Recycling what should we do

The practice of recycling has brought a new awareness to society and the importance of the effects on the planet as we see what the careless dumping of trash into sewages and the ocean has done. Many ask why recycling is important, it's simple, recycling reduces the amount of energy required to create new products. By practicing the act of recycling, we are cutting out unnecessary energy requirements for the mining of new raw materials and it serves as a major factor with helping to fight climate change. Not only does recycling help fight climate change but when people dump cans and plastic into the ocean, the species that dwell there often suffer the consequences of human error. For example, when oceanic creatures and birds consume plastic inadvertently, they risk choking which causes a steady decline in their population (Mambra). Recycling is and should be taken seriously in hopes of improving the air we breathe and the oceans our animals live in for survival.

Recycling

Recycling is also crucial to our environments success as recycling helps minimize pollution by reusing what we would consider garbage. When people burn garbage, it emanates harmful chemicals into the ozone layer which potentially could leads to diseases. Garbage and other forms of pollution thrown into the ocean could potentially kill and affect natural resources such as fish, coral reefs and other life form that thrive in the ocean that could be a benefit to the human race. Another reason recycling is so crucial to our environment is that recycling plays a big role in preserving our natural resources. For example, if we recycle paper products like newspapers and books, we can save more trees on earth (Sarden). Saving trees not only allows animals an environment to thrive in but it also maintains and provides oxygen that us as living breathing humans need to survive. Any reduction in CO2 and other harmful gases are significant in fighting climate change. If pollution levels can be cut by a significant amount this could lead to a positive impact on the overall health of the population.

Economic Benefits

There are also economic benefits to recycling. Recycling has increased the possibility of employment. Millions of people have been afforded the opportunity to work and make a living as a result of the implementation of recycling. People make money while saving the environment by collecting garbage, segregating it, transporting, and turning them into useable products. Over time, there has been an uptick in the practice of recycling. This is due in part to the help of the United Nations.

The United Nations is an intergovernmental organization that strives for peace, security, friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and is also the central point for the actions of all nations. The United Nations also developed 17 goals that contributes to having a sustainable society around the entire world and in UK the efforts to lead citizens in the right direction is occurring. The UK government is encouraging their citizens to recycle their waste in order to reduce UK's waste mountain and the UK also suggests that 60% of the household waste could be recycled or composted. Other nations like Switzerland citizens recycle for incentives and are very proud of their recycling efforts. The government expresses how important it is to recycle. About 80% of plastic PET bottles are recycled which is far higher than the 20 to 40% average for the UK.

Other countries in the UN such as the United States, also take action when encouraging their citizens to get on board with recycling efforts. For instance, efforts to improve recycling rates and to reduce household and commercial waste are led by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). As a result of the EPA's efforts it has resulted in the U.S. recycling 28% of its waste, which was doubled in the last 15 years. Also, you'll notice that recyclable products are labeled with numbers from 1 to 7, 1 being the most recyclable, and 7 being the least recyclable (Schenker). This method helps to promote recycling as it allows citizens to recycle at a higher rate as clear understanding as to what items qualify for recycling are acceptable for recycling and reuse instead of throwing those items away.

Conclusion

In conclusion various countries use several different methods of tactics to get individuals involved in recycling at a much higher rate than before in order to keep sustainability in the world alive. The U.S., Switzerland, and the UK all provided examples of how they encourage their citizens to recycle and ways they help and reward those citizens who decided to recycle in hopes of keeping sustainability in the world alive and thriving.

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