Chris Leone

This is pathetic. I’ve lived in my new place coming on three months now and I still can’t find a simple, easy recycling solution in downtown Richmond. I’ve asked around, I’ve Google’d my butt off finding little to nothing. Pathetic.

It looks like in order to do the right thing by recycling, I’ll have to lug my collection of bottles and glass into my car and drive somewhere that will take it. Remember, I’m not in some remote shack out in the country, I’m in the middle of the CITY OF RICHMOND, VA; the state’s capital. We should be setting the example. So where do I have to go to recycle my stuff? About 3 miles away. That doesn’t seem terrible, but how many people are going to go out of their way to drop off some empty cans? Ironically, by getting in my car and driving, I’m burning fuel, so I can ultimately do something good for the environment.

Is this not screwed up?

Japan has it figured out. For nearly every public trash can there are multiple recycling options. For instance, if I have a soda bottle, the bottle goes in one bin, the paper gets torn off and thrown in another (the wrapping is perforated for this exact purpose), and the cap gets thrown in a third. Excessive? Not for them. Could Americans pull it off? Not at this rate. 

My proposal: For EVERY public trash can, there is a second can along side of it for recycle. If we’re feeling a little wild and crazy, make it two more cans, or even THREE! The point is to ALWAYS provide the option to recycle waste. You can’t convince people to do extra work when they don’t see a clear measurable benefit to themselves. That’s just the society we live in. So let’s dumb this down and make it easy for people to do the right thing.