How FIVE BILLION Pounds of Las Vegas Garbage Powers a City | Overview

PBS Member Stations rely on viewers like you. To support your local station, go to: to.pbs.org/DonateTerra
Celebrate Earth Day with our friends at PBS: bit.ly/3elpV1w
Head over to Reactions to find out more about how they're celebrating Earth Day, and tell them Joe sent you! • Catalytic Converter St...
Most of the 600 billion pounds of waste that Americans produce every year ends up in landfills. All that trash can have huge impacts on the environment. But modern landfills have found a new use for all that trash - they’re turning it into energy. In spite of their reputation as “dumps,” these landfills are feats of engineering, more akin to construction sites.
One of North America’s biggest landfills lies on the outskirts of Las Vegas. The Apex Landfill is not only one of the country’s largest, it’s also one of the busiest. Because it serves a non-stop city, the landfill must operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. It receives upwards of 16 million pounds of trash per day or 5 billion pounds per year.
Landfills like Apex are required to deal with the toxic chemicals they produce, like methane, a greenhouse gas that’s 84 times more potent than carbon dioxide. At Apex, they capture that methane and turn it into energy that powers 11,000 homes in southern Nevada.
Subscribe to PBS Terra! - bit.ly/3mOfd77
**********************************************
Hosted by Joe Hanson from It's Okay to be Smart, Overview uses incredible 4k drone footage to reveal the natural phenomena shaping our planet from a 10,000-foot view-literally.

[@briangarrow448]

I was a certified solid waste landfill operator for my former employer. The public has very little interest in what happens to their waste, as long as it gets picked up every week and they don’t have to deal with it. I wish every school kid would be able to tour a waste facility and see how much work is done at these areas.

[@jeremyscungio16]

I did a tour of my local recycling plant when I was a cub scout in maybe 1st or 2nd grade. I was too young to understand most of it, but I was very interested

[@nateb4543]

A jr high or high school tour would make a major impact on publics view of waste

[@helloimclaudio]

If it makes you feel better, most school kids wanna be a garbage truck when they grow up

[@cloudbuster77]

imagine if everything was recycled or composted. then we'd have little trash

[@97AshleyRose]

Ikr I’m Texan and would’ve loved a tour of a local one but now 24 and watching videos in this as it’s interesting and curios. Public school tells you to throw away your trash and recycle and such but never really teaches you more or like hey let’s take the students to go see a landfill and hopes that they could start making less trash or actually get involved in the community but no grades and passing a standardized test is more important. I’m in collage having to take high school level math as they failed to teach me 😂

[@juliansenfr]

Watching this more than anything just makes me immensely grateful for the people working in the waste management industry, these unsung heroes from garbage collectors to landfill handlers to sorting staffs at recycling plants and more literally put their long term health at risk, not to mention the long hours facing mountains of trash and undeservedly low wages for a living just so we could all have functioning societies to live in. If anyone from the industry sees this by any chance thank you for what you do, stay safe and take pride in what you do, because y'all are just as important as the firefighters & the nurses. Big up and much love.

[@jimmyswindle1934]

I’m only 17 working out here doing methane pipeline

[@yasinwangi3885]

Julian Sen, what you write is what I mean in my heart. Thank you all the workers of envuronmental workers. Hope you are all safe, healthy and get enough wage

[@redhat4363]

But Kim kardashi…

[@joek1989]

Was a Trash Truck Driver for 10 years, thank you for your kind words, it really means alot!

[@juliansenfr]

@@joek1989 Thank you for your service sir, stay safe out there

[@leelindsay5618]

I shred most of my cardboard and mulch it into my lawn, around trees, and improve my clay soils so they soak up more water during rains.

[@lucashaas8068]

Interesting, good to know! I’ll try that!! Thx for sharing!

[@imiy]

Cardboard is easily recyclable.

[@kysfoo2324]

Im gonna give that a try thank you for sharing.😁

[@jarblewarble]

@Doesn't Jump to conclusionsVegetable gardens are much better than lawns.

[@pedn1038]

if you americans out there have a medium or large pond in your area plant sea grass if possible and you will enjoy cleaner air in a few weeks sea grass soaks up co2 at 3 times the rate of any other plant on the planet and its slowly turning the tide against global warming

[@jamesalderman4162]

Do a documentary on plasma arc power plants which turn trash into electricity and the leftover ash into paving stones. If this technology is what it's cracked up to be, landfills as we know them could go away, and even existing landfills could be "mined" for their valuable trash to be used as fuel.

[@derek-64]

Don't just recycle. Reduce and reuse first. Cut down on waste and see if we can repurpose things. Recycling should be the last thing. So let's try and cut down on waste so there's less of it even if it's just a little bit.

[@jsnel9185]

My wife is an expert at this. Our plants are in many different containers that would be destined for a landfill. I've learned a lot from her.

[@jeanjordan6938]

@@jsnel9185 plastic is EVERYWHERE...in the course of one day how many times do you encounter plastic in any of its forms..its in the soil, its in your bloodstream, its a bio chemical product that is slowly poisoning our planet and everything on it....are we the frogs 🐸 in the slowly boiling water...everyone is screeching about climate change...they have even suggested putting garbage which has to be 60 percent or more of plastic...in volcanoes....why?! Are they planning to change our atmosphere into something that will not sustain human life?! Who is the plastic industry...👽 👽 👽 👽 👽?! Because that makes more sense than a suicidal humanity?!

[@domesticatedwolverine4152]

Copy that Captain Planet

[@joemoe1219]

Reused is recycling too.

[@tjmarx]

@@joemoe1219 No it's not.

[@DrewDubious]

it's really horrific to see the amount of waste we create.

[@roorkollector5340]

I saw on Food Network the buffet at Cesar's uses something like 60,000 lbs of shrimp 🍤 ...a day! 🤦🏻‍♂️

[@davidhickenbottom6574]

Over packaging because of shoplifting is part of it.

[@arthuredens]

@@roorkollector5340 Unnecessary

[@gustavorojas3918]

@@roorkollector5340 x's

[@someguy2135]

I live in Las Vegas. This video was the first I head of what happens to the trash we put out. I am glad they seem to be handling it responsibly. I recognize that we should try to minimize the amount of trash we put out at the curb. I do recycle, and try to reuse and avoid buying packaging when possible. I am glad that buying from the bulk bins is now possible again after the temporary changes due to the Pandemic.

[@zakleclaire1858]

I worked on a recycling center (albeit a smaller center) and we go SO MUCH cardboard it was stupid. I don't want to get into the gross stuff we got on the line but I will say that humans have inherent limitations. We could only sort so much so fast and there was always some that got through.

[@dryzalizer]

The speed at which everything was moving on those conveyors in this recycling center video made me think, "good luck catching everything, workers."

[@Glockenspheal]

Yeah, I also saw that and thought... damn, that's some tough work there. I wonder if AI could make this process easier for everyone and more effective.

[@zakleclaire1858]

@@Glockenspheal honestly, consider how diverse and fast paced the line is, that would be a seriously impressive AI. I'm not saying it's impossible, but rather the R&D and machinery required would be well outside more centers' budgets for a LONG time.

[@thebigwarthog]

@@Glockenspheal they're already using AI to sort trash but it's pretty expensive to develop that kind of technology.

[@rowland5951]

@@Glockenspheal look up AMP Robotics

[@dsm9785]

when I lived in Vegas in the 90's I had a couch to toss, they sent me up to this landfill which at the time was a hole in the ground surrounded by small mountains. it was about 1000' across and easily 200' deep. I was amazed by it. if this is the same place (surrounding area looks similar) they will be capping it soon and moving into the mining area. I thought it would take forever to fill it

[@mysteryman6918]

That’s pretty tragic, although they said the general area will take 300 more years of garbage

[@dsm9785]

@@mysteryman6918 I just watched a video of what the Swedish do with their trash, it was very interesting. they recycle everything up to 7 times. they take in waste from other countries also and also have power plants that run of methane. they also burn very little trash .

[@AvalonDreamz]

I would say this is not only those who "throw stuff away" problem. It's time to point the finger at the massive corporations that use the nonrecyclable resources for their products to begin with! That is where the problem begins, not just with the people who use the product. The people have been blamed long enough. Time for those who make the product to do their part, the part that was always THEIRS to begin with.

[@nonyafkinbznes1420]

Stop their buying their products or shut up.

[@michaelplanchunas3693]

Las Vegas homes have two bins, garbage and recyclables. Several times a month you can put out large items such as furniture, refrigerators, old electronics, etc. and they get picked up. And Apex is where deceased pets, not buried in pet cemeteries, are taken for cremation and a decent burial away from the garbage. Plus all streets are swept once a week, usually the day after garbage pickup. Ours is Tuesday pickup, Wednesday the sweeper comes by.

[@user-bw3ve5kz3s]

"A real "empire of lies" has been created within the United States in recent years. It is hard to disagree with this - it is true. But there is no need to be modest: the United States is still a great country, a system-forming power. All its satellites not only resignedly and dutifully assent , sing along to her for any reason, but also copy her behavior, enthusiastically accept the rules he proposes. Therefore, with good reason, we can confidently say that the entire so-called Western bloc, formed by the United States in its own image and likeness, is entirely and there is that very "empire of lies". Vladimir Putin, President of Russia

[@AsiaMinor12]

Las Vegas is an embodiment of leftist propaganda of what a city should never be. A polluting, sprawling, car centric city where every house guzzles up water to keep green lawns manicured.

[@stevehammerich7121]

Who thinks some day in future we will be digging up landfill , trying to get any resources out of them .

[@robertwoodpa6463]

Funny I 've had that thought too.

[@VEWNZ]

Scary thought. Wading through mountains of baby AND ADULT diapers + polystyrene looking for useable resources

[@TheIVJackal]

@@VEWNZ Reality in many parts of the world, much of it our garbage that we shipped overseas.

[@MrGamer_jinjit_96]

This May be the best business opportunities

[@mahmeme]

People already do that... there's a reason why developing countries buy US garbage

[@dh2360]

The ingenuity of mankind is remarkable, trash equals energy.

[@tedarin]

In the city in Finland where I live less than 1% of all the waste goes to the landfill. That which can be recycled (metal,cardboard,wood,glas,paper,plastics,concrete,electronic and biowaste) is taken out and non-recyclable material goes to incineration. The Waste-to-Energy plant outputs electricity and heat (the heat is led via heatpipes to the city homes/buildnings). The biowaste is treated in an aneorobic digestion plant. Where methane is produced, the methane is upgraded to biogas that the local buses/trucks/cars use as fuel. And after the biowaste comes out of the reactor it is composted for a few years and later used as fertilizer/soil for gardens/farmers.

[@cmendoza1094]

We can't do efficient recycling to save our lives here in the US.

[@njonjokibera9587]

@@cmendoza1094 why is that

[@elongatedshrew5902]

@@njonjokibera9587 cuz y'all government has much more control and taxes their people much more than we do and we aren't gonna let it happen. We riot and revolt if they raise taxes too high, not quite like the French but we still do protect our rights/freedoms

[@luisostasuc8135]

It interferes with profit, of course. At least in my city we take sewage and get natural gas from it for our buses

[@nonyafkinbznes1420]

Instead of burying its waste Finland emits it into the air.

[@lonestarr1490]

Came from Eons. Not because I'm not subscribed already, but because, apparently, they've been faster in suggesting than KZbin.

[@valacarno]

HAppened to me several times. Can relate.

[@ooooneeee]

It's bewildering you guys don't collect paper and cardboard separately but with all the other waste that degrades its quality with liquids, rotting and other contamination. Here in Europe we have separate bins for it and in many countries are able to recycle more than 95% of it.

[@mikeaskme3530]

@ooooneee we don't do it because US elected officials wont mandate it, if government mandated separation of garbage you just know some idiot here in the USA would yell out " You are trampling on my freedom and liberty" .

[@richdobbs6595]

I'm not sure whether the US or Europe are crazy, because there is so much emotion and politics involved. I mean, Germany shut down functional, safe nuclear reactors that were replaced by using f'king lignite to produce electricity! But hey, that kept Merkel in power so I guess it was worth it. Wink, wink! OTOH, France has failed in being able to come up with another generation of effective nuclear reactors, so just using fundamentally better technology doesn't guarantee success. We used to recycle paper, cardboard, and glass to a high degree. I'm not sure whether the fact that doesn't happen any more is because of dysfunction or rational reaction to lower energy costs and less tolerance for risk in food and beverage industries, as well as the death of the physical newspaper industry.

[@cartman4885]

Years ago in my Central California town we used to separate our recyclables then they said more people would recycle if we made it easier then along came single stream recycling.................

[@allenmcdaniel1470]

CUZ ARROGANT, FOOLISH, UNAWARE AMERICANS LIKE to THROWAWAY EVERYTHING, or PLAIN DON'T CARE! EUROPE is our EXAMPLE to do BETTER.

[@livefully7568]

How long has London stood? The Thames begat the black plauge right? Give American citys the 2 millenia they've had to prefect most european settlements.

[@GamerPro132]

Fun fact about landfills, It's impossible to show footage of landfills without playing seagull squawks over it.

[@ReeferSmoker]

this

[@123chargeit]

@Doesn't Jump to conclusions Uh I live about 500 miles inland, if I hear Seagulls at a landfill it means shits got real.

[@ChiliCheeseD0g]

Seagulls in the Las Vegas desert?

[@howicontent]

I am a video editor and can confirm this is false.

[@avauinc]

Thank you Apex and Las Vegas for your service, appreciate you.

[@GoingtoHecq]

Saying it's "per person" really implies that individuals, and not industry, is generating that waste. I don't think anyone poops that much. I can see the food waste. But no way I consume that much weight of packaging.

[@zhenyuanyeo8386]

its not just poop, and i doubt poop is counted here. If you throw away a fridge or a couch, its considered waste. while you probably don't throw a couch away every month or so, you have to tally all the consumer items you threw in the long run. waste generated by industries would be the "easiest" to clean since they are usually homogenous which is important for efficient recycling processes. Consumer waste is difficult/costly to recycle because of its heterogeneity. sorting consumer waste for recycling helps, but that requires a behavioural change or else it will be expensive to process them further.

[@baiseduezcke2295]

@@zhenyuanyeo8386 “Homogeneous”…. Ehhhhh only if the industry is incentivized for their waste to be homogenous, really

[@zhenyuanyeo8386]

@@baiseduezcke2295 well... Relatively more homogenous

[@dakotapearl0]

I think you got the nail on the head. It's always the industry that's blaming us and yet it's them still producing this rubbish for us to consume. Even if there's an environmentally friendly option it's always more expensive. How are we in general as a society supposed to act responsibly if there's always a financial disadvantage to it.

[@theobserver9131]

Who do you think the industries are making stuff for? If we weren't buying their crap, they wouldn't be making it.

[@luckylunaloops]

I get all tingly knowing all that waste was properly disposed (not litter on our streets, parks, or in our streams and waterways). And then to create energy from it! Outstanding! Doing it right!

[@patricktaylor9939]

And this is why as a country boy in the USA we burn our trash ever week, Then we mix the ash with water and filter the large bits out and mix this ash mix with cow manure to make Barnyard Tea. It's the best fertilizer you can get.

[@bobpettit6653]

Thanks for sharing this Very informative video. Thank you all for doing the great work that you do and keeping our community safe.

[@romanflores5505]

This actually makes me somewhat proud to live in Vegas. Cool stuff learned something new

[@detectivewiggles]

SO COOL! I do everything I can to reduce my trash, but I still feel guilty about throwing things away. I'm glad humans are beginning to develop better solutions for waste management! Fingers crossed for those fully automated luxury gay space replicator systems.

[@derek-64]

One of the best things we can do is try to cut down on waste as much as possible. Sure we all still have waste and things to recycle but we should try and cut down on it first.

[@user-wj9wq7mk4h]

@ユジン the dilithium crystals had to be mined from somewhere

[@derek-64]

@Bend Over incineration is a good option if we can do it cleanly and have it be cost efficient

[@user-bw3ve5kz3s]

Americans - demand from the US authorities to get out of the borders of our Motherland of the USSR and the Warsaw Pact countries! Otherwise... Missiles will fly to the Decision Center.

[@user-bw3ve5kz3s]

Caribbean Crisis-2, an attack on US territory - on a military training ground in Nevada. Testing a nuclear weapon is a demonstration of determination to uphold Russia's security! This is a defense, not an attack. The law is on our side, justified by international law for our own protection of our territories and population. In this case, there will be no victims, and the Americans will definitely understand the seriousness of our intentions and demands to get out of the territory of our Fatherland within the borders of the USSR! Roll up your NATO bases and biolabs. A demonstration of a blow is not an application. Well, if they don’t understand, then they will have to discuss with the United States increased pressure by threatening the security of their territory and civilians.

[@chipper442]

I’m 57, I remember as a kid, going to the dump to pick through the scrap iron pile for bikes or bike parts, usually daily during the summer lol. The guys running the dump didn’t care, we had our tetanus shots, life was good.

[@nonyafkinbznes1420]

Oh yeah.

[@woocheongan1437]

Thanks for sharing this very informative video. It’s a renewable energy source that actually makes sense. Thank you all for doing the great work that you do and keeping our community safe.

[@pikachuchujelly7628]

Not entirely renewable, since a large portion of the waste is plastic.

[@Theres_No_PlanetB]

I have a paper due on this today thanks! Wish there where clear citations.

[@majoroldladyakamom6948]

Buy The Gregg Reference Manual and Worksheets. SABIN. Will change your life trajectory. Forever. Promise.

[@blueberry01120]

You can cite KZbin videos.

[@linebrunelle1004]

lmao. American education . ahhhhh

[@harrykuheim6107]

Just the A.C demands alone in Vegas is massive.

[@stuzworldz]

....lotta good info ....GREAT VID...thanks from Cambria California...2021

[@hudsonurruttia]

My local sewage treatment plant has a flame constantly burning. It just seems like such a waste.

[@pauldavid601]

It's preventing explosions in the pipes.

[@richdobbs6595]

Come up with a practical use for it! Now, as Paul David points out, the main purpose of flares is safety, and typically there are a lot of engineers looking at minimizing the amount that goes into the flare system. But maybe you can come up with a replacement for this engineered system that has been around for over a hundred years and is used a wide variety of situations, from oil and gas production, to fracking, to oil refineries, to according to you, your local sewage treatment plant. But, make sure that you don't significantly increase the risk or reduce the capacity of the system. There is a huge market for such a system. But given the low price for natural gas in the USA, I think you have your work cut out for you!

[@lylestavast7652]

the cost of a filtration system so that it can be used as fuel is probably too high and the volume too low to rationalize doing it on a cost basis.

[@rimandoeduardo2685]

It causes air pollution and add more problem to environment.

[@jimmybrad156]

boil water with it, spin it, regulate it and mine bitcoin with it

[@2148aa]

How soon they forget "Waste not, Want not"

[@kevinsukdolak5007]

I wish all dumps were this resourceful.

[@danielhanawalt4998]

Seems all we hear about from some politicians and activists are wind and solar energy and doing away with fossil fuels. Glad you made this video. I'm seeing efforts to clean the oceans and rivers also. I've been hearing of methane. I've known land fills produce it. I've wondered for some time if anyone was using it to produce energy. This is a great video. Thanks.

[@solarwind907]

Maybe the reason you hear so much about wind and solar is because that’s the smartest/cleanest/cheapest way to go. If they can process garbage in a way that it illuminates waste and produces usable energy that’s great! However, wind and solar are off the shelf ready solutions.

[@danielhanawalt4998]

@@solarwind907 True,wind and solar are smart, cheap, and clean...until you consider the mining and shipping of materials to make them and the batteries needed to store the energy when the wind isn't blowing and the sun isn't shining mush. That presents another set of problems. Also, the amount of those things needed to supply a large power grid.I believe alternatives are needed. A collective of energy producing technologies so to speak. Wind and solar will definitely play a part. I agree that methane could and should be burned as long as it can be done cleanly. Fossil fuels will be needed for some time but must be done cleanly as well.

[@solarwind907]

@@danielhanawalt4998 really glad you pointed out that wind and solar require mining and shipping! Wow, I had never thought of that! You do realize of course, that ANYTHING you build requires mining and shipping, right? The plus for wind and solar is that the fuel is delivered free daily! Fossil fuel, powered generators are great, but they generate air pollution, and CO2 emissions. Every minute of every day they operate. Nuclear is wonderful, except for the nuclear waste and the danger of a nuclear accident. Yes, in order to generate electricity with wind and solar You’re going to have to do some mining and shipping of materials. Good God.

[@danielhanawalt4998]

@@solarwind907 You didn't read my reply maybe. or you would have seen I said wind and solar are smart, clean and cheap. They're just not so much so as some would like us to believe. And I promise, it's not free energy. Who do you think is going to pay for the mining and shipping? Who will pay for the manufacturing of products used for wind and solar? As far as nuclear waste, yes, that's a challenge. Accidents? There have been those of course. However, if you figure in the risk factors of fossil fuel energy we've been using for a long time, nuclear don't look so bad. Ever see a coal miner come out of the mine? Or a mine cave in? Also consider the sheer magnitude of energy needed and the amount of mining it will take to supply all the energy with just wind and solar. We're just scratching the surface of it now. I liked the idea of using coastal waves, tides, or underwater mills. But that could cause some problems with the ecosystems in those areas. Ok, back to nuclear. The small modular reactors won't have the same problems as the giants we have now. It's just a matter of getting it done. Of course those won't be a silver bullet so to speak. There will be a need for all types of energy production.

[@solarwind907]

@@danielhanawalt4998 I went back and read my last comment to you. Your comment indicates you did not understand it, read it fast? Thankfully the US is on track to install 30,000 Megawatts of new offshore wind by 2030. The Biden admin has the offshore leases out for bid. Since you don't understand my posts I'll leave it there. For an education look to the Union of Concerned Scientists. They have papers and a podcast. They stick to reality. You might want to re-read my previous post for a start. Good luck to you,

[@caterinabettioni1422]

The plastic can be transformed to blocks to build houses streets ... smashing it together is not the answer

[@thejohn6614]

It can also be turned into diesel fuel.

[@Name-rm4vr]

@@thejohn6614 cool

[@OOOOO0KKKKKKKK]

then you continue the problem of microplastics. huh you didn't think this through

[@jameswest4819]

Almost all this waste can be broken down into oil. That oil can be turned into different types of plastic and other useful, recyclable products...and free gasoline to people that agree to return to Vegas.

[@vince1638]

300 years from now? Cannot even imagine what it will look like.

[@peterlustig8021]

HEY! Joe sent me! oh wait...

[@josephlalock8378]

i was gonna say....

[@Marc_Davila]

This is genius and I hope this becomes a standard practice, it takes a problem and makes a clean solution out of it

[@Karmiangod]

Amazing stuff, this will be implemented in all municipalities one day, ONE DAY

[@milandraganic2]

Bless those hardworking people

[@tjmarx]

lol when they said they're handling the landfill in an environmentally responsible way I lost it. Totally the funniest thing I'll hear today.

[@benben1980]

this video is very idiotic

[@vice.nor.virtue]

Give the landfill a chance. The way they're managed is so much better than how they used to be. They don't leach into the groundwater and they even extract the methane to be used as natural gas somewhere else.

[@tjmarx]

@@vice.nor.virtue roflmao.

[@BRUCELEE-wt7hk]

I can see the "WALL-E" thing happening

[@dakotapearl0]

Honestly after watching this I'm more depressed than ever about the state of our society. We're so wasteful, holy crap! These may be innovative solutions but they're bandaids on the real problem which is what you should be addressing and not just skipping over as quickly as possible : us! We're the problem here, we're the ones making the mountain of garbage.

[@billhoskoformayorofsaintpa1295]

Good grief. Then YOU do your part rather than labeling others.

[@hughdell4770]

You got it.

[@MiguelGarcia-vj7oo]

So what you got? What's your solution? I'm waiting.......

[@tellyusi1381]

Waste management must be taught in school so that kids in their young age should learn to be responsible ln cleanliness n keeping their environment clean n sane.

[@someguy2135]

I live in Las Vegas. This video was the first I head of what happens to the trash we put out. I am glad they seem to be handling it responsibly. I recognize that we should try to minimize the amount of trash we put out at the curb. I do recycle, and try to reuse and avoid buying packaging when possible. I am glad that buying from the bulk bins is now possible again after the temporary changes due to the Pandemic.

[@someguy2135]

@Doesn't Jump to conclusions Sorry to hear that. There should be a way for your apartment owner to allow you to recycle.

[@Schooney60606]

Eons sent me here, and I'm glad they did =)

[@cristophermoen4287]

Finally, a renewable energy source that actually makes sense.

[@thatguyslivemusic2999]

Just because it works doesn't mean its a good idea. Think of the extremely dangerous chemicals you are creating through burning plastic and and other waste items

[@JoeFlation]

@@thatguyslivemusic2999 That's what the exhaust filtration systems are for. Think of that

[@Brandon-th9pi]

This isn’t renewable. It’s recycled energy.

[@cristophermoen4287]

@@Brandon-th9pi yes it is. As long as we consume there'll always be methane gas to capture.

[@jamesbizs]

@@thatguyslivemusic2999 burning plastic? It’s methane, you maroon

[@LukyPhilo]

Im a compactor operator. Its so much work and if it dosent get done right then it all goes to shit quickly.

[@milkncookie]

The three waste: solids, food and recyclable. The first waste (solids) is repurpose for consumption. The second waste (food) is turned to fertilizer. The last waste (recyclable) is sent to alternative Nations for manufacturing. ❤

[@RandomPersonTime]

Eons sent me! Subbed :)

[@danriddick914]

Great video, love this!

[@mmans8191]

Thanks for this interesting video! How about the "Lixiviat", the garbage juice that comes out of that mountain of Garbage? Are there pipelines inside the garbage mountain that take the liquid out of it and send it to a processing plant nearby? Thanks

[@09lnt]

Fantastic. If only this would be picked up in more places faster.

[@jimmyharris2006]

The 4.9 lb every day per person seems unbelievably high

[@djisar-official]

I live in Vegas! Cool to watch this.

[@Simon-Misiewicz-US-UK-Taxes]

Good quality video, very informative

[@majoroldladyakamom6948]

Wonder how polluted the Water Table underneath it is... Any geologists that can answer would be greatly appreciated.

[@jeremywalters3600]

Modern Landfills such as Apex have a series of impermeable liners and monitoring equipment to ensure nothing escapes the landfill. Leachate collection is also actively taking place as it is pumped out of the landfill into evaporation ponds. Apex also has the benefit of the water table being hundreds of feet below the surface!

[@majoroldladyakamom6948]

@@crashyindigo Thank you. Stay safe... ⚘🙏⚘

[@sethmoking]

Does Nevada have a water table?

[@vice.nor.virtue]

It's like a 1cm thick plastic liner I think, I remember hearing about it on the stuff you should know episode on landfills.

[@scottwelch6086]

The two most important words in this video "one day"

[@matthewconner463]

I live in Las Vegas👌🏾 very informative energy grid

[@patbrennan6572]

Very impressive, keep up the good work.

[@markarca6360]

That technology is used in Payatas landfill in Quezon City in the Philippines.

[@gerwin5492]

I am surprised to see how trash is handled in the usa. In most parts of Europe landfilling is the least favorable option and is only for a small portion of the waste. Most of it is either recycled through separated waste streams (glass, plastic and paper), composted or burned in large scale waste-powerplants. It is hard for me to believe that landfilling virtually uncompostable plastics is “the most sustainable way”. It will be a threat to soil and soilwater-quality for hundreds of years...

[@Delibro]

Oh thanks someone else wrote this. I was wondering if I am the only one thinking the US treats waste like Europe only until 40 years ago :)

[@chezmoi42]

Yes, in this corner of Touraine/Anjou, our unrecyclable trash goes to the UVE Salamandre, a power production plant that burns 100K tons of waste for 60K MW of electricity/yr. I think about 30% of waste in France is treated that way, with another 30% still going to landfills, while the rest is recycled or composted.

[@Hiznogood]

In Sweden we even have to import trash to burn in our waste-power plants! We recycle metal, glas, hard plastics, cardboard, paper, batteries, electronics etc. Food wastes are composted. Why can’t you Americans take your responsibility?

[@chezmoi42]

@@Hiznogood It's sad, really, because when we left Seattle in '92, we were really ahead in the recycling - I remember that it started with plastic bags, and there was a barrel in every grocery for the used ones. There was even a bin for polystyrene foam. No one did either one here in France, and I don't know if WA still does, either. But we finally did catch up; it was hardly done when we arrived, mostly just glass and paper.

[@hewhohasnoidentity4377]

The US experimented with burning trash to produce power. It was considered unpopular and not practical. The large landfill companies having long term contracts to collect and transport solid waste to their facility. Garbage is a massive industry. It is not uncommon for a city to have all garbage trucked over 1000 miles to areas where land is not a concern. Also, burning trash to produce power would interfere with the natural gas and coal interests.

[@agnosticpanda6655]

This is awesome!

[@john.the.beloved]

Very good documentary! Keep up the good work!

[@macksalt5634]

much respect to all these workers

[@PatrickWard72]

Great book to read to help reduce the need for dumps and help upcycle our resources- Cradle to Cradle by William McDonough and Michael Braungart.

[@Skipbo000]

Thank for the fantastic informercial on the Apex Landfill of Las Vegas. Our company thrives due to contracts given to us by the cities in Nevada therefore our public reputation is very important to us. The ending of the piece was brilliant. The Methane Gas Electric project where we use methane from the landfill to power 11,000 homes (the equivalent of removing 10 plastic bags from the ocean every year) is precisely why we began that project in the first place. In order to thrive in the 21 century marketplace, today's public must believe that we are not only taking away tons of trash from their front door everyday, we are actually using it to improve the planet. Even though you and I both know that such a project is making absolutely no difference whatsoever in solving the massive waste problem threatening the future of humanity, you made it look it does. Because of you we we can keep on making a buck while not making one difference whatsoever in our fight to end climate change. Our future depends on being able to provide the technology and infrastructure which fuels billions of pounds of methane gas into the atmosphere every year. Imagine if people were requried to managet their own trash. Global warming would be signficantly lowered and we'd be out of business! So again, we thank you.

[@shereemorgan1430]

Proud of Las Vegas! That pig farm get alot of trucks. I lived there for 13 years.

[@owen.mcgarvey1650]

Man i wish i had a tour like this when i was in high school

[@MaskedNozza]

Very cool. Eons sent me here

[@DSAK55]

In the future this place will be known as Bartertown

[@danialvereb]

2 men enter, 1 man leave.

[@alexmegalos7144]

I would like to say, Delta BC has a landfill just like that, lol it is the tallest peak in our town and still growing too.

[@user-cm4uy9bu4s]

Years ago I saw a report on the outfit that takes the organic waste. It was fascinating how they separate errant trash, sanitize the organic matter and feed it to their pigs. And what a deal for the farmer!! A free food supply for his pigs and a captive customer base with the casinos. No wonder the farmer was laughing all the time during the story. A little note on this video… the guy said the pigs don’t eat “anything”. I grew up on farms and each one had a pig sty. Without exception, the pigs ate anything that falls into the trough. I have a feeling the farmer at this plant made the mistake of catering to his pigs’ tastes and that trained them how to get what they want. Several farmers I worked for growing up admitted to the same mistake and eventually got back to normal pig feeding, embarrassed that they got played by a bunch of pigs.

[@shopshop144]

"not everything can be recycled", true, but is that supposed to be some kind of excuse why Las Vegas and most other cities hardly even try to do top to bottom recycling?

[@working2bselfsufficient724]

It costs me money here to recycle. I cancelled my recycling because was $45 for 3 months but also pay for trash. Recycling shouldn't cost the consumer money throwing it away properly. I don't have to recycle and don't have to pay for it. I however do recycle alot of things and when I have enough people will pick it up and offer me money for it depending. They need to make it free to recycle here and loads more people would.

[@derek-64]

@@working2bselfsufficient724 let's also remember to reduce and reuse as well. That way there's less trash and less to recycle.

[@timbarstow5939]

There's almost no money in recycling. Aside from the metals in the stream, post consumer plastic waste is quite contaminated with everything that screws up the recycling of the plastic into something useful. Search "The Myth of Plastic Recycling" and you'll learn why. Trying to get a good final product from recycled plastic is much more costly and difficult than you would think, but this is the reality. When given the choice, companies will ALWAYS choose the cheaper option.

[@timbarstow5939]

Another reason "top to bottom" recycling doesn't work is that the cities and trash companies don't make the packaging and products that become their problem to deal with when thrown away. We would need the government to require that all consumer items, including the packaging, have a large percentage of recycled content in them to be sold in the US. Keep in mind that this ends up being a spider web: if you cut one strand, the whole web moves, and may not move in the direction you thought it was going to go.

[@MrGamer_jinjit_96]

Pyrolysis is the only way to Zero Waste

[@thisisthewronghat2706]

Or a mass shift in society. While even that may not be 100% zero waste, it’s better than the consumerist mess and the methods to clean it up. Prevention is better than cure after all

[@MrGamer_jinjit_96]

@@thisisthewronghat2706 i agreed too

[@MrGamer_jinjit_96]

@@thisisthewronghat2706 take it as a business opportunities sometimes, solved the problem to earn huge amount of money

[@michaelguerin56]

Good work. Our local municipal landfill pipes its methane gas to the regional hospital’s energy centre. NB If you are talking about methane gas emissions, what about industrial scale rice paddies? I understand that they outproduce livestock emissions of methane gas by a substantial proportion.

[@taniellie]

Awh! Love the pig idea. I talked to my friend about doing that the other day! 🐷

[@ElDJReturn]

So if the pigs are eating human food scraps and those scraps have pork in them, then does that make the pigs cannibals?

[@SonofTheMorningStar666]

Yes.

[@lonestarr1490]

Yeah, but unintentionally. After all, they've no way of knowing what their cooked self tastes like.

[@ericmoyer8538]

@PewDie-Ton EX wild pigs aren’t cannibals. Cannibalism ins’t natural behavior. It’s a symptom of being crammed together unnaturally. They have a social space requirement like every other animal. Including us.

[@lonestarr1490]

@@ericmoyer8538 You have to be a little more careful with that statement. Cannibalism isn't natural behavior for mammals and other vertebrates. It's quite common among some predatory insects, like mantises.

[@ericmoyer8538]

@@lonestarr1490 yep

[@oneplaneteer1708]

Correction, everything in our world is recyclable when you work at the molecular level.

[@mikegordon8178]

Yes, and an enormous amount of energy is required to break those molecular bonds. That is the hurdle.

[@bobpettit6653]

Great video. Thanks for sharing.

[@smitagandhi6249]

Very beautiful video, Very Educational. Thank you so much. 🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌳🌳🌳🌳🌳🌳🌳🌳

[@AidenandDad]

Thank you for all the hard work that you do!

[@mrdingles5107]

I honestly think companies can get more creative to save waste to sell certain items. Like why do shoes need a box? They can probably engrave a barcode onto items. Stores can also get rid of plastic bags. Start bringing your own! Or have to pay for $.05 each bag. Pretty sure people will start bringing their own after that. Also hate when they try to give me a bag for like 1 or 2 items.

[@arniinberlin3837]

Every school kid must see this once a year. Then - maybe things will change.

[@johnfortes2171]

We need to do away with NEEDLESS PACKAGING. I'm 74- when I was a kid if you wanted a flashlight battery you went to a small box that held 10 or 12 and took what you needed- now you buy 2or4 in a plastic and cardboard pack that you throw away!! This goes for MOST everything we buy - a huge waste of resources and ALL TRASH!!

[@daveturnbull7221]

I know this is over a year old but I've just seen it. I was stunned by that opening figure of 4.9lbs/per day/per person. I've not made any conscious effort to reduce my waste but on average I'd say during the last 8 years I've produced under 0.1lbs/day. Having a very limited budget I tend to only buy what I need and make sure as little as possible of it gets wasted. I can't help but wonder how much of that rubbish is produced by the affluent as compared to the poor (not just in the US but here in the UK as well).

[@1w561]

The 4.9lbs is likely an average for the entire population. So, one guy is only throwing out a couple of newspapers, and another is dumping an old refrigerator.

[@MrTelfs]

Is not people who create garbage, it’s cooperations

[@danielpersson7483]

5.49,correction : Nothing belongs in a landfill!!!

[@michaelnguyen-mb3qf]

Cant wait to see this place like 20 years later n wow turning trash to energy for houses amazing work here

[@lillic8522]

In Switzerland, we recycle a lot, what can not be recycled gets burned, the incinerators create heat and electricity to power a good amount of our cities. Due to sanitary reasons, it is not allowed to feed pigs with waste food (it is also not healthy for the pigs), but it gets collected and produces compost and natural gas. We are still a long way off of being perfect, but thank god we don‘t have landfills anymore. Can you imagine what disgusting fluids go down into the groundwater system under a landfill?

[@andy-kg5fb]

Eons sent me

[@jasperliao6430]

They should also talk ab San Diego’s land fill

[@rh380]

For over 20 years I've tried to get the city to trash to power... Using cooling stacks. And exhaust it into the sewer system. Sewage can also be burned for power. But the cooling stacks. Are closed so no exhaust to air ..goes into the sewer pipes. By that time its a vapor.

[@catherineanderson8340]

Thank you great video so much information we could all do so much better God bless

[@DomyTheMad420]

4:15 "ohhey, i remember that place! that's where those dozen deadclaws used to live just outside of Goodsprings. right?"

[@UberAlphaSirus]

Can you use standard ISO units.

[@winmine0327]

"The trash we produce has huge impacts on our environment and climate" [citation needed]

[@rylans.5365]

They literally said why though

[@heavymetalbassist5]

I'd love to be a semi tire seller there. The more trucks that hit a landfill, the more nails find tires

[@yusufbych6308]

The way is to reduce consumption- this just can't go on.

[@jw11432]

Not necessarily. Companies do not create for quality anymore. Most consumer goods are built with planned obsolescence in mind, hence it winds up in the trash, per the plan, so the consumer can purchase again, increasing revenue for the company. Secondly, plastic is over-used and that's because it's cheap for companies to use plastic, as opposed to materials like metal or glass, which is nearly infinitely recyclable and environmentally inert, from my understanding. There's certainly some changes that could be made, but I don't think it's necessarily consumption from a principled standpoint, but how we do business. I know I'd certainly pay a little more for items made out of metal instead of plastic, knowing they'd almost surely last longer. I'd also be ok with metal/glass food containers instead of plastic (again, knowing it would cost a bit more), but so too could they use paper-based products for that. Paper decomposes in no time (2 to 6 weeks), or could be burned as a fuel source. That too would be an excellent solution I think.

[@SolaceEasy]

Good work pronouncing "Nevada" correctly.

[@jeremyscungio16]

It's said another way?

[@SolaceEasy]

@@jeremyscungio16 Nev-ah-da ☑️

[@majoroldladyakamom6948]

Nahvayahdah, by Southerners, lol.

[@SolaceEasy]

@@majoroldladyakamom6948 as we say here, at least we're not as bad as Alabama and Mississippi.

[@Chironex_Fleckeri]

@@jeremyscungio16 Nuh-VAH-duh

[@heyheyjey2534]

I bet money my waste output is less than 2 pounds a day. I walk to work, I recycle as much as I can because it’s free in my town. I reuse a lot, and I don’t purchase items I don’t need. (I’m not an environmentalist, I just don’t like wasting things)

[@xjohnny1000]

Same here. I think their numbers come from "garbage produced divided by population", but 20% of the population creates 80% of the garbage.

[@heyheyjey2534]

@@xjohnny1000 oh I’ve seen some slobs out there, and idk how or why they live like that tbh

[@cryptotycoon4987]

Our system is not perfect,but I love the effort and innovation

[@sntsk]

I really wish that this channel uses metric system.