Book Review: Burying the Evidence by Frances Cairncross
After reading Waste Wars: Dirty Deals, International Rivalries and the Scandalous Afterlife of Rubbish by Alexander Clapp, one's perception of waste disposal changes significantly.
Alexander Clapp provides alarming answers to where discarded items, such as plastic bags, old mobile phones, and unwanted computers, ultimately end up.
His book details the routes that waste takes, primarily from wealthy nations to poorer ones, with the most difficult items to recycle likely ending up in sub-Saharan Africa.
The more difficult an item is to – genuinely – recycle, the greater the likelihood is that it will end up somewhere in sub-Saharan Africa.
As wealthy countries became more environmentally conscious, they promoted recycling, but not all waste is easily reusable, and some items pose significant disposal challenges.
Author summary: A book review of Waste Wars by Alexander Clapp.