Garbage Land

A good attempt by the author to actually trace the flow of her own garbage and other waste through the system of collection, processing, and final disposal. It doesn't quite fully satisfy, but it is a good start on the path of searching out where a person's garbage goes.Some notes:1) The author traces the path of her trash through both the recycling and the direct to the landfill dump.2) On the way to the dump, she follows the garbage trucks (in a ride along) to the Transfer Station & then to the landfill dumps (when she is not allowed as many won't allow access to non-employees).3) On the recycling side, she does the same, This time with a very good discussion of the economics of recycling. (A special note here is that recycling is basically a loss prone business in the US. Much recycling is repackaged and shipped to China on the return trips of those containers that bring us everything from shoes to cheap toys, all in packaging that must be either recycled, or stuffed into a landfill.)4) She works on reducing her waste "footprint" by categorizing & sorting her trash. Also, she works on reducing her incoming stream of material (grocery store plastic bags as an example) that will go to either recycling, or the landfill.Some things of note: She does mention the amount of waste in a Fast Food Restaurant & follows the trail of the commercial side of the trash (what she gets when she buys a meal). She mentions the back end trash (what comes in the back door of the restaurant & then goes out that same back door to the dumpster). (As an aside, I was camping at a KOA this summer & next to the facility was a special dumpster that a fast food restaurant used only for paper & cardboard waste. The dumpster was full every night & was picked up for recycling on a daily basis!) That portion of our trash cycle (industrial & commercial waste) could be the genesis for another book.So, what does the book tell us of our society? Basically, we are a throw away society. Cheap goods, or goods that breakdown are thrown away more often than they are repaired, is our hallmark. We have trended into the no-deposit/no-return world of buy it & then, when done, toss it in the trash. The author talks about the deposit/redemption laws in several states & municipalities. She also notes that a returned container usually goes to the crusher (for glass), or the smelter (for aluminum cans). (I remember the returnable, 24 to a case, long necked beer bottles that disappeared in the 1990s. So, in commemoration of their disappearance, how about a Country Western Song titled, "Where have all the Long Necks Gone?")One final note: I had not considered the sheer volume of plastic that I personally go through in a typical weekly trash cycle until I read this book. And, that is only plastic bags in the grocery store & the packaging around the basic household items that I purchase (shampoo & etc.). The volume is sheer madness & seems to grow even greater in volume every year!

Elizabeth Royte follows the trail of refuse from her household in Brooklyn to its final resting places in landfills, recycling facilities, and sanitation/sewage treatment plants, while expanding each of the topics as to how they are handled in other locations, primarily in the United States. She also does a great job with the history of garbage and sewage, primarily from metropolitan New York.The book is well researched and well written, blending facts and anecdotal experiences smoothly and coherently. It would have benefited significantly from two changes:first, better editorial review of the chemistry/physics of waste management, especially with respect to plastics, where she tends to conflate the issues and hazards, and makes errors of fact hat detract from her overall excellent points.I was also disappointed that she did not really identify countries or communities that are doing exemplary work handling each of the waste streams she discusses. When these are discussed, they are very light on detail. I aslo think the book would have benefited from a list of organizations that could serve as 'next step' points of contact for readers who would like to become more involved in this issue.

I found this book to be very interesting because I happen to live in Brooklyn from where the author's garbage orginates, so I know a lot of the locales referred to in the book. As I was reading I was wondering if someone outside of NY would agree. I think so.The introduction explaining her method of how she tracked her garbage by separating and weighing in granular detail was worth skipping for me. This is a personal journey for Elizabeth, so she included many of her feelings as well as methods of experimentation to reduce, re-use and recycle. But the most interesting parts for me were learning how the system works not just here in NYC, but everywhere. The bottom line is that your garbage never really goes away, it just gets moved someplace that you don't see it. She covers all of it, from recycling, to sewage, to waste of all strains. And it's not pretty, folks. It's a matter of time before it comes back to you in some form through dangerous poisons in your drinking water or food, being washed up on a nearby shore, or in the air you breathe.I personally think her efforts to reduce her own waste footprint, while admirable and noble, is too small to make a difference and the burden should be put on the massive industry that creates this junk that will either never break down or will wind up as lethal poisons. Just the bi-products of manufacture of all the packaging and product is enough to ruin our food, air and water supply for thousands of years.This book is full of information everyone should be aware of and it got me thinking beyond my pail. It's not an easy pill to swallow, but Garbage Land made me aware of the scope of the problem and making industy responsible for their waste is now one of my personal issues.A follow-up book: A nation like Japan has approximately the popluation of the USA in a country roughly the size of California...where do *they* put it all. I'd be interested.

I found the book interesting, especially since I will soon be working at a solid waste management company (which is the reason I wanted to do some research on the industry). The book is a bit disturbing because it highlights what a huge monster the waste cycle is, and it can make you feel a little hopeless at times, but I think it's important that it is highlighted because we need to recognize how much waste we generate before we are able to do anything about it. However, the reason I only gave it four stars is because the writing style was inconsistent to me. Some parts were very intriguing and easy to get through, but other parts were too detailed or unnecessary. However, I do appreciate the story format of the book where she takes us on her garbage adventure with her.

Interesting run through consumer waste and disposal in New York (and a bit in other US cities). A personal journey with waste, and some interesting personal relationships. Recommended for garbage geeks and anyone concerned with the environment and the impact we (maybe unintentionally) have.

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