As the sleep economy grows, companies vie to sell us new mattresses, offering 100-day returns. This has helped create an impossible waste mountain – and a wild west of rogue recyclers...

Plastic bans are increasing around the world, a necessary step to save our environment, writes Sarah King of Greenpeace Canada. Angela Logomasini of the Competitive Enterprise Institute argues that, although well meaning, such bans create more problem than they solve.

This trailblazing Canadian company is building a new standard for sustainability since they started recycling the bulk of their municipal plastic waste into lumber. Roughly 80% of the plastic recyclables collected throughout Halifax, Nova Scotia are now being processed by Goodwood Plastic Products Ltd so they can be turned into building blocks.

It's possible the plastic shopping bags you recycled last week could eventually be turned into a bench you'll one day sit on. That's because the majority of plastics recycled in the Halifax area are now going to a local company that turns the waste into lumber.

Watch this video showing the fascinating process of turning spent agave fiber into biodegradable and environmentally friendlier drinking straws.

The recycling system is extremely confusing to the general public. Here's why.

Lithium-ion batteries are notorious for developing internal electrical shorts that can ignite a battery’s liquid electrolytes, leading to explosions and fires. Engineers at the University of Illinois have developed a solid polymer-based electrolyte that can self-heal after damage – and the material can also be recycled without the use of harsh chemicals or high temperatures.

In a warehouse in Chatsworth, California, rows upon rows of giant wooden crates are stacked forty feet high, in a scene somewhat reminiscent of the secret U.S. military installation shown at the end of Indiana Jones: Raiders of the Lost Ark. Instead of Biblical artifacts, though, these boxes contain a more modern form of treasure: batteries scavenged from dead electric cars.

This year, the Estonian town of Viimsi, just outside the capital Tallinn, decided it was time to make Christmas more relevant, and green. Instead of the traditional pine tree, an installation of plastic containers is taking centre stage in the town's Christmas celebrations. Teet Suur, the artist behind the environmentally-friendly installation, says the inspiration came from his local petrol station, where window washing liquid, usually available in 5l plastic containers, is now readily available from pumps that go straight into the car.

Humans have enlisted nearly 100 AI-powered robots in North American to come to the rescue for something humans are terrible at: recycling. Even when we try to do it right, we're often making things worse; About one out of every four of the things people throw into the recycling bin aren't recyclable at all.

A pair of Australian scientists believe they have invented the technology that can recycle any type of plastic. 

Audio obtained by The Intercept reveals how Coca-Cola’s “green” philanthropy helped squelch an important tool in fighting the plastic crisis.

Europe’s manufacturers face $250m-a-year hit as rising demand drives up price

Coca-Cola has made bottles from ocean plastic, citing "breakthrough technology" which could be the future of packaging.

This tiny Himalayan village has shunned single-use plastics – the impact is too serious for them.

A pilot plastic street will be built downtown later this year

So many things we buy come packaged in plastic containers or wrappers that are meant to be used once, thrown away and forgotten ― but they don’t break down and can linger in the environment long after we’re gone. It’s tempting to think that we can recycle this problem away, that if we’re more diligent about placing discarded bottles and bags into the curbside bin, we’ll somehow make up for all the trash overflowing landfills, choking waterways and killing marine life.

Some men view environmentalism as 'feminine', apparently, and avoid certain behaviours because of that.

Very little of plastic we recycle is actually removed from the waste stream.

Recycled aluminum is coming for your water and your iPad. Making products out of used aluminum is now a way for companies like Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, and Apple to show a commitment to greening their manufacturing. Customers are supposed to be able to sleep a little better at night knowing that the shiny thing they bought did some good for the planet. But is aluminum’s future as bright as the hype suggests?