Where does your recycling end up – and who bears the brunt of ‘waste colonialism’?

New Zealand exports over half of its recycling to countries like Indonesia, where local communities deal with the consequences of processing contaminated wastepaper bales, resulting in the burning of dirty, low-grade plastic scraps for fuel and causing health risks due to dioxins and hazardous chemicals. Workers, including children, sift through the plastic for salvageable material, earning minimal income while being exposed to respiratory diseases and reproductive disorders. The reliance on burning plastic for fuel continues in other industries like tofu production, highlighting the urgent need for tighter regulations to protect both the environment and human health.

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