Where Does Garbage Go?

We’ve reduced what we use, we recycle, and we compost.  We take our our re-usable bags to the market.  Despite all those efforts, we still generate garbage.  It’s gotten smaller over the years, and I’ve become wiser about environmental issues, still. . . every week, I put out a trash can for the garbage company to pick up.  And once it’s picked up, I don’t give it another thought.

So where does it all go?  I mean, I know about landfills and all that, but really – WHERE does it go?

Researches from MIT hope to answer that question for Seattle-ites, with a study they’ll be conducting starting on Wednesday.  The researchers will be outside the Seattle Central Library, electronically tagging trash.  The trash will then be tracked to see where it ends up and why.  The results of the study will be available online and at a library exhibit opening on September 18th.  Hopefully, the study will yield information that will help with future urban planning.

The Central Library is located at 1000 Fourth Avenue, downtown (map).  If you have items that you’re planning on tossing away, the MIT researchers will be out front of the library between 10:30 am – 12:30 pm.  Don’t rush out and pick up some styrofoam, but if you’re curious about where garbage goes, you may want to toss something in the name of science.

Photo credit: SXC