If you feel really good about putting stuff in the recycling bin, you might be depressed to find out that only 5 % of what we recycle is actually recycled, according to the World Economic Forum

Melissa Modica of Waste Harmonica, a waste management consulting firm, explained in an exclusive interview on Electric Ladies Podcast recently that their clients are coming to them in part pushed by ESG reporting demands.

Then there are the EPRs, or Extended Producer Responsibility programs "Requiring manufacturers take responsibility for their product and packaging through all life cycle stages, including disposal," like one in Middletown, CT, that communities are trying to reduce waste and increase the re-manufacturing of recycling.

"The U.S. waste and recycling industry may be at an inflection point in its evolution, as the risks and opportunities of climate change loom large over the decades ahead. Expectations around environmental, social and governance reporting have evolved at a rapid pace, leading many major public companies to take new steps in how they're talking about these issues."

The push for more and verified ESG reporting could be a big push to fix our waste problem, because as the management saying goes, what gets measured gets attention.

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