Although waste production is on the rise in America compared to the past, increased recycling is curbing the trash that ends up in landfills, according to a new Environmental Protection Agency report covering 2010 municipal solid waste production.
The newest version of the report was released on November 15, and it provides facts and figures of the United State’s waste production and recycling in 2010. The same report has been released every few years for the last 30, providing data regarding disposal trends throughout the country.
As outlined in the report, Americans created 249.9 million tons of waste in 2010. That’s 4.43 pounds per American per day. This is slightly lower than the 252.7 million tons generated in 2005, but incredibly higher than what Americans were producing in years before. In 1980, for example, Americans produced 151.60 million tons of waste or 3.66 pounds per person per day.
Although Americans are creating more waste, the trend is being off set significantly by an increase in recycling. In 1980, Americans recycled and composted only 14.5% of all municipal waste created; 2010 seen much better results with a recycling rate of 34 percent. Out of each 4.43 pounds produced, 1.51 pounds were recycled or composted. That makes the amount of trash each person contributes to landfills actually lower than 1960, when American’s were producing 2.68 pounds per day of trash but recycling at a rate of only 6.4 percent.
The items reported as recycled most in 2010 were automotive batteries, newspapers, mechanical papers, and steel cans. Plastic and glass bottles and jars made the bottom of the list of items that were recycled.
This increased recycling of potential waste equals 186 million metric tons of reduced carbon dioxide emissions. That is comparable to taking 36 million passenger vehicles off the street.
