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Trash Talk: Out of Sight, Out of Mind but Out of Line!
- trovegreenprovisio
- May 14
- 4 min read
Updated: May 18
What really happens to the things we throw away? In "Wasteland: The Dirty Truth About What We Throw Away, Where It Goes, and Why It Matters" investigative journalist Oliver Franklin-Wallis takes readers on a harrowing, eye-opening journey through the global waste industry. His exploration uncovers a world hidden in plain sight—one marked by secrecy, systemic failure, and growing environmental consequences.
One of the book’s most disturbing revelations is the lack of transparency in how waste is handled. From landfills to incinerators to shadowy international shipping routes, Franklin-Wallis shows how garbage quietly disappears from our lives—only to become someone else’s problem. Wealthier countries export their trash to poorer ones, often under the guise of recycling, while corporations evade responsibility through clever loopholes and greenwashing tactics.
The United States makes up only about 4% of the world’s population, yet it generates more waste per person than any other country—over 1,700 pounds of waste per person per year.
Recycling, often celebrated as a solution, is exposed in Wasteland as a deeply broken system. Many plastics labeled “recyclable” are never actually recycled. The numbering system on plastic packaging, meant to help sort and identify materials, is deceptively complex. Most people assume the triangle means the item is recyclable, but in reality, many numbers (like #3, #6, and #7) are rarely accepted by municipal recycling systems. This confusion allows companies to shift responsibility to consumers—while most of the plastic ends up burned, buried, or exported.
Take a look at the Time Magazine 1955 article celebrating the throw away life!
The Human Cost: Who Carries Our Waste?
The global waste crisis isn't just an environmental issue—it's a humanitarian one. Wasteland draws attention to the marginalized communities bearing the brunt of our consumption. From informal waste pickers in India and Ghana working in dangerous conditions, to entire villages in Southeast Asia choked by the trash of affluent nations, the book lays bare a brutal truth: we’ve dumped the burden of waste to the most vulnerable.
According to the International Labor Organization (ILO), over 20 million informal waste pickers—many of them women and children—work under hazardous, exploitative conditions to recover recyclable materials from dumps, streets, and landfills
So Where’s the Hope?
And yet, Wasteland is not without hope. Amid the grim realities, Franklin-Wallis spotlights the people and projects striving to turn the tide. From grassroots organizers demanding accountability, to innovators working toward zero-waste systems and plastic-free packaging, the book reveals that change is possible—when driven by truth, equity, and collective action. While I personally may not be ready to dumpster dive for food, it reminded me to look deeper in food redistribution initiatives like Food Link in Arlington and find ways I can help.
Wasteland is not just a call-out—it’s a call to look closer, think deeper, and push for systems that deal with waste responsibly, transparently, and fairly. If you’ve ever tossed something in the trash and wondered, “Where does this go?”—this is the book that answers, and demands better. In his clever and often beautiful descriptions, Franklin-Wallis asks us to stop believing in the magical place of "away" and live in the reality of consumerism, corporations, money, and global relations.
After reading Wasteland, many readers are left asking: What can I actually do? While the book makes clear that waste is a systemic issue, not just an individual one, there are meaningful actions readers can take to become more informed, responsible, and effective in demanding change.
Here are some thoughtful and realistic recommendations:
1. Question the Recycling Myth
Don’t assume everything with a recycling symbol is recyclable. Learn which plastics your local facility actually accepts.
Favor plastics labeled #1 (PET) and #2 (HDPE), which are more widely recycled.
Reduce your reliance on plastics labeled #3, #6, and #7—they are rarely recyclable and often toxic.
Sign up to Trashless Collective from Trove to help directly recycle hard to process items
2. Reduce Before You Recycle
Choose reusable over disposable: bottles, bags, containers.
Buy in bulk or from stores that minimize packaging.
REFILL! But Trove Shoppers already know how important this is.
Avoid items wrapped in unnecessary plastic, especially mixed-material packaging.
3. Demand Transparency and Corporate Accountability
Contact brands and ask how their packaging is handled at end of life. Push them to switch to sustainable, recyclable, or refillable alternatives. (For example, I personally noticed that Wegmans changed their dried pasta boxes to be fully cardboard, instead of mixed with a little plastic window, and I stopped by the customer service desk and told them I had noticed and thanked them.)
Support extended producer responsibility (EPR) policies, which make companies responsible for the waste they create.
4. Support Waste Workers and Global Justice
Learn about and donate to organizations supporting waste pickers (e.g. Global Alliance of Waste Pickers).
Advocate for fair wages, safe working conditions, and formal recognition of informal waste workers around the world.
Thank your own waste removal worker when you can!
If you are looking for a new way to live a lower waste life, sign up to join our recycling membership trial. Why? Because we believe responsible recycling should be easy, affordable, and community-powered. Your feedback will help us build a better long-term program for everyone.
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