For many materials, recycling conserves up to 95% of freshwater during the mining and manufacturing process. Recycling reduces the amount of waste that ends up in the oceans, which is still a widespread practice in many nations. Recycling minimizes the usage of fossil fuel energy while also lowering greenhouse gas emissions.
Your Junk has a far greater socioeconomic impact than you would think. As our little planet continues to grow in population, with each person seeking the latest and greatest, rubbish recycling becomes tremendously important.
It Affects the Environment
We rarely consider the manufacturing procedures behind our products. These processes require a large number of natural resources. Consider that one pound of plastic requires 22 gallons of water to produce. It’s unfortunate that consumers are unaware of the environmental impact and hence do not consider it.
Some junk is sent to the incinerator rather than the landfill, which has a significant environmental impact. This approach isn’t much more eco-friendly than burying trash. Lead, mercury, and other hazardous compounds are found in incinerator fumes.
The junk we don’t burn ends up in landfills where it can take up to 1,000 years to decompose. These landfills pollute the surrounding soil and water affecting marine life and wild animals. By caring about where your junk ends up, you’re helping to reduce its effect on the environment.
Conserve Landfill Space
Reduces the amount of waste sent to landfills and incinerators.
Conserves natural resources such as timber, water, and minerals.
Prevents pollution.
Reduces greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to global climate change.
Helps sustain the environment for future generations.
Helps create new well-paying jobs in the recycling and manufacturing industries.
Conserves Energy
Recycling one ton of aluminum:
Saves 14,000 kWh of energy
Saves 39.6 barrels (1,663 gallons) of oil
Saves 237.6 million Btu’s of energy
Saves 10 cubic yards of landfill space
Saves Trees
Every ton of paper recovered for recycling is a ton that doesn’t go to the landfill. Recycling also allows maximum use of the valuable resource without waste. Because fiber can only be recycled 5-7 times before the fibers are too weak to make new products. It is important for consumers to keep in mind, however, that recovered paper fibers cannot be recycled indefinitely. Paper fiber eventually breaks down into short, weak fibers that are not strong enough to be recycled into new paper products. For this reason, it is necessary for the paper industry to harvest new fiber that can be infused into the recycled paper manufacturing process.
Save Natural Resources
Communities that recycle are making the right choice, and have also created a positive example of how we as individuals can better our environment by taking conservation into account in our daily lives. Separating your paper, plastic, glass, and metal waste may seem labor-intensive, but is quite simple in actuality and many communities offer recycling bins for different materials or collect all of these types of waste from one container and separate them later at community-funded recycling centers.
Reduce Pollution
One important reason for recycling is because recycling helps reduce pollution. The manufacturing process (including the extraction of virgin materials from the earth) for many products releases waste that pollutes the environment. For example, chemicals used in the manufacturing process contribute to water pollution, especially if the contaminated water is not properly treated before its release to the environment. The power plants that provide the energy needed in the manufacturing process produce gases that pollute the air. Hence, when we reduce and reuse (instead of buying new things all the time), and we recycle (instead of using our own virgin materials), we reduce the pollution that results from manufacturing the new products. We can also minimize pollution from the burning of fuel in power planes that generate the energy needed in the manufacturing process.
WHAT CAN BE RECYCLED?
CARDBOARD & PAPER
GLASS
ALUMINIUM & STEEL
PLASTIC
CARTONS
WHAT CAN NOT BE RECYCLED?
NAPPIES
CERAMICS
FOOD SCRAPS
SYRINGES
COOKWARE
POLYSTYRENE
CROCKERY
PLASTIC BAGS