Currently, environmental issues are quite pressing and concerning. Plastic and glass waste are significant parts of this problem, as they are extremely difficult to decompose and can take hundreds of millions of years to break down. Therefore, recycling waste is considered a top method to reduce environmental pollution. So, what is waste recycling?
Essential Facts About Waste Recycling
What is recyclable waste?
Recyclable waste refers to waste materials that have been used but can still be recycled. These materials will be carefully sorted and sent to recycling facilities to be transformed into new raw materials or products for the market, meeting consumer demands.
Most recyclable waste is in solid form, such as aluminum, copper, stainless steel, iron, and plastic. These materials are collected by recycling facilities, sorted out, and recycled following the proper technical processes.
What types of materials can be recycled?
- Glass bottles and jars
- Plastic bottles or containers
- Soft plastic packaging
- Cardboard boxes, writing paper, printing paper
- Scrap metal, aluminum, spray cans
- Aluminum foil, stainless steel
- Broken metal pots, pans, and cookware
- Newspapers, magazines, books, and signage
- Milk and juice cartons…
Some benefits of recycling waste
By understanding what recyclable waste is, you likely also know a bit about the benefits of waste recycling for the community and the environment, such as:
Conserving natural resources
Recycling waste limits the extraction of natural resources like land and water. For instance, recycling 135 tons of waste can save up to 1.9 million trees and 3.5 million liters of water.
Reducing environmental pollution
The level of environmental pollution significantly decreases when we recycle waste and conserve resources. Using recycled paper contributes to a 35% reduction in water pollution and a 75% reduction in air pollution. Meanwhile, using recycled tin cans can reduce water pollution by up to 97% and air pollution by 95%.
Helping to save energy
Recycling waste can save a substantial amount of energy and money, helping to mitigate greenhouse gas effects, limit global warming, and prevent the melting of polar ice caps, which leads to rising sea levels.
For example, recycling 300 tons of waste can save nearly 45 billion liters of oil, an impressive figure.
Creating jobs for workers
The regular and continuous recycling of waste provides stable employment opportunities for workers, reducing unemployment rates and minimizing social issues.
The Recycling Process
The two most common recycling processes are single-stream recycling and dual-stream recycling.
- Single-stream recycling involves placing all recyclable materials into one bin for curbside collection, which are then sorted at a recycling facility.
- Dual-stream recycling requires consumers to separate their recyclables into different bins before they are collected and taken for recycling.
Single-stream recycling is the most popular form of recycling. The infographic below illustrates how the recycling process for paper, aluminum, steel, glass, and plastic works, as well as which types of plastic are the hardest and easiest to recycle.
