When New Yorkers think of pressing environmental issues, many think of the worsening climate crisis.\u00a0 And with good reason:\u00a0 Last year was the hottest in recorded human history and it is deteriorating rapidly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Yet, there is another environmental crisis that demands attention \u2013 the mounting problem of what to do with trash. According<\/a> to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), Americans now generate twice as much waste as they did 50 years ago. What to do with the trash that we all produce? Right now, the number<\/a> one place that residential trash goes to is a landfill, number two is that it is exported for disposal, number three burned, and last recycled. There is no evidence that the problem is getting better. In fact, the state\u2019s residential recycling rate has been dropping<\/a> over the past decade. By the way, these disposal methods contribute to the climate crisis: Solid waste accounts<\/a> for 12% of statewide greenhouse gas emissions, most of which comes from decomposing waste in landfills. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The state\u2019s capacity to take this problem on is dwindling. Again according<\/a> to the DEC, \u201cNew York\u2019s 25 municipal solid waste landfills have a combined landfill capacity of between 16 and 25 years.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n If the state\u2019s landfills are filled to capacity in a decade or so, what will happen? Trucking the waste somewhere else is likely to be the option, but that is expensive and who knows for how long someone else will be willing to take New York\u2019s trash. Actions taken now could extend the lifespan of these landfills, but waiting will make the options even more difficult.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Policymakers have long known what to do about it, but as yet have done far too little to take on the mounting crisis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n During the last week of December, the state\u2019s DEC released its review<\/a> of how New York handles its wastes and offered a 10 year plan for how to deal with it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The \u201cNew York State Solid Waste Management Plan\u201d contained six major \u201cFocus Areas\u201d with goals and action items. Overall, the Plan called for a shift toward a \u201ccircular economy.\u201d A \u201ccircular economy<\/a>\u201d is one in which the manufacturer of a product, like packaging, ensures that it can be reused, repurposed or serve a beneficial purpose upon disposal, e.g<\/em>., composting. The Plan\u2019s six major focus areas include:<\/p>\n\n