A Reddit user has captured the moment their efforts to follow local recycling rules were wasted no thanks to the actions of one local refuse collector.
The Redditor described how their town has requested that paper and cardboard be separated from their main recycling collection, but surveillance footage on their property has shown that perhaps their compliance was not as appreciated as they would have hoped.
A camera picked up video of a waste collector simply gathering up all of the paper and cardboard that the homeowner sorted out to be recycled and throwing it in the bin with the rest of the material. They then put it all together in the truck.
Other users shared their frustration with recycling efforts that seem to be all for naught on the post, which was originally shared in the Mildly Infuriating subreddit.
"Sadly, a lot of recycling is just a lie," one Redditor said. "That's how it often goes," added another.
Recycling feels like the easiest way to do your bit to minimize the amount of household waste that goes to a landfill. Different rules are in place for recycling programs depending on where you live, so it's undoubtedly frustrating when you try to follow the guidelines — but it seems the memo hasn't reached everyone.
According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, paper and paperboard were the most commonly recycled material, making up 66.5% of the 69 millions tons of municipal solid waste that was recycled in 2018.
While the video may encourage skepticism of the effort put into recycling, there are tangible benefits, especially when it comes to paper and cardboard. The same EPA report detailed that the 46 million tons of the material that was recycled in 2018 saved 155 million metric tons of carbon dioxide pollution — about the same as removing the pollution from 42 million cars on the road in a year.
Although that wasn't the biggest issue demonstrated by the video, according to one Redditor: "I'm more upset about where he left the can."
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