The following is from a friend in Colorado:

Castle Pines recycling is a scam. I threw an AirTag into a CPV curb side bin on Wednesday and this is what happened… Our trash, er, “recycling” was driven across the country on an 18 wheeler. This evening it passed through Harrisburg and is still going east. We pay considerable money to the trash company to provide an option for people who practice recycling. These people have deep held beliefs that they are saving the environment, however this is obviously not happening. Every HOA that is forming over $$ for this lifestyle choice owes it to its members to review what is actually happening. UPDATE TUESDAY PM: For 36 hours my plastic bottle / air tag has been at 4030 Pottsville Pike, Reading, PA, and that tracks to a company that creates polyester. In the past day, I received feedback from several sources, including neighbors and an executive who works in the recycling supply chain, who told me that to his knowledge, the only facility in the entire state of Colorado that recycles into end use products is for glass recycling. It is fair to share with everyone reading this that I have been a recycling skeptic for many years, for reasons grounded in the ways that markets behave, as well as common sense. That posture, combined with trash collection changes in my neighborhood that diminished quality of life and an idea from a friend, inspired me to conduct this experiment. I did not believe that my trash would end up in the ocean – Waste Management has too much reputation on the line for that – but I certainly did not believe it would end up on the other side of the country. As many people here have stated, it does not benefit the environment to haul Castle Pines trash eastern Pennsylvania for the purposes of recycling. I would encourage everyone to think critically about the costs and benefits of recycling in America. I am gratified that this experiment got some people to pay more attention to this and have a constructive dialogue. And it was fun tracking my trash across America for a few days!

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