MIT researchers have a set a new project into place to track your trash from your barrel to landfill through the cities of New York and Seattle.  They plan to place tracers that will triangulate their position, “the goal of the project is to reveal inefficiencies in our disposal process.” This could be an affective process of keeping waste and recycling companies accountable with their diversion processes as well as an efficiency check on routes.

Their first test subject, the infamous starbucks coffee cup, goes on a tour of NYC and has a video tracking the cup going through New York, which is highlighted through their blog.  This program is intended to educate the public on the wastes they accumulate everyday and their inefficiencies on the environment.  We do have a recycling loop in place, but how many miles does it take to close that circle?

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