Used to think recycling was enough until I saw the plastic pile at our local dump

I always felt good putting stuff in the blue bin, thinking I was doing my part. But last summer I volunteered for a cleanup at the county dump near Austin and saw this mountain of plastic that just sits there, not breaking down. The workers told me most of what we recycle either gets burned or shipped overseas, and only a tiny fraction actually gets remade. Now I focus way more on refusing single use plastics and buying things in glass or metal instead. Anyone else have a moment where they realized recycling wasn't the whole answer?

3 comments

3 Comments

sanchez.mary15h ago

Yeah, same here. It honestly broke my heart a little when I found out how much of our recycling just ends up in the same landfill anyway. I mean, I still do it because maybe it helps a tiny bit, but I don't rely on it as my main solution anymore. I started switching to bar soap and shampoo bars, and I bring my own jars to the bulk store for stuff like rice and oats. It takes some getting used to, but I feel a lot less guilty about what I throw away now. idk, it's like the whole system is set up to make us feel good about buying more plastic, but the real change is just buying less stuff in the first place.

phoenix_bailey5h ago

Made the switch to bar soap and shampoo bars myself about a year ago. Biggest difference I noticed was how much less trash I actually produced, especially in the bathroom. Started bringing my own containers to the bulk section at H-E-B for stuff like pasta and lentils too. The system really does feel like it's designed to make you feel good about buying more plastic. Cutting back on what you bring home in the first place just works better than trying to recycle your way out of a pile of waste.

rileygarcia12h ago

My neighbor works at a recycling plant and says the whole "it all goes to landfill" thing is way exaggerated, like that's just what people tell themselves so they don't have to sort their cans properly. Plastic recycling works fine when people actually rinse their stuff and don't throw in random junk like garden hoses and plastic bags that wreck the machinery.