|
Why Recycle?
Why Recycle?
Recycling is important. Every day people throw away things
that are empty, broken, used or just not wanted any more.
Recycling is important. Every day people throw away things
that are empty, broken, used or just not wanted any more.
Recycling transforms these old things into brand new
useful things.
Each person throws away about seven times their weight in
trash or garbage every year.
Most of the trash we throw away is taken to a big hole in
the ground where it is spread out and squashed down. This
place is called a landfill site.
Burying waste in landfill sites spoils our countryside and
is very bad for our environment. Chemicals can build up
underneath the surface, which can escape. A poisonous
liquid can also seep out and cause damage to plants and
wildlife. Soon there will not be enough land left to build
new landfill sites.
Most of the trash we put in the garbage bin is packaging,
made from precious resources: paper and cardboard from
trees, plastic from oil, glass and tins from minerals from
the ground. All these materials are then processed to make
packaging, which uses energy and also creates pollution.
The average household garbage can contains:
·
38% Kitchen and garden waste
·
18% Newspapers and Magazines
·
14% Paper and Cardboard
·
7% Glass
·
7% Plastic
·
5% Metal
·
5% Wood
·
3% Textiles
·
2% 'Disposable' Diapers
Over half of this trash can be recycled.
Is everything in your garbage can really trash or can some
of it be used again?
What is recycling?
Recycling is when we return materials we no longer want
anymore so they can be re-made into new items.
Trash contains lots of useful things that can be recycled,
or used again.
Recycling helps our world in lots of ways.
Click here.
Imagine this…for every
ton of paper recycled 17 trees and 2.5 barrels of oil are
saved. Recycling just one aluminum can saves enough energy
to run a television set for three hours.
Click here to see some fun facts about recycling. |
