How much of our ‘recycled’ rubbish ends up as rubbish on the other side of the world?
There are Freedom of Information requests asking these questions:
The Futures Forum has reported on this:
Why the world’s recycling system stopped working
Our recycling system really is not working:
We should be following the “proximity principle” and dealing with our own recycling waste at home
UK plastic pollution ending up in Poland, rather than China
Waste crime is the “new narcotics” >>> UK plastic pollution ending up in Poland once again – and being sent back
The plastics recycling industry is facing an investigation into suspected widespread abuse and fraud within the export system
“The golden shores of Bali are being lost under a mountain of garbage”
BBC Radio 4 looks at the latest:
A Load of Rubbish
Households in Britain are recycling more than ever, with millions of us dutifully sorting through our rubbish every week in an effort to help save the planet. But when the blue, green and brown bins are taken away, what really happens to our waste?
File on 4 goes digging through Britain’s multi-million pound recycling industry – and discovers it’s a dirty business.
The UK sends more than half its recyclable packaging overseas, selling our sorted plastics and paper to countries which need the raw material and will recycle it. But when File on 4 tracks where shipments are being sent – we discover they can have a devastating effect on the developing communities where they end up.