South Korea is not very large in terms of its total territory, and with limited space and lots of people, trash tends to build up. It's because of this challenge that the Korean government has implemented new trash management policies. These include how to control how much is thrown in landfills as well as the creation of mandatory recycling policies that tell people what you can and cannot throw away.
Since Korea is such a small country, waste removal and storage is a huge issue that has to be dealt with.
Unlike the United States, Korea doesn't have very much room for landfills, and with 10 million people in Seoul alone, trash can pile up very quickly.
The Korean people are very methodical about how they deal with trash. Trash is picked up two to three times per week, and each household is given specific trash bags. The size of the bag depends on your household. For just one or two people, the bag may be the same size as a large grocery bag. However, for five or six people, the bag may be the same size as an industrial trash bag. Koreans also take recycling very seriously. Food waste is composted in most households and paper, plastic and even clothing are separated and recycled.
