The Litter Myth

Throughline

NPR

Society & Culture, History, Documentary

4.7 • 15K Ratings

🗓️ 5 September 2019

⏱️ 36 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

There is more waste in the world today than at any time in history, and the responsibility for keeping the environment clean too often falls on individuals instead of manufacturers. But, why us? And why this feeling of responsibility? This week, how one organization changed the American public's relationship with waste and who is ultimately responsible for it.

Transcript

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0:00.0	The average American chucks a hefty four and a half pounds of trash a day.
0:05.0	I think we can do a little bit better Americans and our recycling habits have a lot of room for improvement.
0:11.0	The garbage reality is bigger than you might realize.
0:15.0	Garbage garbage trash litter problems on the streets and sidewalks.
0:21.0	People are still throwing trash out indiscriminately.
0:24.0	The least disgusting.
0:27.0	People start pollution. People can stop it.
0:34.0	You're listening to Thru Line from NPR.
0:37.0	Where we go back in time.
0:39.0	To understand the present.
0:42.0	Okay, I'm about to reveal a big secret.
0:46.0	Romteen at a blueie hates recycling.
0:51.0	It's not that I hate recycling.
0:54.0	It's that I hate the pressure.
0:57.0	Everyone puts on me to recycle or compost.
1:00.0	Okay, let's give everyone the back story.
1:03.0	A few weeks ago, suddenly in the office, and you walk in with a complaint.
1:08.0	So in my freezer at home, there's like half a dozen ziplock bags filled with chicken bones and food scraps.
1:17.0	It's nasty.
1:18.0	And it's the last thing I want to see when I open up the freezer.
1:21.0	And in fairness, I don't compost.
1:24.0	I probably should.
	...

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