In New York, according to Urban Omnibus, "Each week, approximately 64,000 tons of household and institutional waste are collected. ... But public awareness of what happens to that trash once it leaves the curb is limited."
Urban Omnibus talks with Elizabeth Royte, author of the 2005 book Garbage Land on video, "who offers a snapshot of how New Yorkers have treated their trash from the 18th century onwards."
"The immense distances trash travels (and the amount of cost and energy used to transport, transfer, recycle, incinerate or dump it) pose obvious questions about how we expend environmental resources in support of our country's vast consumption practices."
In another video, a team behind a project called Trash | Track (MIT's SENSEable City Laboratory) created sensors that allowed them to track where their trash went once it was collected. According to Urban Omnibus, "They completed a pilot project in partnership with the City of Seattle that visualized these journeys and documented the ultimate fate of pieces of trash that are barely considered after being tossed in the garbage (see introductory video below)."
FULL STORY: City of Systems: Waste Removal
Parked Cars Hamper NYC Trash Containerization Effort
Sanitation workers must manually collect bags from containers blocked by parked cars, slowing a process that is meant to be safer and more efficient.
Garden Transforms Trash Into Works of Art
South Coast Botanic Garden highlights the importance of sustainability through its latest exhibit which consists of 16 giant creatures made from beach debris that washed ashore.
Rising Costs Could End Phoenix's Municipal Recycling Program
The city of Phoenix will either have to raise the rate for waste removal int he city or cut programs like recycling.
Analysis: Cybertruck Fatality Rate Far Exceeds That of Ford Pinto
The Tesla Cybertruck was recalled seven times last year.
National Parks Layoffs Will Cause Communities to Lose Billions
Thousands of essential park workers were laid off this week, just before the busy spring break season.
Retro-silient?: America’s First “Eco-burb,” The Woodlands Turns 50
A master-planned community north of Houston offers lessons on green infrastructure and resilient design, but falls short of its founder’s lofty affordability and walkability goals.
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Analysis: Cybertruck Fatality Rate Far Exceeds That of Ford Pinto
The Tesla Cybertruck was recalled seven times last year.
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Planning for Universal Design
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Planetizen
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Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service