Recycling: Taiwan vs California

In Taiwan, throwing away trash is a daily social event. Because of the 'Keep Trash Off the Ground' policy, people cannot leave trash bags on the street. Instead, they wait for the yellow garbage truck. When they hear classical music, they run outside. They throw their trash in the yellow truck and hand recyclables to the smaller recovery truck. This strict system helps Taiwan recycle about 55 percent of its waste.

In California, the system focuses on convenience. Most homeowners use three large, colored bins. They roll these bins to the street once a week: blue for recycling, green for organic waste, and black for regular trash. Large trucks empty the bins automatically. However, because all recyclables go into one blue bin, people often throw in dirty items, like greasy pizza boxes. This food waste ruins the clean recyclables. Also, Americans often do 'wishcycling' · throwing non-recyclable items into the blue bin and hoping they can be recycled. In Taiwan, municipal workers check your trash on the spot, which stops this problem.