Waste-Management in America. Can We Take ‘Pollution Down to Zero’?

When I was a kid, I thought throwing my empty plastic water bottle into my recycle bin was going to help save the planet. After all, Captain Planet told me I had an important role in taking ‘pollution down to zero’, and I wanted to help. As I grew up, seeing images of overflowing landfills haunted me. I couldn’t understand why this was such an immense issue. Wasn’t everyone taking the advice of a cartoon superhero with green hair as seriously as I was?