July 06, 2019

Andrew Campbell 

The US becomes the leading country of producing waste. When it comes to recycling, the US still falls behind compared to most other developed countries.

Among the 194 countries in the world, an average of 2.1 billion tons of waste are produced per year. Only about 16% of this is recycled, while 46% is disposed as garbage.

According to a study held by a risk management firm Verisk Maplecroft, the US contributes the most to this crisis. The population of the United States is equivalent to about 4% of the total of world population. Yet, analysis showed that the US citizens produce 773kg of waste per person annually, about 12% of the global waste. In the US, people only recycle 35% of their solid waste. Alternatively, Germany is the most efficient country when it comes to recycling; about 68% of materials were recycled each year.

The list ranks UK at 14th in the waste index, generating 482kg of household waste per person yearly. Other European countries like Netherlands, Switzerland, France and Germany are also on the list.

Photo:Webshot.