Watch 8:07
Loss of Chinese export market drives new ideas for repurposing recyclables
China’s decision to buy less recyclable material from the U.S. has prompted major questions about how we handle waste in America. What will we do with our abundance of plastic bottles and pizza boxes, if exporting them is no longer…
Watch 7:03
Tiny Easter Island deals with giant trash problem
Easter Island off the coast of Chile has a major trash problem. It’s near what’s known as a “trash vortex” in the middle of the South Pacific and floating waste is constantly washing ashore. Local officials estimate the growing population…
Watch 8:05
Why your recyclables might have no place to go
Until this year, China had been America's -- and the world's -- number one recycling market. But China has shut its doors to plastic waste, which could result by 2030 in more than 100 million tons of trash with nowhere…
Watch 9:36
Why it will take more than basic recycling to cut back on plastic
In the 70 years that plastic has been around, humans have created 9 billion tons of it -- most of which still exists. Are the existing strategies for tackling plastic pollution -- namely reusing and recycling -- really making any…
About one-third of all the food produced for human consumption is lost or wasted, according to the United Nations. But several years ago, South Korea instituted a law that requires residents to separate food waste from other garbage and imposes…
As consumers call for more sustainable products, companies are experimenting with ways to meet the growing demand for recycled clothing while maintaining their bottom lines.
The U.S. leads the world in e-waste, and while electronic recycling is increasingly popular, what happens after consumers drop off their computers, phones and other products is less clear. A watchdog group has found a lot of tossed junk, with…
Scientists in Japan have discovered bacteria that feed on plastic and may change the future of recycling.
These scientists are making glass from what you throw in the garbage. They hope that our waste will be the cutting edge of mining.
