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Is recycling a scam?
(lemmy.world)
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this post was submitted on 07 Mar 2026
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It depends on your location and the material, but plastic recycling is kind of a scam. Basically, it requires a lot of labor and energy, the resulting plastic is kind of shit, and as a result plastic is rarely recycled once and basically never recycled twice or more.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plastic_recycling
There is labour and energy but it is less than drilling new oil and all that processing and energy to make new material.
The numbers in that link are quite old, I see 2015 and 2010 mentioned. In the Netherlands where I live recycling is a lot higher than ten years ago. That said, a lot of recyclers went bankrupt the last two years because virgin materials are a lot cheaper.