From a sustainability perspective, it’s important to know how long it takes various types of garbage to decompose. We should focus our efforts especially on reducing the consumption of products that generate waste materials that take a long time to completely break down.
Let’s review how long it takes for various waste categories to decompose in landfills, along with some relevant statistics.
The rate of decomposition can depend on landfill conditions.
Plastic Waste
Plastic products are very common in our modern life. According to the Pacific Institute, we used approximately 17 million barrels of oil just for producing plastic water bottles in 2006. Plastic waste is one of many types of wastes that take too long to decompose. Normally, plastic items can take up to 1,000 years to decompose in landfills. Even plastic bags we use in our everyday life take anywhere from 10 to 1,000 years to decompose, and plastic bottles can take 450 years or more.
Disposable Diapers
In the United States alone, about 3.3 million tons of disposable diapers were thrown away in 2018. These disposable diapers take approximately 250-500 years to decompose in landfills, thus underscoring the importance of programs offering diaper and absorbent hygiene product recycling.
Aluminum Cans
About 42.7 billion aluminum cans, over 81,000 cans per minute, were recycled in America in 2019. But, at the same time, in every three-month period in the U.S., enough aluminum cans and packaging are thrown away—2.66 billion tons in 2018—to rebuild the entire American commercial air fleet. Aluminum cans take 80-100 years in landfills to completely decompose.
Glass
Glass is normally very easy to recycle due to the fact that it’s made of sand. By simply breaking down the glass and melting it, we can produce new glass. But the shocking fact is that if glass is thrown away in landfills, it takes a million years to decompose. And according to some sources, it doesn’t decompose at all.
Paper Waste
Paper is the largest element in American municipal solid waste. Normally, it takes two to six weeks in a landfill to get completely decomposed, but can take decades, depending on moisture levels within the landfill. Recycling paper items saves a lot of landfill space while also reducing the energy and virgin material usage demanded by making non-recycled paper. Recycling paper items saves a lot of landfill space while also reducing the energy and virgin material usage demanded by making non-recycled paper.
Food Waste
Food is the second largest waste item in American landfills. The time taken for food waste decomposition depends on the type of food. Normally, an orange peel takes six months, while an apple core takes around two months, and a banana peel takes two to 10 days, to decompose. Composting and food waste recycling are great ways to divert food waste away from landfills.
Other Waste Items
Different sources have different information on the actual time various waste items take to decompose. Here are some estimates for common waste items:
Waste Item Decomposition Time
Cigarette butts 10-12 years
Monofilament fishing line 600 years
Rubber boot soles 50-80 years
Foamed plastic cups 50 years
Leather shoes 25-40 years
Milk cartons 5 years
Plywood 1-3 years
Cotton gloves 3 months
Cardboard 2 months
Styrofoam Does not biodegrade
Nylon fabric 30-40 years
Tin can 50 years
Ropes 3-14 months
Aluminum cans 80-100 years
Train tickets 2 weeks
Batteries 100 years
Sanitary pads 500-800 years
Wool clothing 1-5 years
Tinfoil Does not biodegrade
Final Note
The increasing volume of waste is a major concern for humans and the environment. The best way to deal with this problem is to avoid products that generate waste materials that take more than a year to decompose in landfills. Every household and organization should also have a proactive plan for recycling to divert more materials away from the waste stream.
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From a sustainability perspective, it’s important to know how long it takes various types of garbage to decompose. We should focus our efforts especially on reducing the consumption of products that generate waste materials that take a long time to completely break down.
Let’s review how long it takes for various waste categories to decompose in landfills, along with some relevant statistics.
The rate of decomposition can depend on landfill conditions.
Plastic Waste
Plastic products are very common in our modern life. According to the Pacific Institute, we used approximately 17 million barrels of oil just for producing plastic water bottles in 2006. Plastic waste is one of many types of wastes that take too long to decompose. Normally, plastic items can take up to 1,000 years to decompose in landfills. Even plastic bags we use in our everyday life take anywhere from 10 to 1,000 years to decompose, and plastic bottles can take 450 years or more.
Disposable Diapers
In the United States alone, about 3.3 million tons of disposable diapers were thrown away in 2018. These disposable diapers take approximately 250-500 years to decompose in landfills, thus underscoring the importance of programs offering diaper and absorbent hygiene product recycling.
Aluminum Cans
About 42.7 billion aluminum cans, over 81,000 cans per minute, were recycled in America in 2019. But, at the same time, in every three-month period in the U.S., enough aluminum cans and packaging are thrown away—2.66 billion tons in 2018—to rebuild the entire American commercial air fleet. Aluminum cans take 80-100 years in landfills to completely decompose.
Glass
Glass is normally very easy to recycle due to the fact that it’s made of sand. By simply breaking down the glass and melting it, we can produce new glass. But the shocking fact is that if glass is thrown away in landfills, it takes a million years to decompose. And according to some sources, it doesn’t decompose at all.
Paper Waste
Paper is the largest element in American municipal solid waste. Normally, it takes two to six weeks in a landfill to get completely decomposed, but can take decades, depending on moisture levels within the landfill. Recycling paper items saves a lot of landfill space while also reducing the energy and virgin material usage demanded by making non-recycled paper. Recycling paper items saves a lot of landfill space while also reducing the energy and virgin material usage demanded by making non-recycled paper.
Food Waste
Food is the second largest waste item in American landfills. The time taken for food waste decomposition depends on the type of food. Normally, an orange peel takes six months, while an apple core takes around two months, and a banana peel takes two to 10 days, to decompose. Composting and food waste recycling are great ways to divert food waste away from landfills.
Other Waste Items
Different sources have different information on the actual time various waste items take to decompose. Here are some estimates for common waste items:
Waste Item Decomposition Time
Cigarette butts 10-12 years
Monofilament fishing line 600 years
Rubber boot soles 50-80 years
Foamed plastic cups 50 years
Leather shoes 25-40 years
Milk cartons 5 years
Plywood 1-3 years
Cotton gloves 3 months
Cardboard 2 months
Styrofoam Does not biodegrade
Nylon fabric 30-40 years
Tin can 50 years
Ropes 3-14 months
Aluminum cans 80-100 years
Train tickets 2 weeks
Batteries 100 years
Sanitary pads 500-800 years
Wool clothing 1-5 years
Tinfoil Does not biodegrade
Final Note
The increasing volume of waste is a major concern for humans and the environment. The best way to deal with this problem is to avoid products that generate waste materials that take more than a year to decompose in landfills. Every household and organization should also have a proactive plan for recycling to divert more materials away from the waste stream.
When you visit the site, Dotdash Meredith and its partners may store or retrieve information on your browser, mostly in the form of cookies. Cookies collect information about your preferences and your devices and are used to make the site work as you expect it to, to understand how you interact with the site, and to show advertisements that are targeted to your interests. You can find out more about our use, change your default settings, and withdraw your consent at any time with effect for the future by visiting Cookies Settings, which can also be found in the footer of the site. Cookies Settings Reject All Accept Cookies
From a sustainability perspective, it’s important to know how long it takes various types of garbage to decompose. We should focus our efforts especially on reducing the consumption of products that generate waste materials that take a long time to completely break down.
Let’s review how long it takes for various waste categories to decompose in landfills, along with some relevant statistics.
The rate of decomposition can depend on landfill conditions.
Plastic Waste
Plastic products are very common in our modern life. According to the Pacific Institute, we used approximately 17 million barrels of oil just for producing plastic water bottles in 2006. Plastic waste is one of many types of wastes that take too long to decompose. Normally, plastic items can take up to 1,000 years to decompose in landfills. Even plastic bags we use in our everyday life take anywhere from 10 to 1,000 years to decompose, and plastic bottles can take 450 years or more.
Disposable Diapers
In the United States alone, about 3.3 million tons of disposable diapers were thrown away in 2018. These disposable diapers take approximately 250-500 years to decompose in landfills, thus underscoring the importance of programs offering diaper and absorbent hygiene product recycling.
Aluminum Cans
About 42.7 billion aluminum cans, over 81,000 cans per minute, were recycled in America in 2019. But, at the same time, in every three-month period in the U.S., enough aluminum cans and packaging are thrown away—2.66 billion tons in 2018—to rebuild the entire American commercial air fleet. Aluminum cans take 80-100 years in landfills to completely decompose.
Glass
Glass is normally very easy to recycle due to the fact that it’s made of sand. By simply breaking down the glass and melting it, we can produce new glass. But the shocking fact is that if glass is thrown away in landfills, it takes a million years to decompose. And according to some sources, it doesn’t decompose at all.
Paper Waste
Paper is the largest element in American municipal solid waste. Normally, it takes two to six weeks in a landfill to get completely decomposed, but can take decades, depending on moisture levels within the landfill. Recycling paper items saves a lot of landfill space while also reducing the energy and virgin material usage demanded by making non-recycled paper. Recycling paper items saves a lot of landfill space while also reducing the energy and virgin material usage demanded by making non-recycled paper.
Food Waste
Food is the second largest waste item in American landfills. The time taken for food waste decomposition depends on the type of food. Normally, an orange peel takes six months, while an apple core takes around two months, and a banana peel takes two to 10 days, to decompose. Composting and food waste recycling are great ways to divert food waste away from landfills.
Other Waste Items
Different sources have different information on the actual time various waste items take to decompose. Here are some estimates for common waste items:
Waste Item Decomposition Time
Cigarette butts 10-12 years
Monofilament fishing line 600 years
Rubber boot soles 50-80 years
Foamed plastic cups 50 years
Leather shoes 25-40 years
Milk cartons 5 years
Plywood 1-3 years
Cotton gloves 3 months
Cardboard 2 months
Styrofoam Does not biodegrade
Nylon fabric 30-40 years
Tin can 50 years
Ropes 3-14 months
Aluminum cans 80-100 years
Train tickets 2 weeks
Batteries 100 years
Sanitary pads 500-800 years
Wool clothing 1-5 years
Tinfoil Does not biodegrade
Final Note
The increasing volume of waste is a major concern for humans and the environment. The best way to deal with this problem is to avoid products that generate waste materials that take more than a year to decompose in landfills. Every household and organization should also have a proactive plan for recycling to divert more materials away from the waste stream.
From a sustainability perspective, it’s important to know how long it takes various types of garbage to decompose. We should focus our efforts especially on reducing the consumption of products that generate waste materials that take a long time to completely break down.
Let’s review how long it takes for various waste categories to decompose in landfills, along with some relevant statistics.
The rate of decomposition can depend on landfill conditions.
Plastic Waste
Plastic products are very common in our modern life. According to the Pacific Institute, we used approximately 17 million barrels of oil just for producing plastic water bottles in 2006. Plastic waste is one of many types of wastes that take too long to decompose. Normally, plastic items can take up to 1,000 years to decompose in landfills. Even plastic bags we use in our everyday life take anywhere from 10 to 1,000 years to decompose, and plastic bottles can take 450 years or more.
The rate of decomposition can depend on landfill conditions.
The rate of decomposition can depend on landfill conditions.
Disposable Diapers
In the United States alone, about 3.3 million tons of disposable diapers were thrown away in 2018. These disposable diapers take approximately 250-500 years to decompose in landfills, thus underscoring the importance of programs offering diaper and absorbent hygiene product recycling.
Aluminum Cans
About 42.7 billion aluminum cans, over 81,000 cans per minute, were recycled in America in 2019. But, at the same time, in every three-month period in the U.S., enough aluminum cans and packaging are thrown away—2.66 billion tons in 2018—to rebuild the entire American commercial air fleet. Aluminum cans take 80-100 years in landfills to completely decompose.
Glass
Glass is normally very easy to recycle due to the fact that it’s made of sand. By simply breaking down the glass and melting it, we can produce new glass. But the shocking fact is that if glass is thrown away in landfills, it takes a million years to decompose. And according to some sources, it doesn’t decompose at all.
Paper Waste
Paper is the largest element in American municipal solid waste. Normally, it takes two to six weeks in a landfill to get completely decomposed, but can take decades, depending on moisture levels within the landfill. Recycling paper items saves a lot of landfill space while also reducing the energy and virgin material usage demanded by making non-recycled paper. Recycling paper items saves a lot of landfill space while also reducing the energy and virgin material usage demanded by making non-recycled paper.
Food Waste
Food is the second largest waste item in American landfills. The time taken for food waste decomposition depends on the type of food. Normally, an orange peel takes six months, while an apple core takes around two months, and a banana peel takes two to 10 days, to decompose. Composting and food waste recycling are great ways to divert food waste away from landfills.
Other Waste Items
Different sources have different information on the actual time various waste items take to decompose. Here are some estimates for common waste items:
Waste Item Decomposition Time
Cigarette butts 10-12 years
Monofilament fishing line 600 years
Rubber boot soles 50-80 years
Foamed plastic cups 50 years
Leather shoes 25-40 years
Milk cartons 5 years
Plywood 1-3 years
Cotton gloves 3 months
Cardboard 2 months
Styrofoam Does not biodegrade
Nylon fabric 30-40 years
Tin can 50 years
Ropes 3-14 months
Aluminum cans 80-100 years
Train tickets 2 weeks
Batteries 100 years
Sanitary pads 500-800 years
Wool clothing 1-5 years
Tinfoil Does not biodegrade
Final Note
The increasing volume of waste is a major concern for humans and the environment. The best way to deal with this problem is to avoid products that generate waste materials that take more than a year to decompose in landfills. Every household and organization should also have a proactive plan for recycling to divert more materials away from the waste stream.
Final Note
The increasing volume of waste is a major concern for humans and the environment. The best way to deal with this problem is to avoid products that generate waste materials that take more than a year to decompose in landfills. Every household and organization should also have a proactive plan for recycling to divert more materials away from the waste stream.
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Entertainment
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About Us Advertise Careers Privacy Policy Editorial Guidelines Contact Terms of Use EU Privacy
LiveAbout is part of the Dotdash Meredith publishing family.
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Home
Entertainment
Careers
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Humor
About Us Advertise Careers Privacy Policy Editorial Guidelines Contact Terms of Use EU Privacy
About Us
Advertise
Careers
Privacy Policy
Editorial Guidelines
Contact
Terms of Use
EU Privacy
Entertainment
Careers
Activities
Humor
LiveAbout is part of the Dotdash Meredith publishing family.
When you visit the site, Dotdash Meredith and its partners may store or retrieve information on your browser, mostly in the form of cookies. Cookies collect information about your preferences and your devices and are used to make the site work as you expect it to, to understand how you interact with the site, and to show advertisements that are targeted to your interests. You can find out more about our use, change your default settings, and withdraw your consent at any time with effect for the future by visiting Cookies Settings, which can also be found in the footer of the site. Cookies Settings Reject All Accept Cookies
