NC reaches nearly 20-year low in trash
People and businesses in North Carolina are creating less garbage than they have in nearly two decades.
The News & Observer of Raleigh reports that an average of 0.98 tons of trash was generated per person in the state in the fiscal year that ended June 2012. That is down significantly from the peak of 1.36 tons of garbage per person in the 2006 fiscal year and a nearly 20-year low.
Officials with the state Division of Solid Waste say increased recycling and the economic downturn both contributed to the dip in trash.
The state has 40 landfills that take household trash, which accounts for nearly 60 percent of the state's waste. Industrial waste contributes 24 percent, while construction and demolition is about 11 percent of the state's garbage.