I’m the office recycling nag - I set up a plastic recycling box and put up signs about what can’t be tossed into the white-paper bins, etc. - but even I realize that recycling is a pain. It would be so much easier just to heave everything into the trash and not have to think about it ("should I leave caps on bottles?" "does this box go with cardboard or paper?" "is this plastic recyclable?")

Even in greener-than-thou Vermont, recycling rates are crummy, says the Burlington Free-Press: "Nearly two decades ago, Vermont set agoal of recycling 40 percent of solid waste from homes and businesses.In 2001, that goal was raised to 50 percent.The actual rate is about 30 percent and has remained there for the past five or more years."