By Clara Gignoux
Recycling has been around for a long time. We recycle at schools, offices, and at home, but does it really make a difference? The answer is yes! When items are recycled they are not going into landfills and it lessens the amount of new resources needed for new products.
Glass recycling is a big part of our impact on the environment. During a survey, Americans stated that they think glass recycling should be prioritized. However, the United States as a country is lagging behind other countries, such as Spain and the United Kingdom. When glass is recycled it is ground down so it can be reheated and made into new glass. Unfortunately, the price of sterilizing and processing the recycled glass prevents it from being easily accessible to some companies. Lack of consumer education, government policy, and our everyday habits are all variables as to why glass recycling isn't as productive as it could be in the US. For a more in depth explanation of glass recycling visit Why glass recycling in the US is broken.
Paper recycling is another main component of American’s waste. We use paper every day in school, work, and home environments. Recycling paper and buying products that are made from recycled paper can save more than just trees. According to San Mateo County RecycleWorks, “Each 20 cases of recycled paper saves 17 trees, 390 gallons of oil, 7,000 gallons of water, and 4,100 kilowatt hours of energy. It also eliminates 60 pounds of air-polluting emissions and saves 8 cubic feet of landfill space.” Buying recycled products lowers the demand for new paper and helps the environment in more ways than one. Recycled paper can be converted into all different types of products such as magazines, computer paper, paper plates, toilet paper, and paper towels.
Recycled paper isn't the only recycled product available, brands like Patagonia recycle plastic bottles into fabric. Most people know that plastic bottles are recyclable, but plastic bags are as well. If the normal recycling center in your town does not take plastic bags, some grocery stores have bins near the entrance or exits where you can recycle them.
On average, every person creates 4.4 pounds of waste each day. In the US we recycle about 30% or our trash, other European countries recycle around 50% of their waste. Imagine if everyone stopped recycling-all of the recyclables would be sent to the landfills. That would mean all trash would increase by a third. It may not seem like a lot, but when you multiply it by every person in America that would mean an extra 481.63 million pounds of trash added to our landfills each day. When landfills are full, they get covered up with clay and soil creating a man made hill of trash. But they don't just sit there, landfills are the third largest source of methane gas, which is a major contributor to global warming. In this scenario, glass and plastic companies would have to use new resources every time they wanted to make something. Recycling helps combat the overuse of resources. It’s an easy way to reduce our impact on the environment and help future generations. So next time you go to throw something in the trash try taking a second look and see if it can be recycled.
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