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Suggestions for stopping plastic pollution

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How to stop plastic pollution in 8 simple steps

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The Tragedy of the Commons

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What is the tragedy of the commons? - Nicholas Amendolare

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Clear-cutting of forests

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Plastic Ban

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Now that single-use plastic bags have been banned in Montreal, city hall is setting its sights on getting rid of other kinds of plastic, too.

Next week, Ensemble Montréal, the opposition party, will table a motion to ban the sale of 500-millilitre water bottles during city events and at city buildings.

"We want Montreal to set an example," said city councillor Francesco Miele.

The proposal wouldn't apply to water bottles handed out in emergency situations.

Without getting into specifics, Valérie Plante's administration confirmed the city is looking into the issue, and may go even further than what the opposition proposed.

The city is looking to develop a broader policy that would reduce its ecological footprint, a project that may soon be put to industry stakeholders, business owners and citizens, according to Radio-Canada sources.

Plastic straws may be one of the items in the crosshairs - Vancouver banned them last week, and they are also verboten in London.

Former mayor Denis Coderre floated the idea of banning plastic bottles in 2016, without establishing a firm plan or timeline.

Miele's motion also references the city's largest recycling plant, which was hit hard by China's decision last year to impose a wide-ranging ban on imported waste.

Montreal will spend up to $30 million to keep it open and avoid having recyclable materials end up in the dump. The opposition says more than 700 million plastic bottles end up in Quebec landfill sites every year.

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Montreal looks to ban plastic water bottles in city buildings | CBC News

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Now that single-use plastic bags have been banned in Montreal, city hall is setting its sights on getting rid of other kinds of plastic, too. Next week, Ensemble Montréal, the opposition party, will table a motion to ban the sale of 500-millilitre water bottles during city events and at city buildings.

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Make only a Jar of Trash a Year

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This story is part of Planet or Plastic?-our multiyear effort to raise awareness about the global plastic waste crisis. Learn what you can do toreduce your own single-use plastics, andtake your pledge. Join a conversation with Kathryn Kellogg on zero waste on Reddit at 2 pm ET May 18.

Imagine 15 grocery bags filled with plastic trash piled up on every single yard of shoreline in the world. That's how much land-based plastic trash ended up in the world's oceans in just one year. The world generates at least 3.5 million tons of plastic and other solid waste a day, 10 times the amount a century ago, according to World Bank researchers. The U.S. is the king of trash, producing a world-leading 250 million tons a year-roughly 4.4 pounds of trash per person per day.

And yet there are a growing number of people-often young millennial women-who are part of a zero-waste movement. Their yearly trash output can be small enough to fit inside an eight-ounce mason jar. These are not wannabe hippies, but people embracing a modern minimalist lifestyle. They say it saves them money and time and enriches their lives.

Kathryn Kellogg is one of those young millennials who has downsized her trash pile-anything that hasn't been composted or recycled-so two years' worth literally fits inside one 16-ounce jar. Meanwhile, the average American produces 1,500 pounds of trash a year. (Learn more about Kellogg in the recent plastic issue of National Geographic magazine.)

"We also saved about $5,000 a year by purchasing fresh food instead of packaged, buying in bulk, and making our own products like cleaners and deodorant," says Kellogg, who lives with her husband in a small house in Vallejo, California.

Kellogg is one of several zero-waste bloggers who share online the details of their efforts, along with practical tips and encouragement, for others looking to embrace a zero-waste lifestyle. In three years, she has gained 300,000 monthly readers on her blog goingzerowaste.com and on Instagram.

"I think many people are ready to cut their waste," says Kellogg. However, she doesn't want people to fixate on trying to stuff all their trash into a jar. Zero-waste is really about trying to minimize your trash and making better choices in your life, she says. "Just do the best you can and buy less."

A breast cancer scare in college led Kellogg to start reading labels on personal-care products and finding ways to limit her exposure to potentially toxic chemicals. She found alternatives and started making her own products. Like her own readers, Kellogg learned from others, including New York City's Lauren Singer, who has the very popular Trash is for Tossers blog. Singer started reducing her waste footprint as an environmental studies student in 2012 and has turned zero-waste into a career as a speaker, consultant, and retailer. She has two stores dedicated to making trash-free living easier for everyone.

There's an active zero-waste community online sharing ideas, challenges, and support for those struggling with unhelpful friends and family who think it's weird to worry about trash. "There's a fear of being rejected when you try to do things differently," Kellogg says. "But it's not a radical act to clean up a kitchen spill with a cloth towel instead of a paper towel."

Many of the solutions to cutting waste use practices that were commonplace before the era of plastics and disposable products. Think cloth napkins and handkerchiefs, vinegar and water for cleaning, glass or stainless-steel containers for left-overs, cloth grocery bags. These, and similar old-school solutions, produce no waste and are cheaper in the long run.

Questioning What's Normal

Going zero-waste means questioning what's normal and thinking outside the box, Kellogg says. As one example, she mentions that she loves tortillas but hates making them. But as part of her zero-waste quest, she didn't want to buy packaged ones at the grocery. Eventually, she hit on the solution: buy a bunch of fresh-made ones from her local Mexican restaurant. The restaurant was even happy to put the tortillas in Kellogg's container because it saves them money.

"Many such solutions to waste are insanely simple," she says. "And any step to reduce waste is a step in the right direction."

Cincinnati's Rachel Felous took more than a few steps in January 2017 and cut her waste to one bag for the year. Felous was surprised and delighted with the impact it's had on her life.

"Going zero waste has been great," she says. "I found an amazing community, made new friends, and new opportunities have come my way," says Felous.

Although an environmentally aware nature lover, Felous hadn't really thought about how much waste she produced until she moved. That's when she realized how much stuff she'd accumulated, including a dozen half-used bottles of shampoo and conditioners. Not long after reading an article on zero-waste she vowed to take more responsibility for her own footprint. Felous also documents her struggles, challenges, and successes on Instagram during her quest to slash the trash.

By weight 75 to 80 percent of all household trash is organic matter that can be composted and turned into soil. As an apartment dweller, Felous deals with her organic waste by putting it in the freezer. Once a month, she takes her frozen lump to her parent's house, where a local farmer picks it up to feed animals or for composting. If the organic waste went to a landfill it likely wouldn't compost, because air can't circulate enough there.

Felous, who runs her own web design and photography business out of her home, advises others to approach zero waste with small steps and show themselves kindness. Making a lifestyle change is a journey, it doesn't happen overnight. But it's worth the effort, she says. "I don't know why I didn't start sooner."

Shawn Williamson started ten years ago. While his neighbors in the suburbs outside of Toronto drag three or four bags of trash to the curb on cold winter nights, Williamson stays warm inside watching hockey on TV. Williamson, his wife, and daughter have taken just six bags of trash to the curb in those 10 years. "We live a very normal life. We've just eliminated waste," he says.

Contrary to what most people think, cutting out waste isn't a lot of work, he adds. "We buy in bulk to cut down on shopping trips, which saves us money and time," Williamson says.

The only unusual thing about their small, 20-year old house is the amount of shelving used to store bulk purchases of rice, flour, dried beans, nuts, toilet paper, and other products-enough to avoid going shopping for a month, he estimates. "It's not cluttered. I still park my car in the garage."

Williamson, a business consultant specializing in sustainability, says his goal is simply to be less wasteful in all aspects of life. "It's a mindset of looking for better ways of doing things. Once I figure it out there's little effort to maintain it," he says.

It helps that his community has a good recycling program for plastics, paper, and metals and he has room in his backyard for two small composters-one for summer and winter-that produce lots of rich earth for his garden. For everything else, he shops carefully to avoid waste and notes that throwing things out costs money: packaging pushes up the cost of the product, and then we pay for disposal of packaging in our taxes, he says.

Buying local makes it easier to buy foods and other products without packaging, from meat to soap. And when there is no choice, he leaves the packaging behind at the checkout counter. Stores can often reuse or recycle it, and leaving it sends a message: many customers don't want their avocados wrapped in plastic.

Even after ten years of slashing waste, new ideas still pop into Williamson's head. And here he means waste in the broader sense-not getting a second car that's parked 95 percent of the day, or shaving in the shower to save time. His advice: take a good look at what you might be wasting in your life. "If you eliminate it, you'll have a happier and more profitable life," he says.

Five Principles of Zero-waste From the Experts*

1. Refuse - refuse to buy things with lots of packaging

2. Reduce - don't buy things you don't really need

3. Reuse - repurpose worn out items, shop for used goods, and purchase reusable products like steel water bottles

4. Compost - up to 80 percent of waste by weight is organic. But this rarely decomposes in landfills

5. Recycle - It still takes some energy and resources to recycle, but it's better than sending stuff to the landfill or allowing it to become litter

*These are listed in order of importance

Editor's note: We corrected the spelling of Kathryn's name from an earlier version of this story.

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How People Make Only a Jar of Trash a Year

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This story is part of Planet or Plastic?-our multiyear effort to raise awareness about the global plastic waste crisis. Learn what you can do toreduce your own single-use plastics, andtake your pledge. Join a conversation with Kathryn Kellogg on zero waste on Reddit at 2 pm ET May 18.

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Life of a T-Shirt

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The life cycle of a t-shirt - Angel Chang

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Solar Powered Trash Collector

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Genius invention cleans trash from Baltimore’s harbor

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Let’s ban bee-killing pesticides once and for all!

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Beekeepers in Ontario are reporting overwhelming winter losses this year. Jim Coneybeare, a commercial beekeeper near Fergus, Ontario, and president of the Ontario Beekeepers' Association, thinks this might be the worst winter on record for losses. "The long, cold winter was certainly a major factor, but pesticide exposure also plays a role," Coneybeare said.

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Ways you could help stop global warming

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Little Things You Can Do To Help Stop Global Warming [LABS]

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Global Warming and Polar Bear

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Fashion Waste

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Palm Oil

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The Problem With Palm Oil | Fight for the Forests | TakePart

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Electronic Waste

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Be honest: How many old cell phones do you have in a drawer somewhere? What about computer keyboards or screens?

That waste - the leftover keyboards that we cart out to the curb, old computer screens, cell phones, audio equipment, printers - it's all considered electronic waste, or e-waste. Its prevalence, in a society that clamours for smaller, better, faster, newer, is piling up. And there are consequences.
READ MORE: 99 per cent of seabirds will consume plastic by 2050: Study
How much e-waste is out there?

According to the United Nations, 41.8 million metric tonnes of e-waste were generated around the globe in 2014. Of that enormous number, 725 metric tonnes were generated by Canadians.

This includes 12.8 million tonnes of small equipment like vacuum cleaners, microwaves and toasters; 11.8 million tonnes of large equipment like washing machines and dishwashers; 6.3 million screens and 3 million tonnes of small information and communication technology.

But those numbers are anything but concrete: the United Nations estimates that number based on the amount of materials and electronics put on the market each year and their average lifespan. So that doesn't exactly produce a concrete number: it could be higher, it could be lower.

But either way, you only need to look at your own habits to see how much e-waste you generate yourself. And the effects on our environment are noticeable.

Where it ends up

There was a time when a lot of our e-waste headed to Africa. In 1998, several African nations passed the Bamako Convention, which prohibited the import into Africa of any hazardous waste.

Computer and electronics fall under the convention. Still, many western countries will donate old electronics, which most certainly meet their demise on the continent, meaning that much e-waste once again ends up clogging the region.

Then there's the Basel Convention. This treaty, put into force in May 1992, was designed to reduce the transport of hazardous waste - once again, including e-waste - into other countries. Canada is a participant.

But now there's a new taker for all that electronic waste: China.

In 2014, the International Solid Waste Association reported that China is the leading importer for waste plastics at a whopping 56 per cent.

According to the 2014 report, "The Global e-Waste Monitor," published by United Nations University, Guiyu, China, is considered to be an "environmental catastrophe."

That's because China - a leading importer of electronic waste - is dismantling old computers and phones. And it's using dangerous methods, primarily low-temperature burning. This, in turn releases dangerous toxins into the atmosphere.

"A number of studies show widespread contamination of the surrounding areas because some of the plastics are burned. If the plastic around copper wiring is burned it produces dioxins," said Miriam Diamond, professor at the University of Toronto's Department of Earth Sciences.

Consequences

The problem with charting e-waste is that there are no real solid numbers.

In Canada, we have two ways of dealing with e-waste: there is an extended producer responsibility (EPR) and a product stewardship program (PSP). For EPR, funding for end-of-life disposal of electronics is funded by the manufacturers themselves.

For product stewardship, legislated environmental fees or public funds are used, depending on the province. But ultimately, the responsibility lies with the provinces and the provinces hand it off to private companies.

So those pesky "handling fees" we tend to scoff at when we purchase electronics (at least in some provinces, like Ontario and B.C.)? While many may think of that fee as being nothing more than a cash-grab similar to the frustrating handling fees on entertainment tickets purchased online, that fee is part of the PSP. Which means the consumer is paying for the recycling of their electronics.

There are organizations across the country that take in used electronics for recycling.

Cliff Hacking, president and chief executive officer of the Electronics Products Recycling Association (EPRA), which operates recycling programs in eight of the 10 provinces with legislation on e-waste, said that his non-profit organization recycled 100,000 metric tonnes of electronics in 2014, which translates to about 15.5 million devices.

But, he concedes, "It is a lot and there's even more out there."

"Everyone wants the newest and the greatest, and that means there's a lot out there and we went to make sure that it gets recycled properly."
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For Josh Lepawsky, associate professor of geography at Memorial University who has been mapping global flows of e-waste for years, it's not just about the e-waste generated, but the impact on the environment in general.

"I think it is a problem to see recycling as a solution to e-waste," he said.

"The reason I say that recycling post-consumer electronics will never solve the generation of e-waste of electronics is because most waste is generated before it even gets to consumers."

You only need to turn to Apple to see the environmental impact. Each year, the undeniable king of tech produces a report entitled the "Environmental Responsibility Report." In 2013, Apple produced 33,800,000 metric tons of CO2 emissions. For 2014, that number increased to 34,200,000 metric tons of CO2.

That's not to say that Apple is doing a poor job of managing its emissions, but it does illustrate that a growing demand of consumer electronics impacts the environment long before that cell phone or tablet lands in our hands.

"When the discussion comes down to e-waste, post-consumer, that's a problem because it leaves out the most important generation of waste," Lepawsky said. "Look at a desktop computer: 80 per cent of energy use takes place before it's even used."

The future

Lepawsky would like to see responsibility of e-waste similar to that of the pharmaceutical industry or automotive industry in the U.S. and Canada. "The very fact that we have a regulatory [framework] for a multi-billion dollar industry tells me we could do it in electronics."

Hacking said he wants the consumer to be more aware.

"Consumer awareness is very important...it helps to create an awareness that there is another life for this product, that you just can't throw them into the trash and have them end up in a landfill," he said. "There are some substances of concern, there is lead in batteries that can leach...mercury is present in some products, so all of that is part of the awareness."

Diamond is concerned about what the future holds.

"I see this as an issue that's going to come back to haunt us," said Diamond. "We're drowning in e-waste, which has a large environmental burden. It's just unsustainable."
Follow @NebulousNikki

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Electronic waste is piling up. Here's why you should care

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Be honest: How many old cell phones do you have in a drawer somewhere? What about computer keyboards or screens? That waste - the leftover keyboards that we cart out to the curb, old computer screens, cell phones, audio equipment, printers - it's all considered electronic waste, or e-waste.

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Rocket Launches Damage Ozone Layer

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Rocket Launches Damage Ozone Layer, Study Says

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Solid-fuel rockets used to send up spacecraft could be the world's next worrisome emission sources, especially as space tourism takes off, according to new research.

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Flying and Global Warming

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Credit... Alec Doherty for The New York Times

Take one round-trip flight between New York and California, and you've generated about 20 percent of the greenhouse gases that your car emits over an entire year.

If you are like many people, flying may be a large portion of your carbon footprint. Over all, the aviation industry accounts for 11 percent of all transportation-related emissions in the United States.

According to some estimates, about 20,000 planes are in use around the world, serving three billion passengers annually. By 2040, more than 50,000 planes could be in service, and they are expected to fly more often.

If you're flying, you're adding a significant amount of planet-warming gases to the atmosphere - there's no way around it. But there are some ways to make your airplane travel a little bit greener.

The most effective way to reduce your carbon footprint is to fly less often. If everyone took fewer flights, airline companies wouldn't burn as much jet fuel.

According to the World Bank, the average American generated about 16.4 metric tons of carbon dioxide in 2013; according to some calculations, a round-trip flight from New York to San Francisco emits about 0.9 metric tons of carbon dioxide per person. For an American, that represents about one-eighteenth of your carbon emissions for the year.

(For perspective, the global average was about five tons of carbon dioxide per person in 2013.)

Should you drive instead? The longer the distance, the more efficient flying becomes, because cruising requires less fuel than other stages of flight. So it's certainly better to fly cross-country than to drive solo. If you're taking a short trip, it may be better to drive.

Flying nonstop can help, too: The more times you take off, the more fuel you use. According to a 2010 report from NASA, about 25 percent of airplane emissions come from landing and taking off. That includes taxiing, which is the largest source of emissions in the landing-takeoff cycle.

Some research suggests that flying in warmer temperatures is less efficient, since hot air is thinner and makes it harder for planes to get enough lift to take off.

When you buy carbon offsets, you pay to take planet-warming carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere in exchange for the greenhouse gases you put in. For example, you can put money toward replanting trees, which absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

You can buy offsets through some airlines - Delta, United and JetBlue, among others. But they don't necessarily make it easy during the booking process; some airlines offer offsets only on separate sustainability pages. You can also buy offsets through other organizations.

To offset the almost 0.9-metric-ton carbon footprint of a single passenger traveling on United from New York to San Francisco in July and back again, Sustainable Travel International, which runs United's offset program, offers two choices: Donate $8.95 to a wind farm in Texas or donate $10.75 to a forest conservation program in Peru.

There's some debate about the best way to offset - where and when tree-planting programs should occur for maximum effect, for example.

"Offsets can provide a useful way to help reduce your climate footprint," said Peter Miller, a scientist with the Natural Resources Defense Council. "But it's important to make sure that you're getting credible and actual real emissions reductions."

To make sure that an offset program really does what it says, it has to meet several criteria, including that it be verified by an independent third party. All of the programs used by the major airlines are verified by such groups to make sure they provide the carbon reduction effects that the companies claim.

According to a study from the World Bank, the emissions associated with flying in business class are about three times as great as flying in coach.

In business class and first class, seats are bigger, so fewer people are being moved by the same amount of fuel. The study estimates that a first-class seat could have a carbon footprint as much as nine times as big as an economy one.

At last, coach passengers have something to be happy about: smaller carbon footprints.

Apparently, some of the rules about lowering and raising your window shades could help cut emissions.

When you land at a warm destination, flight attendants might ask you to shut your window shades, said Christine Boucher, a director of global environmental sustainability for Delta Air Lines.

The reason? It reduces the amount of fuel used to cool the aircraft when it's sitting at the gate, she said.

This won't do anything to counteract all the emissions the plane created while flying. But it's an example of how far airlines will go to save fuel when they can. That helps their bottom lines, but also the environment.

Commercial airlines have been using biofuels in some passenger flights since 2011, mixed with conventional petroleum-based fuels in varying amounts. The biofuels, which can come from sources like natural oils, seaweed and agricultural waste, can help reduce planet-warming emissions from aviation.

Last year, United Airlines started using biofuels in all of its flights out of Los Angeles. The biofuel, made by a company called AltAir Fuels, is estimated to cut at least 60 percent of greenhouse gas emissions compared to regular jet fuel, according to United. (It cuts the emissions used to make the fuel as well as the emissions from burning it.)

Other companies and the American government are working to develop alternative biofuels to use in the airline industry. So far, however, a viable commercial market has not been developed.

In October, more than 190 countries agreed to reduce the carbon footprint of air travel through a combination of offsets and improvements in efficiency.

You can check the fuel efficiency of the airlines you fly. According to a report from the International Council on Clean Transportation, Alaska Airlines and Spirit Airlines were the most efficient domestic carriers in 2010. American Airlines and Allegiant Air were at the bottom of the list of the 15 largest airlines.

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Flying Is Bad for the Planet. You Can Help Make It Better.

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Take one round-trip flight between New York and California, and you've generated about 20 percent of the greenhouse gases that your car emits over an entire year. If you are like many people, flying may be a large portion of your carbon footprint.

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Aerial spraying of pesticides

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"On Saturday, it was total energy, millions of bees foraging, pollinating, making honey for winter," beekeeper Juanita Stanley said. "Today, it stinks of death. Maggots and other insects are feeding on the honey and the baby bees who are still in the hives. It's heartbreaking."

Stanley, co-owner of Flowertown Bee Farm and Supply in Summerville, South Carolina, said she lost 46 beehives -- more than 3 million bees -- in mere minutes after the spraying began Sunday morning.

"Those that didn't die immediately were poisoned trying to drag out the dead," Stanley said. "Now, I'm going to have to destroy my hives, the honey, all my equipment. It's all contaminated."

Stanley said Summerville Fire Capt. Andrew Macke, who keeps bees as a hobby, also lost thousands of bees. She said neither of them had protected their hives because they didn't know about the aerial spraying.

"Andrew has two hives," Stanley said. "He didn't know they were going to spray. His wife called him. His bees are at their porch right by their home, and she saw dead bees everywhere."

It's a tragedy that could be repeated across the country as cases of Zika continue to rise and local mosquito control districts struggle to protect their residents and ease local fears.

The spray fell from the skies between 6:30 and 8:30 a.m. Sunday. It was the first aerial spraying in 14 years, according to Dorchester County Administrator Jason Ward, part of the county's efforts to combat Zika after four local residents were diagnosed with the virus.

"We chose Sunday morning because few people would be out and about that early on a weekend," Ward said. "To protect the bees, you don't want to spray after the sun has been up more two hours, so we scheduled it early."

The county used a product called Trumpet, which contains the pesticide naled, recommended by the Environmental Protection Agency and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for control of adult Aedes aegypti, the mosquito that transmits Zika.

According to the manufacturer's label (PDF), Trumpet is "highly toxic to bees exposed to direct treatment on blooming crops or weeds. To minimize hazard to bees, it is recommended that the product is not applied more than two hours after sunrise or two hours before sunset, limiting application to times when bees are least active."

"We followed that recommendation," said Ward, "which is also the policy laid out by the state, using a pesticide the state has approved for use."

Ward says the county also notified residents of the spraying by posting a notice on its website at 9 a.m. Friday, two days before the spraying. He added that it alerted beekeepers who were on the local mosquito control registry by phone or email, a common practice before truck spraying.

"That's true when they sprayed by trucks; they told me in advance, and we talked about it so I could protect my bees," Stanley said. "But nobody called me about the aerial spraying; nobody told me at all."

Stanley said she "would have been screaming and pleading on their doorstep if they had."

" 'Do it at night when bees are done foraging,' I would have told them," she added, breaking into tears. "But they sprayed at 8 a.m. Sunday, and all of my bees were out, doing their work by then."

Macke was also not informed, Ward said, because he, like many hobby beekeepers, is not on the local mosquito control registry.

"We are obviously saddened by the fact people have lost their hives, and we have gone back and looked at our procedures," Ward said. "We will now give up to five days of advance notice, and we have expanded our list to include more local beekeepers."

Stanley says she doesn't think there was malice involved, but that doesn't make the loss of her "honey girls" any less painful.

"This wasn't about the honey," she said. "It was about raising bees and selling them to other people, and spreading the honey girls out there into the world. Now, I can't help anyone anymore, because all of them are dead."

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zika spraying kills millions of honeybees - cnn

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Zika spraying kills millions of honeybees

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"On Saturday, it was total energy, millions of bees foraging, pollinating, making honey for winter," beekeeper Juanita Stanley said. "Today, it stinks of death. Maggots and other insects are feeding on the honey and the baby bees who are still in the hives. It's heartbreaking."

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Space Junk

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Sea Dredging