That is, until I'm done, and I have to decide what to do with my cup.

但喝完後，我該拿這個杯子怎麼辦？

Can I recycle it?

它可以回收嗎？

Is that a trick question?

這是陷阱題嗎？

Yeah, this is a great question.

這是個好問題。

I just figure you can recycle anything that's cardboard-esque.

我以為任何硬紙板類的東西都可以回收。

That's not right!

答錯了！

I can't recycle this?

這個杯子不能回收？

Knowing what you can and can't recycle isn't easy.

要知道哪些東西可以回收並不是件簡單事。

The rules depend on where you live.

回收的規定會因每個人居住的地方而有所不同。

And there are hundreds of products and materials where the rules aren't always clear.

但規定中，有幾百種產品和材料的規範都不是很明確。

Pizza boxes?

披薩外盒？

I hear that that's not recyclable.

我聽說這是不能回收的。

I don't know if that's like a legend, an urban legend or something.

但我不確定這是不是傳說或都市傳說那類的。

Paper towels?

紙巾？

My roommate and I actually have this discussion where I'm like, I'll throw paper towels in there.

我跟我室友其實討論過這個問題，像我就會把紙巾丟到回收。

And she's like, "I don't think you can recycle that" and she'll pick them out.

然後她就會說「我不覺得這些可以回收耶」，再把它們挑出來。

Like, I don't know, it's paper.

就...我不知道啊，這是紙啊。

Bubble wrap mailers.

郵寄用的氣泡紙。

I don't know, this is so hard!

我不知道啦，這有夠難的！

The confusion means that things that are actually garbage still end up in the recycling stream.

大家會有這樣的困惑，就表示本該是一般垃圾的垃圾還是會出現在回收的產線中。

About 25% of what Americans try to recycle can't actually be recycled.

大約有 25% 美國人想回收的東西，其實都是不可回收的。

Waste management experts say what's going on here is something called "aspirational recycling".

廢棄物管理專家表示，這個現象叫「一廂情願式的回收」。

When people are unsure if an item can be recycled, they recycle it, because it feels like the right thing to do.

當大家不確定某個東西可不可以回收，他們會選擇丟進回收桶，因為感覺這樣做才是正確的。

And while our intentions are good, this behavior isn't harmless.

雖然我們的立意良善，但這個舉動卻有害而無益。

Even small amounts of contamination can turn entire hauls of otherwise recyclable materials into trash.

即便只是少量的污染都會讓原本可以回收的東西變成一般垃圾。

And the problem has been growing.

而且這個問題現在越來越嚴重。

The rate of recycling contamination more than doubled in the last decade.

回收污染的問題跟十年前相比增長了一倍。

So, why is this happening?

為什麼會發生這種事呢？

Well, it is at least in part due to a major shift in how Americans recycled.

至少有部份跟美國人回收方式的一大轉變有關。

Beginning in the 1990s and 2000s, municipalities implemented "single stream" recycling programs.

在 1990 到 2000 年代，許多市政府開始施行「單流回收」的回收計畫。

Paper, metal, plastic, and glass no longer needed to be sorted.

紙類、金屬、塑膠和玻璃不用再各自分類。

They could all live in one bin.

可以全部都直接丟進回收桶。

Communities quickly adopted the practice and, by 2014, 80% of all curbside recycling programs in the US were single stream.

當地居民馬上採用這項做法，到了 2014 年，全美有 80% 的街道回收都是採取單流回收。

The problem is, there's evidence that when we put all our recycling into one bin, we're more likely to throw trash in there along with it.

但問題是證據顯示，當我們把不同類別的回收物丟入同一個回收桶，我們就更有可能將一般垃圾也丟進去。

Take two neighboring counties in Florida, for example:

以佛羅里達州兩個鄰近的縣為例：

Palm Beach County, where residents must pre-sort their recyclables, had a contamination rate of only 9%,

必須先分類好可回收物品的棕櫚灘縣居民，他們的回收汙染率只有 9%。

while Broward County's single-stream program had a contamination rate of 30%.

但實行單流回收的布勞沃德縣，回收汙染率卻是 30%。

Single-stream recycling takes the responsibility to sort off of the individual and shifts it to Materials Recovery Facilities, or MRFs, where trash gets sorted out from recycling by machines.

單流回收負責處理每個人的回收物品，將他們送往回收分選設備，或稱作 MRFs，各種機器會將一般垃圾從可回收物中挑出來。

But also by workers, who often have to remove waste by hand.

但也會有工人靠他們的雙手挑出這些不可回收的垃圾。

Pizza boxes contaminated with grease, electronics that aren't processed at standard recycling facilities.

像是受到油漬汙染的披薩外盒、回收場無法處理的電子產品。

Even the likes of Christmas lights, animal carcasses, and bowling balls.

甚至還有像聖誕節燈泡、動物屍體和保齡球的東西。

In Portland, workers remove thousands of dirty diapers every month.

在波特蘭，工人每個月都可以挑出上千件髒尿布。

In a perfect world, everyone would just know how to recycle correctly.

在理想狀況下，每個人都要知道如何正確地分類。

But short of that, there's something we can all start doing differently right now.

但除此之外，還有一件我們現在就可以開始做的事。

Unless you are absolutely sure, don't recycle it.

除非你百分之百確定，不然就別回收。

In fact, recycling education campaigns encourage the opposite: When in doubt, the best option may be to throw it out.

其實回收教育宣導反而是鼓勵大眾：如果你有所遲疑，最好的選擇也許就是直接丟掉。

Most people want to do the right thing, and sometimes the way to be a good recycler is to throw stuff in the trash.

多數人都想為環境盡一份心力，而有時候想當回收小尖兵的方式，就是把不確定可不可以回收的東西丟進一般垃圾桶。

If you like this video and want more like it, we've launched a paid membership program on YouTube called the Vox Video Lab.

如果你喜歡這支影片，也想看更多相關影片的話，我們在 YouTube 上推出了付費會員節目，叫 Vox Video Lab。

For a monthly fee, subscribers get access to DVD extras, live Q&As with creators, and video recommendations.

一個月的費用就可以讓訂閱者收看額外的 DVD、現場直播、影片創作者的問答時間、和推薦的影片。

You can go to vox.com/join and be part of the Video Lab community.

你可以到 vox.com/join 加入，成為 Video Lab 社群的一員。

See you there!

我們 Video Lab 見！