Curb Appeal

[phkrause]

Trash collection, explained The United States generates more municipal solid waste per capita than any other nation on Earth: roughly 292 million tons per year, or about 4.9 pounds per person per day. Trash collection in the US is a local responsibility, managed by city and county governments, often with help from private companies.   Waste flows through an industrial ecosystem that spans garbage trucks, transfer stations, landfills, and waste-to-energy facilities. As of 2018, roughly half of all municipal solid waste is landfilled, about 32% is recycled or composted, and nearly 12% is burned for energy recovery.   New York City became the first US city to implement public-sector garbage management in 1895. Around that time, less than 25% of American cities had waste management systems, but by 1910, 80% did. ... Read what else we learned about trash collection here.   Also, check out ...  > An anthropologist spent years riding garbage trucks to understand what our trash says about us. (Listen) > Modern landfills use layered liners, leachate systems, and gas monitoring to safely contain waste. (Learn) > A solar-powered device with googly eyes is pulling trash from Baltimore's harbor. (Watch) > Why some US cities pay thousands of dollars for a single public trash can. (Read)