I'm sitting in my office, which looks out on the street. Last night and this morning, we have had a pretty stiff breeze blowing. Fortunately, we haven't lost power - our lines here are underground. Unfortunately, this morning is when the county collects recycling.

Why do I say unfortunately? Well, a lot of the recycling bins got knocked over in the wind, either overnight or this morning. The various items - papers, plastic and metal containers, etc - are just loose in these bins. When they fall over in a stiff breeze, the result is windblown garbage everywhere.

The irony? If this stuff were all put in the trash, it would be bagged and weighed down - and pretty much immune to the wind. The attempt to be more thoughtful by recycling is having the net effect of spreading trash all over my neighborhood (this is hardly the first time that lots of wind has coincided with recycling day).

So the irony is - at least in my neighborhood - recycling efforts have led to more trash being blown into the woods and ponds in the neighborhood.

Technorati Tags: trash, recycling