October 5
GUEST: Neil Seldman, professor
of political science at George Washington University and
co-founder of five notable organizations promoting zero
waste and economic justice, talks about helping communities
transition from incineration to promoting locally owned
businesses.
The
Second Recycling Revolution
Services get privatized in a system that has been taken over by corporations. First, these companies buy each other out to form monopolies so that they can control prices. When things get really sweet, a few CEOs make millions, while average wage earners pay a lot for what they get. Or in this case, for what they put in garbage cans and bring to the curb.
When a society's needs change, these monopolies don't. Take the oil industry. We are burning up the environment and our future is at stake. And yet oil companies are still paying millions to spread disinformation about global warming. They want to hang onto their sweet deal until the last human being runs out of food and shelter.
With waste management, the story is the same. I few large companies don't want to change anything, even though incinerating all our garbage endangers everyone's health. It's the particulates, stupid. These huge burning pits spew toxins for hundreds of miles. No one's children are safe.
Right here in Dutchess County, by the beautiful Hudson River, our air quality most days simply sucks. And our county legislature, in all their wisdom, wants to guild a gigantic new incinerator for some 300 million dollars. There are much better alternatives, although the lawyers, contractors and bankers who will profit from this boondoggle simply don't want to hear it.
The issue is a symbol of our system. We are poisoning ourselves so a few at the very top can have more, more, more. It is a teaching moment for us all.
