Blue Bin Bubble Burst
I can only imagine that based on the title of this little whine you probably have no idea what this is going to be about. Neither did I, until I just read the newspaper. I am feeling feisty today and this just "blue" my mind.
It appears that because of the economic downturn there is less cardboard, plastic, aluminum, and bottles being disposed of because there are less items containng these materials that are being purchased. The trickle down result is that recycling has become a non-cost effective enterprise, which will probably be suspended by most municipalities in the near future. It seems that "once you throw that aluminum can in the blue recycling bin, you become part of the global commodities market." In the past few months the value of commodities such as aluminum and newspapers has gone from $100 a bundle to $40 a bundle. Most municipalities are in a revenue-sharing agreement with recycling companies, with the city's share going towards the cost of collection of recyclable goods. And, the recycling companies are losing money because they can no longer afford to transport the bundles to be dumped in China and there is less demand for all goods - made from recycled materials or not - in the U.S. and elsewhere.
They are thinking of storing it in bundles in warehouses until the market changes, but more than likely they will just suspend your re-cycling pick-ups by the sanitation department or add more charges to your sanitation bill to cover the costs directly. The new thought being that it will be considered an "added luxury" with a surcharge, if I choose to recycle re-usable materials in those blue bins.
Now wait a minute. Wasn't the point of this to "Save Our Environment." Didn't tree huggers once risk being eaten by bears for the cause and G8 Summit Meeting protestors risk the cold of Iceland to let the importance of this issue be known. And Al Gore made a movie that wasn't just about global warming but included the effects of landfills and trash dumping on our future -- he gave up politics for this cause. I thought this was about saving the planet, not becoming a part of the commodities market. Are we no longer allowed to do anything for the greater good of the world without our "market economy" determining the price of participation or the monetary value of the cause.
Now everyone buys toilet paper. Forget how soft it is for Charmin Bears' Butts. It has one basic flushable purpose, so get over it! We all still use kleenex, since I haven't seen the commodities board show a rise in purchases of linen handkerchiefs. Many still use paper towels and paper napkins. Every school uses paper and pencils, even if offices are using less. All computer ink cartridges are made of plastic. Most cell phones - one of our continuing large sellers - has numerous plastic components, as do most computers. Are people really buying less wine, liquor, and beer in bottles? It has been shown that in depressed economic times people tend to drink more - I am not advocating it, just pointing out the obvious. Canned soup is more popular than ever as a food staple so the aluminum should come in handy. Frozen food is packed in cardboard boxes, fast food wrapped in aluminum/plastic wrappers, and people are still drinking milk out of plastic containers. So, why isn't there a mandate that all of these products must be made from recycled materials as a part of corporate America's duty to contribute towards saving our Earth?
And, here is a radical thought, why aren't we re-tooling some of the auto plants or failing manufacturing industries to convert recyclable bundles into safe, usable new goods such as mentioned above? We could then begin to once again see labels claiming "Made in The USA."
Sure the labor won't be as cheap as China or Korea, but we will be stimulating our own economy for once, along with a moral, long term goal of protecting our country's air, waterways, and land quality from more toxin producing trash. And think about it folks, the shipping costs of goods from Asia have got to be costing something on top of the cheap labor?
No sooner do we finally got our citizens in the habit of recycling from a moral obligation as an inhabitant of this world, then now we are telling them to "forget about it" --it's not profitable.
What then is the measure of profit - the profit from making our planet a safer home to our species with a longer life expectancy or the instant pocketed profit of the capitalist market theorists who too often are short sighted in what a real profit looks like from a world view.
(To my handful of devoted readers, please be advise that my Blog will be posted three times a week, so check in to see if my latest whine is waiting for you. Thanks.)
It appears that because of the economic downturn there is less cardboard, plastic, aluminum, and bottles being disposed of because there are less items containng these materials that are being purchased. The trickle down result is that recycling has become a non-cost effective enterprise, which will probably be suspended by most municipalities in the near future. It seems that "once you throw that aluminum can in the blue recycling bin, you become part of the global commodities market." In the past few months the value of commodities such as aluminum and newspapers has gone from $100 a bundle to $40 a bundle. Most municipalities are in a revenue-sharing agreement with recycling companies, with the city's share going towards the cost of collection of recyclable goods. And, the recycling companies are losing money because they can no longer afford to transport the bundles to be dumped in China and there is less demand for all goods - made from recycled materials or not - in the U.S. and elsewhere.
They are thinking of storing it in bundles in warehouses until the market changes, but more than likely they will just suspend your re-cycling pick-ups by the sanitation department or add more charges to your sanitation bill to cover the costs directly. The new thought being that it will be considered an "added luxury" with a surcharge, if I choose to recycle re-usable materials in those blue bins.
Now wait a minute. Wasn't the point of this to "Save Our Environment." Didn't tree huggers once risk being eaten by bears for the cause and G8 Summit Meeting protestors risk the cold of Iceland to let the importance of this issue be known. And Al Gore made a movie that wasn't just about global warming but included the effects of landfills and trash dumping on our future -- he gave up politics for this cause. I thought this was about saving the planet, not becoming a part of the commodities market. Are we no longer allowed to do anything for the greater good of the world without our "market economy" determining the price of participation or the monetary value of the cause.
Now everyone buys toilet paper. Forget how soft it is for Charmin Bears' Butts. It has one basic flushable purpose, so get over it! We all still use kleenex, since I haven't seen the commodities board show a rise in purchases of linen handkerchiefs. Many still use paper towels and paper napkins. Every school uses paper and pencils, even if offices are using less. All computer ink cartridges are made of plastic. Most cell phones - one of our continuing large sellers - has numerous plastic components, as do most computers. Are people really buying less wine, liquor, and beer in bottles? It has been shown that in depressed economic times people tend to drink more - I am not advocating it, just pointing out the obvious. Canned soup is more popular than ever as a food staple so the aluminum should come in handy. Frozen food is packed in cardboard boxes, fast food wrapped in aluminum/plastic wrappers, and people are still drinking milk out of plastic containers. So, why isn't there a mandate that all of these products must be made from recycled materials as a part of corporate America's duty to contribute towards saving our Earth?
And, here is a radical thought, why aren't we re-tooling some of the auto plants or failing manufacturing industries to convert recyclable bundles into safe, usable new goods such as mentioned above? We could then begin to once again see labels claiming "Made in The USA."
Sure the labor won't be as cheap as China or Korea, but we will be stimulating our own economy for once, along with a moral, long term goal of protecting our country's air, waterways, and land quality from more toxin producing trash. And think about it folks, the shipping costs of goods from Asia have got to be costing something on top of the cheap labor?
No sooner do we finally got our citizens in the habit of recycling from a moral obligation as an inhabitant of this world, then now we are telling them to "forget about it" --it's not profitable.
What then is the measure of profit - the profit from making our planet a safer home to our species with a longer life expectancy or the instant pocketed profit of the capitalist market theorists who too often are short sighted in what a real profit looks like from a world view.
(To my handful of devoted readers, please be advise that my Blog will be posted three times a week, so check in to see if my latest whine is waiting for you. Thanks.)
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