New York City's Department of Sanitation slogged through a year's worth of city garbage to see exactly what people throw away. Both the recycling and the waste were analyzed and compiled into a very interesting and telling report entitled: "The New York City 2004-05 Residential and Street Basket Waste Characterization Study." The trash study was the only way the department could decipher people's habits and in turn create better recycling programs. The recycling habits of New Yorkers have improved from 15 years ago, during the last trash study, but there is definitely a need for even greater change.

Residential trash contains ¼ recyclables
So what exactly is in the garbage? In residential trash, organic material makes up the largest segment at 47%, with recyclable paper at 15% and plastics at almost 12%. But of this refuse, 23% is easily recyclable material that just wasn't separated into the recycle bin. This includes paper, metal, glass, and plastic that people couldn't be bothered to toss into the blue container rather than the black one. And this is just residential waste.

Street litter baskets contain ½ recyclables
Street litter baskets are the worst offenders of holding potential recyclable material that is needlessly tossed away. Almost half — that's 47.14% to be exact — of street basket waste can be recycled but isn't. Newspapers make up the bulk of the garbage at more than 15%, with other recyclable paper at 15%, glass at 7%, metal at 6%, and plastics at almost 3%.

What the study doesn't show is the amount of people who make their livelihoods by picking through the street baskets for recyclables. Cans and bottles make up the bulk of their haul because the bottle deposits can be cashed in. Old newspapers and cardboard aren't attractive because there is no payback for digging those out of the trash. If the baskets weren't picked through, the amount of recyclables would be even higher than 47%.

Overall results
Overall, 35% of the refuse studied is recycled. But recycling habits of New York's citizens should be better than only 77% residential and 53% out on the street. On the Department of Sanitation's NYCWasteLe$$ website, there are numerous tips on how to reduce waste as well as information about recycling.

Recycling is mandated by law, so you are actually breaking the law when you don't recycle. At home recycling couldn't be easier. You either are given curbside recycling bins that are picked up on certain days, or your apartment building has different containers for your different recyclables. Throwing away trash and tossing recycling into its required bins takes the same amount of effort. When you are outside of home, think about what you throw away before you do it. How difficult is it to hold on to your read newspaper until you get to the office or home so you can recycle it? Can you put your used drink can or bottle into a bag and keep it with you until you find a place to recycle it?

Little acts like this will help keep one less thing out of a landfill. You might think that you aren't contributing much, but if the other eight million people in the city also decided to not throw away their newspaper — that's 8,000,000 less papers in the trash.

keeping the earth ever green

Lisa Tae-Ran Schroeder