I've thought pretty long and hard about the recycling idea you presented here. And I came up with a profession based on it.

Suggestion: Recycling Profession

Core Idea:

Instead of waste being a side note, make it part of the economy. A dedicated Recycler would collect and process trash/bi-products from other professions, turning it into useful resources.

How it Works:

Trash Collection:

Chefs → leftover peels, cores, stems.

Hunters → unusable animal parts, fish guts.

Tool users → broken tools/scraps.

Recycler buys this “trash” cheap and processes it.

Fertilizer Buff:

Fertilizer specialists currently struggle with high costs and little payoff.

Recyclers turn trash into compost cheaply → giving Fertilizer Specialists steady supply.

Recycling Old Tools:

Example: A stone axe (10 fibers, 2 stone) → Recycler reclaims 2 fibers + 1 stone (more with efficiency upgrades).

Balance/Drawbacks:

Recycling isn’t infinite, some processing produces tailings.

Recyclers also manage dumping/landfills, so it’s not all upside.

New Gameplay Opportunities:

A Garbage Truck vehicle for this profession to quickly collect from “trash” tagged containers (dumpsters, bins).

Creates a new economy loop: everyone produces waste → Recycler collects → Fertilizer gets cheap compost → less pollution overall.

Fits the theme of Eco by making waste and sustainability matter more in the big picture.

Additionally:

Future Potential with Animal Husbandry:

Animal husbandry is coming to Eco soon, and this system would tie in perfectly. Ranches naturally create bi-products that Recyclers could convert into fertilizer components. Likewise, food scraps collected from kitchens could be repurposed into animal feed, closing the loop between farming, ranching, and waste management.

I have been running around playing mechanic for my server, but I get these parts back with 0% durability. It would be nice to either scrap the item and turn it into garbage, or even get a small percentage back on materials. I don't care if it's 10% of the materials back, it will still help considerably.

Even if the amount given back is less than what was put in, it is still better than nothing and is more useful broken down then not.

Even if we couldn't get original good materials back, anything that is well-stackable or placeable in the world would work.

I'd like to be able to recycle furniture and items back into things like wood pulp, plant fiber, or mixed crushed rock. That way the could go into basic recipes again, or crushed rock be used as filler in the world.

Anything so that I don't end up holding dozens of doors, chairs, work tables, and modules.