Imagine a knock on your door. As you open the door to answer it, mounds of trash begin to fall in the doorway from outside. A terrible stench hits your nose. Gasping for fresh air, the smell is so strong you can barely breathe.

The majestic trees, lush greenery, and flowers that used to greet you each morning are now smothered in mountains of your neighbor’s rotting leftovers, countless grocery bags, water bottles, beer cans, and paper, paper, paper.

It’s literally a dump.

Toxic waste, pollution, dumps, and landfills don’t usually come to mind when you think of your home. Living in a world without recycling would make these words an accurate depiction of the place we end our days, raise our families, and take refuge.

The words many of us would like to associate with a space we love and live in are safe, relaxing, warm, comfortable, and inviting. No one wants to think of trash and toxic waste when they think of home. 

Unfortunately, this description is not far off from what’s already happening in people’s homes in Houston. They live next to landfills creating an environment much like the one previously described.

Constant exposure to toxic waste and pollution, chronic illnesses and asthma, are frequently what people suffer from when living near landfills. Recycling is not solely an environmental issue, it is a public health issue as well. 

Picture this landfill we have been imagining. Now, imagine decreasing it by 70 percent. What does it look like now? It’s significantly different.

Maybe the landfill you pictured went from a massive mountain to a small hill. This is how it could look if the city of Houston were to expand recycling and increase the accessibility of recycling to all residents. I mention this because 70 percent of trash is recyclable. This is how it could look. Our city should not be a dump.

As a community, we have the obligation to not only make recycling accessible for all residents in Houston but to create a better environment for Houstonians to live in. No one should have a landfill for a backyard and everyone should have access to recycling if they choose to do so.

Holly Heil is a student in the Graduate College of Social Work

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“Guest column: A world without recycling” was originally posted on The Daily Cougar