Low economic countries are served a triple-whammy when it comes to recycling. Plastic production has shifted to many Asian countries particularly China & Vietnam where the consequences of the chemical-laden process and runoff are suffered by the local communities. The plastic is then manufactured into products or shipped raw to industrialized nations who have not paid a price for the pollution (and exploited labor) that has occurred (nor the impact during shipping). The receiving countries then use those plastic products, nearly half being single-use, and throw them away only for them to often be shipped back to a developing country for them to deal with. And often the recyclables in China it appears were being burned or buried. We’re stuck in a vicious cycle of trying to offload our problems without ever addressing them.
Recycling is ultimately a marketing method to pass responsibility to consumers all whilst band-aiding over everything else. Here’s the link to read it all and see the six actions we need to take to resolve this.
