Why no recycling at ANY truck stops?

Most of this problem is due to under capacity at the Truck Stops. To begin with, trash bins need to be placed where truckers can easily reach them, and they need to be dumped routinely. I also notice that often truck diesel fuel islands have undersized trash bins originally designed for automobile fuel islands.

Not all truck stops are complete trash heaps, but some are indeed really bad. But, it's not all because of sloppy ignorant truckers...

 

That's definetely a waste problem seemingly hard to solve. Urine pissed in huge amount around trucks stops isn't good for local drinking water supplies. Many truck stops are graded with culverts to trap and drain any toxic waste, piss included, so it doesn't just become an environmental problem.

But, basically the problem here seems to be one of DENIAL. Newbies are first shocked by the piss bottle, then during a blizzard find the advantage of using one in the middle of the night. But, truck stops ignore the obvious and don't provide special piss bottle disposal tanks at the fuel island. It's a hidden reality nobody wants to address it seems.

An odor free piss bottle disposal tank would get a lot of use, and I'll bet the gallons of urine captured would have a market value at the fertilizer or DEF factory.

In a simple set up, next to the tank could be a odor free disposal for the plastic bottles, of course, but a more advanced tank would take the bottle, and separate the plastic from the urine mechanically.

Wait...Let's calculate this. 26 gallons of DEF, having 10% urea, equals 2.6 gallons urea. I don't have a DEF using truck, but I understand that the 26 gallons would be used in about 5,000 miles? Probably the driver's urine would more than supply his own truck's need. Why not have an onboard filtration and mixing system that would take the cab urinal and garden hose supply to make the DEF supply? Then the excess could be dumped like RVers do.

 

The plastic and paper producers don't include the cost of garbage collection and landfill maintenance as part of the "cost". If they did, the price of plastic and fiber would rise, and producers would find ways to reduce that cost by recycling.

The environmental cost of forestry, mining, and oil extraction operations are obviously not carefully considered by big corporations either. The shrimp harvest in the Gulf was extremely low this year. Anyone have a guess why?

If freeway concrete and rebar can be recycled in a cost effective way, I don't see why plastics, paper, glass, and not just metals, can't be captured and reused.

Truckers probably should be given a chance to do the "first sort" by having sorting bins, but otherwise truck stops and garbage companies can figure out a way to separate constituent materials for reuse. If mining companies separate minerals and produce tailings, then mechanically sorting trash should be easy.