From Pig-Roamed Streets to 19% Recycling Rate

1800s | Herds of pigs roam the streets consuming garbage, acting as New York City’s first trash collectors. Unfortunately they leave behind plenty of waste of their own

1880 | 15,000 horse carcasses are removed from the streets

1881 | Department of Street Cleaning formed in response to an uproar over litter-filled streets

1880s | 75% of waste is dumped directly in the Atlantic Ocean

1895 | First recycling plan is mandated. Food waste is compressed to yield grease for soap products and fertilizer. Paper is salvaged and ash is landfilled

1897 | A report finds that of 255,000 tenement dwellers, only 305 have a bathroom in their home. Public restrooms are built

1905 | Garbage incinerator built to generate electricity to light the Williamsburg Bridge

1918 | Labor shortages due to World War I end recycling. The city builds more incinerators and landfills

1989 | Recycling becomes mandatory once again,

1994 | Last incinerator closes

2001 | Last landfill, Fresh Kills on Staten Island, closes.

Today | New York recycles 19% of its waste. That’s about the same as the national average but ranks 18th on a list of cities, far behind Seattle (52%) and San Francisco (42%)

(Makeshift trashcan from dchadwick's flickr stream.)