How come Recycling isn't mandatory?

Question

The dumpsters are overloaded, trash ends up in ocean water setting off a replica of lethal events. I saw on TV last night how some birds are dying and they find plastic junk in the birds stomach.

I think in order to prevent excess trash to begin with we should start at the source... home. If everyone recyled imagine the difference we can begin to make. So why the heck isnt recycling madatory to begin with?

Answer 1

well i know were i live if you throw something that is recyclable in the garbage you can get a fine.

recycling will help but it wont completely solve the problem. to many products are being made to only last a few mouths and then they end up in the dump, i watched a very interesting video a couple days ago but i cant find it on line.

Answer 2

In my area, it is.

Answer 3

this is what i want to know too...people are dumping cardboards and everything in the non-recycling bin....if we voted for green for the prime minister..they would have made a difference..i guess its a big process and will cost the economy alot of money..and the countries has bigger problems i guess

Answer 4

Recycling is a business....you must have places to take recycled stuff before you start the process.

Answer 5

In my city, recycling is mandatory. But we live outside city limits, so we do not have any recycling programs here. Now get this, if we want to recycle on our own WE HAVE TO PAY FOR IT!!! How ridiculous is THAT? I would like to know the answer to this question myself.

Answer 6

It is around here. For example...If you are caught tossing a used car tire into the dumpster you'll be fined by the trash collection company. I am sure that this will become more mandatory as time goes by. Lots of uneducated people STILL DON'T understand.....I am sure those are the same people STILL smoking cigarettes, drinking and driving and tossing their empty beer bottles out of their car windows at night.

Answer 7

There are several issues here, but 3 that deserve mention:

1) Recycling in most countries that produce the majority of waste (ie so called developed countries) is relatively expensive because production, trade systems and government subsidies are set up for over-production with little cost to the producers in recycling their product. Many developing countries actively recycle because it is still economic to do so, and there are very poor people that are willing to do it for income. That's why even cities like London don't recycle much plastic, but those like Jakarta have 1000s of people scouring rubbish mountains for these products.

2) There is an attitude amongst a lot of societies that people are increasingly paying more taxes and having their civil liberties controlled. As such, many view recycling as the left/green politicians trying to make their life difficult, while they should be concerned with more important issues such as health, education (and in some countries, stupid wars).

3) Similarly there will always be people who ask why should they make an effort to recycle when government services and businesses openly and publicly do not, or do not do enough. For example, how much waste is involved in construction projects - a h**l of a lot more per capita than household waste. How much waste do Yahoo! produce and how much of this is recycled?

Slowly these issues are being tackled, but not fast enough. Until there is less waste to recycle, more social incentives to do so, and fewer double standards evident in society, it won't be anywhere near enough. We are making progress, however, and the only way for change is for increased pressure from the public in the first place. We should keep on pushing the issue.

Answer 8

They're working on it, in Seattle at least. Next year they're making a mandate for residents to increase their recycling or be fined.

Answer 9

Luv,

The problem right now with recycling is the town you live in is getting paid for the recycled material by weight and they are not passing those dollars along to you. Years ago, you could take your newspapers for example, have them weighed, then get paid by the pound. At that time, people would save newspapers and even collect papers that didnt belong to them just so they could collect $$. I think we need that incentive again because not everyone recycles just because it is the right thing to do.

Nice picture by the way :)

Answer 10

Things will improve gradually.

Answer 11

Wow, you saw if on TV? Then it must be true!!

I saw a thing on religion on TV and that religion isn't mandantory. Imagine!!

Answer 12

Well its not mandatory that u take ur trash out! And who would police weather people had recycled or not? It is a good idea to recycle but it would be far far to hard to make it mandatory. It would cost lots of $$ and  governments are not willing to pay

Answer 13

well it costs a lot, in developing countries they still deal on mass starvation rather than recycling...

but it also depends on the leader...

but developed countries like america waste more so i think america and other developed countries must work first

there would come a time that it would be mandatory

Answer 14

becuz people dont care bout it