The issue is that China which used to buy our materials has started accepting significantly less. Without them the materials are generally not easily reused, at lest in most cases.
They used to sort through the items and effectively make them usable. In this country the cost of doing that is prohibitive.
So most recycled material are effectively contaminated with non recyclable stuff that needs to be sorted, but to do that is prohibitively expensive. Much of it is simply going into landfills.
More and more items are also packaged in materials that simply can't be recycled. Much of the plastic packaging used is not easily recycled.
The following article from the Atlantic list the issues.
Atlantic Article
One of the problems is that the true cost of products is not just the cost of manufacturing them.It is also the aftermarket costs they create.
The same problem exists with energy although it some ways a bit less traceable.
Like most things dealing with the problem on the back side is the hardest and most expensive method. If the items are biodegradable in the first place, the recycling issue doesn't exist. Plastic is a very convenient material for many applications, but other materials can be used.
When we shop we should be conscious of how we impact the planet and our worlds future. I'm a firm believer that most of us would prefer to do the right thing, if we could.
Each person is a minor impact, but small impacts can add up and while it may not be the complete solution it is a start.
To quote Pogo, "We have met the enemy and it is us"
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