by Nina Rao

About the author: Nina Rao is a communications intern with Zero Population Growth, an organization that seeks a sustainable balance of resources, the environment, and population throughout the world.

A pat on the back, a round of applause, please, for all the recycling Americans! We have been faithfully crushing our cans, rinsing our jars, and dragging our bins to the curb every week. Now, let’s take a minute to examine the results of our efforts. American Paper and Forest published the 1995 recovery rate of paper at 45.1%, up 11.6% since 1990. The American Plastics Council reported that 22.4% of plastic bottles sold in 1995 were recycled as compared to 9.0% in 1990. According to the Steel Recycling Institute, the recycling rate of steel cans was at 55.9% in 1995, up a staggering 31.3% since 1990. The Aluminum Association informs us that...