Why landfill can beat recycling

Key takeaways from Works in Progress on the environmental trade-offs between recycling, reuse and landfill, shared by Sam BowmanDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → on 1 September 2026:

The article’s overall argument is not that recycling has no value, but that waste policy should prioritise the materials and locations where recycling delivers clear resource or environmental benefits. For many other waste streams, well-run landfill may be cheaper and have a lower environmental cost than reuse or recycling.

Read more: Works in Progress · Sam Bowman on X