Greenpeace survey: UK residents say no to microbeads

More than 250,000 UK residents have signed a petition appealing to Prime Minister David Cameron to ban products that contain microbeads.

By Arlene Karidis • April 14, 2016

Connecticut lags in diverting food waste, despite law intended to jumpstart change

The state's food waste increased from about 321,500 tons in 2010 to about 520,000 tons in 2015—and in that time, none of five proposed anaerobic digesters began construction.

By Arlene Karidis • April 13, 2016

SWANApalooza: How the US can utilize 133B pounds of food waste

If so much edible food is being tossed away in the US every year, why aren't we instead using it to combat hunger?

By Kristin Musulin • April 8, 2016

Waste-focused environmentalist will attempt to be youngest woman elected to Congress

“Most people in my generation don’t want to go anywhere near [government leadership] because the system seems broken. So I am throwing my hat into the ring," said Erin Schrode to Waste Dive.

By Arlene Karidis • April 7, 2016

Santa Cruz considers road to zero waste as last landfill cell opens

Today, 70% of the county’s trash never makes it to the dump, but is recycled, which has been buying the municipality time.

By Arlene Karidis • April 7, 2016

National survey shows Americans stand behind recycling

82% of consumers in a recent survey said all or some of their neighbors participated regularly in recycling collections.  

By Arlene Karidis • April 7, 2016

Report: California redemption centers lost $20M in 2015

An outdated payment system is at least one reason why the state has only 1,800 centers left.

By Arlene Karidis • April 7, 2016

SWANApalooza: 3 industry leaders go head-to-head with opinions on landfill bans

To ban, or not to ban? That is the question surrounding organics at the landfill.

By Kristin Musulin • April 6, 2016

New Jersey legislators renew push for bottle deposit bill

A2281 is opposed by the beverage industry and the Association of New Jersey Recyclers, but the Sierra Club and the Container Recycling Institute support it.

By Arlene Karidis • April 6, 2016

UPDATE: Charlotte will still offer trash services to townhouses, condos—but may cut apartments

If the proposal passes,103,000 apartments may no longer get city trash service as of July 2017.

By Arlene Karidis • April 5, 2016

EPA recognizes University of Arizona for diverting food scraps from landfill

Compost Cats, a student group, helped redirect 3.4 million pounds of waste.

By Arlene Karidis • April 5, 2016

Report: SPI clarifies bioplastics definition, regulatory requirements, and benefits

SPI and its members push for biobased plastics to foster an industry commitment to creating more sustainable materials, and the educational report is an extension of that goal.

By Arlene Karidis • April 4, 2016

New toolkit aims to teach the 'how and why' of foodservice packaging recycling

The toolkit targets foodservice establishments, local governments, and MRF operators to increase packaging recovery.

By Arlene Karidis • March 31, 2016

Keep America Beautiful program achieves 52% cigarette litter reduction in various communities

Grants from the Cigarette Litter Prevention Program have enabled more than 1,500 communities to launch an initiative aimed at changing behaviors and ending cigarette butt litter.

By Arlene Karidis • March 31, 2016

Good things come in plant packages: How 'bioplastics' could become mainstream

The race to develop and commercialize 100% biobased plastics has been on for years, with manufacturers seeking freedom from fossil fuel dependency and access to cleaner, renewable feedstocks.

By Arlene Karidis • March 31, 2016

Several Maine towns mull over decisions for waste disposal contracts

There is little support to stick with PERC, leaving the big decision of who to enter a new contract with: ecomaine or MRC.

By Arlene Karidis • March 31, 2016

Stericycle's proposed relocation in Utah may allow for doubled medical waste incineration

"We think it's inappropriate to have these kinds of facilities anywhere ... We hope that when they move they don't have any customers" said Dr. Brian Moench to The Salt Lake Tribune.

By Arlene Karidis • March 30, 2016

CalRecycle distributes $5.3M in grants for California road repairs using recycled tires

The tire recycling program and grants have diverted 38 million tires from landfills, using them not only for road surfaces, but also for civil engineering projects.

By Arlene Karidis • March 30, 2016

How India is tackling litter through whistleblowing and 'Flying Debris Squads'

Citizens are being encouraged to report dumping, burning waste, and other illegal activities through apps like WhatsApp, and can receive monetary awards for doing so.

By Kristin Musulin • March 30, 2016

Two Utah cities say eliminating trash receptacles from parks has deterred littering

Both Layton and Farmington park officials say the plan works well, with some even saying that the availability of receptacles accrued more litter in the past.

By Arlene Karidis • March 29, 2016

Keep Massachusetts Beautiful founder: 'We may as well rename our state Trashachusetts'

State volunteers, MassDOT employees, and inmates have collected an average of 90,000 bags of trash from major highways annually over the past three years. 

By Kristin Musulin • March 28, 2016

Eat your veggies, and your spoons: How edible cutlery, packaging affects the industry

From wheat-based spoons to algae-based bottles, edible food and beverage products may help solve the growing issue of plastic pollution.

By Kristin Musulin • March 28, 2016

Robots and vultures and worms, oh my!

How animals, robots, insects, and other non-human players have sparked innovation in the waste industry.

By Kristin Musulin • March 28, 2016

California assemblyman proposes new food label standards to cut waste

Standardizing sell-by dates on labels could keep around 398,000 tons of food out of landfills and help save $218 billion in edibles.

By Arlene Karidis • March 24, 2016

Starbucks to donate 100% of unsold food from US locations

In order for the nation to reach its first-ever national food waste reduction goal of 50% by 2030, it desperately needs participation from food service giants like Starbucks.

By Kristin Musulin • March 23, 2016