"Recycling Chaos In U.S. As China Bans 'Foreign Waste'"

"Like many Portland residents, Satish and Arlene Palshikar are serious recyclers. Their house is coated with recycled bluish-white paint. They recycle their rainwater, compost their food waste and carefully separate the paper and plastic they toss out. But recently, after loading up their Prius and driving to a sorting facility, they got a shock.

'The fellow said we don't take plastic anymore,' Satish says. 'It should go in the trash.'

The facility had been shipping its plastic to China, but suddenly that was no longer possible."

Cassandra Profita and Jes Burns report for NPR December 8, 2017.