Why Is Recycling ImportantWhy is recycling important? Recycling is a process of reprocessing used materials that are considered to be waste. The processed materials are then used as raw materials to produce new products. The common items used in recycling include paper, batteries, tire, plastic, glass, aluminum and cans. Recycling is very important to save energy, conserve materials and to help our environment.
The natural resources of the earth are being consumed fast. The future generation will definitely have to face the consequences. However, many people recognize the importance of recycling and they begin recycling in order to preserve the natural resources for our future generations. Why Is Recycling Important? • Importance of recycling aluminum: You can obtain new raw materials by recycling the old products. This helps save a lot of energy. It also reduces the effects of global warming. For instance, if you recycle 600,000 tons of aluminum cans, you can save 1286 megawatt energy. If you do not use the recycling process, coal fired power plants may be used to generate electricity. Recycling aluminum also saves landfill space. • Importance of recycling paper: Recycling paper helps save trees and reduce pollution. Paper plays a vital role in human life. Increase in the use of computers and photocopiers elevate the consumption of paper. Recycling of waste paper saves 60 to 70% energy over virgin paper production. Recycled paper can reduce water and air pollution. • Glass recycling: Every year, nearly 40 million glass containers are produced and 30% of them are recyclable. Recycling old glass containers uses 40% less energy than that required for manufacturing new glass products. When glass is newly produced, lime, sand and soda ash are heated, which in turn create huge fossil fuel emissions. Recycling glass can save fuel. Moreover, recycled glass does not lose its quality or quantity. It can reduce water pollution and the amount of landfill space. • Battery recycling: Recycling batteries is important, as it can reduce the number of batteries disposed as waste. Batteries in landfills percolate chemicals into the soil and contaminate it. Battery recycling can therefore be a great solution for all these problems. Lead ingots that are recycled from battery grids can be used to manufacture lead for new grids. Old battery acid can be recycled to convert it to sodium sulfate, which can be used in laundry detergent, textile and glass manufacturing. • Importance of recycling cell phones: Recycling cell phones can help save more energy and keep the usable materials out of landfills. Cell phone is made up of valuable metal, plastic and copper; all these materials are recyclable. Recycling helps conserve these materials and they can be turned to new products. • Recycling plastics: Recycling a plastic bottle can save heat energy. Producing new plastic requires more than half of the energy required to produce products from recycled plastics. When recycled materials are used as an alternative for virgin material, greenhouse gas emissions can be reduced to a great extent. Recycling a ton of plastic wastes can save approximately seven cubic yards of landfill space.
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