If you’ve ever taken out the trash and thought, “This feels like a lot,”— well, you may be right. The average American throws away 4 pounds of waste every single day. That’s nearly 1,800 pounds a year—more than the weight of a compact car.
Now zoom out: with over 330 million people in the U.S., we’re generating more than 800,000 tons of trash per day. And while some of that is recycled, most of it ends up in landfills or incinerators.
The U.S. Leads the World—in Trash
Compared to the rest of the world, Americans are in a league of their own when it comes to waste. Germans generate around 2.6 pounds per day, the Japanese about 2.4, and people in the UK around 2.7. In contrast, Americans generate nearly double the trash per person.
So what’s going wrong?
Part of the problem is overconsumption—packaging, single-use products, and fast-paced lifestyles. But another big issue is access and visibility. If you can’t see where to recycle—or aren’t sure how—chances are, it’s going in the trash.
Recycling Is Failing—But It Doesn’t Have To
Only about 32% of municipal solid waste in the U.S. is recycled, despite widespread awareness campaigns.
Why? Because recycling bins are often hard to find, poorly labeled, or inconsistently placed. Add contamination from food or mixed materials, and entire batches of recyclables can end up in the landfill.
This is where ClearStream comes in.
A Simple, Visible Fix
ClearStream Recycling focuses on source separation and visibility. Their transparent recycling bins—used at stadiums, festivals, parks, and campuses- are designed to be seen, understood, and used correctly. The result? Lower contamination rates, cleaner materials, and more actual recycling.
No guesswork. No hidden bins. Just clear, effective sorting at the moment of disposal.
It’s a simple solution to a massive problem—and one that scales.
Imagine If Every Event Got It Right
Think of the last outdoor event you attended. Now imagine if every bottle and can went into the correct bin instead of the trash. Multiply that by thousands of venues across the country. The impact? Huge.
Less landfill. More recovery. A smaller footprint.
ClearStream isn’t trying to solve the entire waste problem—but it is solving one of the most fixable parts: making recycling visible and easy where people need it most.
Final Thought
We may be the world’s top trash producers—but we don’t have to be. Better systems lead to better habits. And better habits lead to less waste. Reducing the daily volume of waste isn’t just about recycling more; it’s about making recycling easier, clearer, and more accessible. By placing the right bins in the right places, ClearStream helps communities, event organizers, and institutions take control of their waste. If we rethink how we dispose, we can reshape how we consume—and create a cleaner, more sustainable future in the process.
Start small. Think clear.