I recently traveled to New York and I was able to have personal experience with the trash of New York City. I was able to understand the waste workers reading a lot more as I was in the city of the DSNY. New York being such a heavily populated city there is a lot of waste that people and businesses produce.
I can understand how the trash piles up when the sanitation workers are unable to fulfill their job due to traffic, strikes, or some other reason.
I also took notice of the amount of waste that I was producing. Eating out frequently meant having containers for leftovers, leading to more trash.
I believe if there was more motivation to reduce waste or a greater focus on recycling and food waste disposal, much of the trash could be minimized.
However, it really depends on the time and education invested in making these changes.
I personally feel that people generally believe the responsibility for trash is no longer theirs once it leaves their personal property or home. While I understand this in some cases, it’s easier to not worry about it and let it be out of sight. Dealing with the amount of waste we produce becomes less impending and exhausting once it’s out of mind.