ABSTRACT
Government regulations require many cities and states across the country to recycle. This is also happening in other countries around the world. The fifteen member countries of the European Union have approved a directive “to put in place regulations to meet specified recovery and recycling targets. The League recently reported that in California, population growth has skyrocketed from under 1.5 million in 1900 to over 32 million in 1995. The rate is expected to grow faster than the national average, and the garbage dilemma along with it. Dutch Country, about 100 miles north of New York City, reported a municipal solid waste volume of 5.1 pounds per capita for 1990. Government agencies, nonprofit organizations, and public educational institutions must deal with such regulations while operating costs escalate. Private industry has to fight shrinking margins in a highly competitive global market. “Recycling half the paper used throughout the world today would free 20 million acres of forest land from paper production.”
