For many Recycling is a choice. You can either throw it in the trash or you can recycle it. The significance only provides aspirations because choosing the latter is critical. To fulfill your curiosity about why is recycling important. We need to discuss what is recycling in the first place. Why recycle at all? With the advent of technology, old consumer electronics have become obsolete. That means VCRs, VHS, Music Systems, CRT TVs, etc. have become a thing of the past.

Is recycling necessary?

Normally you could either throw them in the trash or sell them or donate it. With the demand for innovative products increasing the desire for these decreases. You are left with a ticking dilemma. Your safest bet is to recycle. This may carry fees. You pause for a second. You look at the screen and find that recycling benefits both the future and the present. That is why you recycle. As it is common sense.

What are the benefits of recycling?

Recycling offers benefits such as relying less on virgin resources. This means that we will mine less and reuse more. But the sad point is that we only recycle 15 % of the overall value. We harm the environment more than we heal it. And then we advocate for carbon emissions. We need to be better than this. We need to do more and can. By reusing aluminum, paper, glass, and plastic, we can save both products and energy costs. This action alone prevents us from dumping in landfills. The more, the merrier. In a broader sense, recycling is not only an ethical thing to do but beneficial.

Reliance on natural resources lessens

When we mine raw materials, we use a considerable amount of energy and resources. This is not the case when we use recycled materials. The process of extracting precious metals from trash is faster. Our less reliance on natural resources benefits us. Fossil Fuels are depleting at a faster pace. If we keep mining, we risk losing it all. Not recycling has many consequences such as pollution, global warming, climate change, and acid rain. All of them are at the forefront if we don’t do that part that is necessary. We should then stop asking why is recycling important.

Less Energy Use

Aluminum mining uses considerable resources but reclaiming it from trash is done by 95 % of the value. By supporting recycling, you help bring recyclers into your states which in return help create jobs and salaries. The collection of trash remains precedence. Funding local collection leads to high ROI. Recycling programs help create reciprocal results. Recycling results in less reliance on energy, reduction in greenhouse gases, and less use of virgin resources. Producing products using reclamation results in less burning of fossil fuels.

What damage do non-recycled materials do?

Non-recycled materials are responsible for many greenhouse gases such as methane and carbon dioxide. There are many proponents for climate change and global warming. The increase in these gases leads to a further increase in air, land, and sea pollution.  But the question remains what can we recycle?

Here is a list of items that you can recycle:

Electronics

Electronics contain precious metals and toxic chemicals. Recycling is the only way forward to reclaim precious metals and help dispose of toxic chemicals properly. Not doing so may lead to contamination of the soil and the air we breathe in. They become a bigger hazard when they were not in use.

Batteries

Lead batteries are the most toxic. Lithium-ion batteries can spark if left unattended. So, disposal of these batteries becomes important. To determine what to do with batteries follow this link. Recycle Technologies’ mail-in program allows you to dispose of used batteries from the comfort of your home.

Metals

Recycling helps reduce greenhouse gases once we start processing metals. This help conserves energy. We toss more than 2.7 million tons of metals in the trash and out of that only 15 % gets recycled.

Glass

is the only material that is fully recyclable and provides 100 % reclamation by product. Recycling glass helps lessen air and water pollution by 40 %.

Plastic

is the main component of Solid Waste. It is not biodegradable meaning it will not decay on its own. Throwing them in landfills will damage the soil at a faster rate. Recycling is the only way to properly dispose of plastic. This is perfect for items that can’t be discarded into the environment.

Why are we stuck at 15%?

Many Americans agree about recycling. So, convincing them about its goals isn’t that hard. This simple act is favored by everyone from Democrats to Republicans. This is something that everyone agrees that this is a process that benefits the planet and can help reduce carbon emissions. But there is caution in the air as we only recycle 15 %. We need to do more if we want to survive what is coming towards us. Carl Sagan predicted this outcome in 1985. And still, we don’t learn. 25 years on we are suffering the outcome of our ignorance and arrogance. Doing the ethical deed will always amount to why is recycling important.

Recycling and Waste Reduction

Recycling has a tricky relationship with waste reduction. Waste reduction alone helps save on emissions. Not sending waste to landfills helps us prevent 274,000 tons of CO2 from plaguing our environment. Recycling is a process that does consume energy and resources. It helps reduce the use of virgin resources which in return helps to save up to 2,000,000 tons of CO2. Both are important.

What needs to be done?

To make sure recycling put a dent into global warming it needs to have an impact. It must be more effective. The constant flux of new and harder materials into the waste steam is creating countless problems for recyclers. The lack of education and a common recycling program are some issues that government needs to resolve.

The other issue we face is when municipal programs receive an item it has no use for, instead of sending it back, it hauls to a landfill. This results in creating emissions and largely contributes to waste. Such deeds lead to undermining the people’s great intentions and what is our real capacity. Landfills help create methane. A greenhouse gas that causes adverse climate conditions.

Why is recycling important for all?

Recycling is important as it preserves natural resources. The reclamation of resources to make new things help preserve natural resources in the long run. However, this won’t last forever as growth in population and demands decrease this outcome. Recycling materials uses less energy whenever we extract materials.

Moreover, recycling helps reduce the amount of waste sent to landfills. Whenever waste lies in landfills it leaches toxic chemicals that harm the soil and water supply. Sending into landfills dents our local economy as we lose resources that we could repurpose. These outcomes inform us why is recycling important and why it is the only option forward.

Conclusion

The more we recycle, the more jobs will be created in recycling plants. More opportunities are present in recycling innovation and technology. An EPA 2016 report suggests that 681,000 jobs were created. 5.5 billion in taxes was collected and 37.8 billion in wages was paid.