Are you utilizing the smartest waste disposal strategies for your household or business? The disposal of everyday wastes can prove more complicated than expected, but with improving technologies, it’s no longer so difficult. Recycling has become one of the most important aspects of modern waste management, and the industry has continued to see changes. Here are six facts to give you a better understanding of the challenges and successes in this field.
1. As of 2021, the world generated over 2.01 billion tons of municipal solid waste annually. At least 33% of that waste was not managed in an environmentally safe manner.
2. It is estimated that up to 8 million metric tons of plastic reaches the planet’s oceans each year. That equates to five grocery bags filled with plastic for every foot of shoreline on earth.
3. By the year 2050, the world is expected to produce up to 3.4 billion tons of global waste, high-income countries generate relatively less food and green waste, at 32 percent of total waste, and generate more dry waste that could be recycled, middle- and low-income countries generate 53 percent and 57 percent food and green waste.
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4. The average US citizen generates around 4.4 pounds of trash each day. That is almost twice as much as the global average, which is around 2.6 pounds each day. This equates to 4% of the world’s population generating 12% of the total trash production.
5. From 2015 to 2016, the City of Raleigh, North Carolina generated approximately 10,579,912 total disposed tons of waste.
6. With over 10,000 acres of green space and 200 parks to take care of, the City of Raleigh partnered with Cityworks to help manage their community’s waste by developing Bigbelly Smart Waste receptacles and recycling bins to communicate real-time capacity status to crews when bins need to be emptied.
Watch this short video explaining how the City of Raleigh, North Carolina, utilizes Cityworks.
