According to a new report, the U.S. airline industry currently generates over 880 million tons of waste each year. Of that waste only a very small percentage is actually recycled by these airlines. The recycling report card, which graded each airline for recycling habits, revealed that no airline was doing an A job.
Topping the list for best recyclers included Virgin Atlantic, Virgin America, and Delta. However, United and US Airways managed to fail miserably. Even with some of the airlines coming in first on the list, not a single US carrier rated above a B-.
The report, entitled What Goes Up Must Go Down: The Sorry State of Recycling in the Airline Industry, was published by ResponsibleShopper.org, a consumer watchdog led by Green America. In the report 11 major carriers are ranked based on five areas of recycling. The report has revealed that the industry needs to make major changes as up to 500 million pounds of waste need to be recycled per year at least.
Some of the more shocking findings inside the report include the revelation that no major airline recycles the most basic recyclables such as cans, glass, paper, or plastic. Currently none of the US carriers listed on the report have a comprehensive approach to recycling.
Across the pond in the UK, carriers have begun taking drastic steps to avoid turning into their American counterparts. British Airlines, for example, set a goal to become a zero waste airline by 2010, meaning the airline will send all of its waste to recycling.
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