IN THE BIN

Muck Rakers?

I just finished reading Chaz Miller's article “Golden Wastebasket” [November 2002, page 20]. I was glad to see you point out that the three-minute piece was short on fact, superficial and misleading. I couldn't agree more.

I am always hesitant to work with the media for those very reasons. That is not to say all media coverage is short on fact or manipulative of what one says. But more often than not, we are receiving only part of the story.

Thanks for also pointing out that recycling “costs money” versus paying for itself. I also agree with the point that we need to oppose unnecessary spending on solid waste and recycling. I don't always agree with you, but I do enjoy reading your monthly articles.
— Steve Andrews Neb. State Recycling Association, Omaha, Nebraska

Leftovers

In regard to Kim O'Connell's “A Moveable Feast” [December 2002, page 70], the growing interest in capturing food waste for composting is interesting, but the article overlooked the role redisential food waste disposers have played for decades in diverting food waste from truck collection, disposal, processing and reuse. More than 50 million disposers are installed in U.S. homes, mandated in more than 100 municipalities and provided as a standard appliance in nearly all new homes for that purpose.

In the past decade, 200,000 businesses have installed commercial-grade disposers, with growing interest expressed by supermarkets, restaurants and institutional food services. Although New York was the last major city in the United States to legalize residential disposers in 1997, rising waste collection and disposal costs are forcing the city to consider both mandating household disposers and encouraging commerical disposers.
— Stewart O'Brien The Plumbing Foundation, New York