Take a moment, consider where your rubbish and recycling goes after it is picked up from your kerbside. The Ministry for the Environment recently reported it is estimated that Aotearoa New Zealand generates 17.49 million tonnes of waste per year, of which 12.59 million tonnes is sent to landfill. Our glass is recycled in New Zealand and is mainly turned into bottles and jars but can also be processed into what’s known as ‘glasscrete’ and ‘glassphalt.’ Paper and cardboard are recycled in Asia and New Zealand and can be processed into newsprint, writing paper, tissue, corrugated cardboard, egg cartons and fruit trays. Plastics with the codes (1,2,5) can be processed in New Zealand. Plastics with the codes (3, 4, 6, 7 and contaminated plastics) are processed in Asia and Australia; however, plastic is often cheaper to manufacture than recycle. Aluminum is recycled in Asia and can be processed into new aerosol and drink cans, and steel is made into food cans, wire and building materials. Malaysia receives the largest portion of our waste, then Indonesia, Hong Kong, Thailand, Australia, Taiwan, Vietnam, and Singapore.
The featured photo was taken in Dakar, Senegal by Finbarr O’Reilly for The New York Times. The countries listed above, and Senegal are being flooded by other countries waste and their own. It’s a sad reality and sooner or later we will have to seriously address our waste problem.