Sweden Needs More Trash, Because It Has Turned All It’s Got Into Energy

What happens when a recycling plan is too successful? Sweden does such a good job recycling and turning its waste to energy that it has started importing trash from its neighbors.

Americans, in general, are bad at recycling. In 2010, U.S. residents recycled 34% of their waste–an embarrassing amount compared to European countries like the Netherlands, Germany, and Austria, where people recycle almost all of their waste. In Sweden, people are so diligent about recycling that just 4% of all trash ends up in landfills, It’s a heartening statistic, but it has led to a problem for the country–there’s not enough garbage to power the country’s large waste-to-energy program. Sweden’s solution: import trash.

Ariel Schwartz

Full Story: http://www.fastcoexist.com/1680763/sweden-needs-more-trash-because-it-has-turned-all-its-got-into-energy