Because city residents generate four times as much trash as rural residents, the rapid growth of the world's cities is leading to the rapid growth of the world's garbage. A new study examines future trash troubles and potential solutions.
"Global waste has bulged 10-fold in the last century," notes Ben Schiller. "And by 2025, it's set to double from where it is today, according to a study in the journal Nature. The chief reason: newly rich cities of the developing world."
"'As a country becomes richer, the composition of its waste changes. With more money comes more packaging, imports, electronic waste, and broken toys and appliances,' says the article by Daniel Hoornweg, Perinaz Bhada-Tata and Chris Kennedy. In turn, that leads to environmental problems, like toxic leakages from landfills, and plastic clogging oceans and rivers."
How can we slow, and eventually stop, the growth of the world's waste? "They recommend the rest of the world take a cue from San Francisco's book (it has a zero-waste policy), and introduce disposal fees that put a price on waste generation," explains Schiller. "'Increased education, equality, and targeted economic development' could cut population growth, limiting waste naturally, they add."
FULL STORY: By 2100, We'll Be Living In A World Of Garbage
Austin Reveals New Zero Waste Plan
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Pennsylvania Mall Conversion Bill Passes House
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Coming Soon to Ohio: The Largest Agrivoltaic Farm in the US
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World's Largest Wildlife Overpass In the Works in Los Angeles County
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California Grid Runs on 100% Renewable Energy for Over 9 Hours
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AI Traffic Management Comes to Dallas-Fort Worth
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City of Costa Mesa
Licking County
Barrett Planning Group LLC
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Mpact Transit + Community
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Tufts University, Department of Urban and Environmental Policy & Planning
City of Universal City TX
ULI Northwest Arkansas
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