Publisher's Synopsis
Every day every one of us contributes to the waste problem but, despite being a part of our lives, waste is poorly understood, even by those who should know better. We live in a throw-away society and yet what is discarded is a vital raw material and ingredient being traded as a valuable commodity around the world.
Recycling our Future provides insight into the challenges facing the industry and individuals as the world contemplates expanding waste mountains. Finite resources are being eroded as the world's growing and increasingly affluent population demands a better standard of living with bigger houses, new TVs, computers, and other items.
Waste is a valuable raw material when treated correctly but a hazard when neglected. The author warns of illegal shipments of waste continuing unabated, and highlights the pressures and challenges facing governments and the industry. He also explains how the system works from the moment a carton is dropped into a bin to being recycled, resold, and restocked on supermarkets' shelves. He explodes the myths about waste recycling, looks at the technology that is used, and explains why the subject matters to everyone.
The book is complemented with contributions from experts around the world and the author reveals how so-called rubbish has a value, how it is traded on the financial markets, and suggests that waste should be treated as a prize worthy of investment, rather than a problem to be shunned.
