Reduce, Reuse & Policy

The most effective recycling is the kind you don't have to do. Plus: what actually happens with your "recyclables" and the policies changing the system.

The Waste Hierarchy

1. Refuse — Don't buy it in the first place
2. Reduce — Use less of what you do buy
3. Reuse — Find second lives for items
4. Recycle — Process materials into new products
5. Rot — Compost organic waste
6. Landfill — Last resort