As mentioned before, economic growth is an impetus for the increasing level of garbage. As mentioned in module 8, the “throw-away society” of today is the process of manufactured goods ending with disposal instead of a cycle of re-use. This is a good example of how economic growth has negatively affected the economy and through that, indirectly us. The capability to realize economies of scale allowed firms to produce at a faster and cheaper rate. This decrease in price urged consumers to purchase new rather than re-use the old. Furthermore, the idea of build in obsolescence reveals the deviant ways of the producers. In order to generate profit, producers predetermine the lifetime of a product, further urging consumers to throw away the old and purchase new. This habit of throwing away goods we consume in order to purchase new ones leads to the built up of full landfills and through that pollution for the environment.
The next image shows how the wrapper as ended in the large garbage bin, ready to be brought to a landfill.
In the bin
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