In Plain Sight | Waste Management

Where does stuff go? It’s a bothersome issue about which our civilization seems to have mixed feelings. While buying thermal underwear, we’re promised that “Everything must go”, but while learning about thermodynamics, we’re warned that “Nothing goes away.”

Waste Management hopes more stuff will go to its recycling center in northeast Minneapolis (above). Here, state of the art equipment gobbles up, sorts, and makes fit for reuse a single-stream of waste material. By eliminating the need to pre-sort waste, single-stream recyclers claim up to 15% more people will participate.

A different approach being implemented by Allied Waste aims to reward those who recycle by offering customer-loyalty perks in the form of coupons and gift certificates.

If you put enough bottles and cans on the curb, should someone give you a coupon to go buy more? Design ten LEED certified buildings and get your next one free?