Is recycling actually useful?
Recycling saves a lot of energy and if done well, it could outweigh the recycling costs significantly and reduce the accumulation of waste globally. Why should you even bother recycling, though, if there is so much proof that recycling often ends up in landfills? Well, ask yourself why that waste was discarded in such a manner - is it laziness or is it actually too contaminated to recycle?
Currently some recycling facilities even give up on recycling and sell their business. It is crucial that such recycling plants are encouraged to function and that governments and the public prevent them from shutting down, especially after China's import ban (check my third blog for more info). Recently California’s (USA) largest recycling center business, RePlanet, and a few plants in Victoria, Australia have been closed, which is naturally a huge shock to the system and leaves countless communities across the globe unable to recycle.
Right, easier said than done. There are a few courses of action that can be followed to help the situation.
First, bins could be collected more often if they're known to fill up quicker in some areas. What sometimes ends up happening is that general waste bins sometimes end up filling up. Instead of using the appropriate bins, some decide to throw their general waste into the recycling bins, causing intense damage to the recycling system by making waste unrecyclable.
Next, one of the main reasons why recyclers are abandoning their trade is the fact that waste is not separated in the bins and in the case of the blue bin - plastic, carton and tins are binned together. I strongly recommend the reintroduction of separate bins for the contents of the current mixed material bins and although that would increase costs of waste collection, it will ultimately reduce the total costs for the recycling process.
Lastly, the dreadful topic of 'wishful recycling'. That is basically the process of throwing probably unrecyclable items in the recycling in hopes they would be recycled and it happens way too often. Based on my observations, that's a big part of the recycling that households undertake. It's plastic so it should go into the bin with the rest of the plastic, right? No. Absolutely not. Please don't do that. It's much better to bin your doubts in the general waste than to risk contaminating the rest of the batch.
The first two of my ideas can only be accomplished through societal pressure on authorities but the third can easily be applied by anyone. So, is recycling actually useful? Absolutely. Sadly, the concept of recycling is not working too well at the moment and (insert inspirational quote) it's up to us to help fix that. It takes just a few hours to educate yourself but saves the planet years of damage. You don't have to do much to make a difference.
Currently some recycling facilities even give up on recycling and sell their business. It is crucial that such recycling plants are encouraged to function and that governments and the public prevent them from shutting down, especially after China's import ban (check my third blog for more info). Recently California’s (USA) largest recycling center business, RePlanet, and a few plants in Victoria, Australia have been closed, which is naturally a huge shock to the system and leaves countless communities across the globe unable to recycle.
The message on the closed RePlanet center
Source: abc7news.com
Right, easier said than done. There are a few courses of action that can be followed to help the situation.
First, bins could be collected more often if they're known to fill up quicker in some areas. What sometimes ends up happening is that general waste bins sometimes end up filling up. Instead of using the appropriate bins, some decide to throw their general waste into the recycling bins, causing intense damage to the recycling system by making waste unrecyclable.
Next, one of the main reasons why recyclers are abandoning their trade is the fact that waste is not separated in the bins and in the case of the blue bin - plastic, carton and tins are binned together. I strongly recommend the reintroduction of separate bins for the contents of the current mixed material bins and although that would increase costs of waste collection, it will ultimately reduce the total costs for the recycling process.
Lastly, the dreadful topic of 'wishful recycling'. That is basically the process of throwing probably unrecyclable items in the recycling in hopes they would be recycled and it happens way too often. Based on my observations, that's a big part of the recycling that households undertake. It's plastic so it should go into the bin with the rest of the plastic, right? No. Absolutely not. Please don't do that. It's much better to bin your doubts in the general waste than to risk contaminating the rest of the batch.
The first two of my ideas can only be accomplished through societal pressure on authorities but the third can easily be applied by anyone. So, is recycling actually useful? Absolutely. Sadly, the concept of recycling is not working too well at the moment and (insert inspirational quote) it's up to us to help fix that. It takes just a few hours to educate yourself but saves the planet years of damage. You don't have to do much to make a difference.
Save the planet!
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