All About the Process of Recycling
With the global emphasis on preserving the Earth that has come into the media in recent years, it's no wonder that there has been a rapid increase in interest in recycling across the nation. Recycling, or re-purposing an item that has already served its function, is a fairly simple and easy practice that has exceptional benefits for the environment, and sometimes even your checkbook.
Starting from Home
Recycling is a process that begins with the consumers. After a recyclable object has served its purpose, an individual merely has to place the item in the recycling bin. It's that simple. There are many different receptacles for this purpose depending on where you live and what you're recycling. Some cities will provide large recycle bins that you can just toss your used items in. Others require a minimal amount of effort on the person's part. In this instance, the rule is that the objects must be sorted according to their material before they'll be taken off. Other cities, however, don't provide recycling services at all. It still isn't hard, though. There are many different places that you can drop off your recyclables at. Stores in certain states will buy back pop bottles and cans and return a small amount of money, usually ten cents. There are even companies that will provide receptacles similar to a 10 yard dumpster for big jobs. After that, all the used merchandise goes to a recycling center for the next phase of the process.
Starting from Home
Recycling is a process that begins with the consumers. After a recyclable object has served its purpose, an individual merely has to place the item in the recycling bin. It's that simple. There are many different receptacles for this purpose depending on where you live and what you're recycling. Some cities will provide large recycle bins that you can just toss your used items in. Others require a minimal amount of effort on the person's part. In this instance, the rule is that the objects must be sorted according to their material before they'll be taken off. Other cities, however, don't provide recycling services at all. It still isn't hard, though. There are many different places that you can drop off your recyclables at. Stores in certain states will buy back pop bottles and cans and return a small amount of money, usually ten cents. There are even companies that will provide receptacles similar to a 10 yard dumpster for big jobs. After that, all the used merchandise goes to a recycling center for the next phase of the process.
At the Recycling Center
Next up in the routine, the truckloads worth of recycled goods are transported to different recycling centers in the area. Once there, the heaps of "junk" are dumped out and sorted by workers. Errant pieces of trash are taken out and disposed of. The remaining items are then sorted, based on their materials, into one of the four sections: paper, plastic, glass, and metal. Each item is cleaned and sterilized after being sorted. Then they're shuffled off into different areas to be broken down into a simpler material. It's relatively simple to break down glass, metal, and paper into a more basic material, but plastic is difficult. There are many different types of plastic that have to be handled differently. Even though the process is different for each material, they all serve the same overall purpose: re-purposing the item for use in creating another.
Re-purposed
After they've been stripped down to a more basic function, the materials are packaged together and sent off to whichever project needs them. Recycled paper tends to wind up phone books while plastic can be used for many different projects. Benches, chairs, trash bags, carpets, pipes, buckets, and even fabric from clothing can be made out of recycled plastic. Glass can be turned into paving stones, drinking cups, and jewelry. Finally, metal is used in construction projects like bridges and railroads, or used to remake the same item it was recycled from. Each item has now been given a new purpose, doubling its lifespan.
Next up in the routine, the truckloads worth of recycled goods are transported to different recycling centers in the area. Once there, the heaps of "junk" are dumped out and sorted by workers. Errant pieces of trash are taken out and disposed of. The remaining items are then sorted, based on their materials, into one of the four sections: paper, plastic, glass, and metal. Each item is cleaned and sterilized after being sorted. Then they're shuffled off into different areas to be broken down into a simpler material. It's relatively simple to break down glass, metal, and paper into a more basic material, but plastic is difficult. There are many different types of plastic that have to be handled differently. Even though the process is different for each material, they all serve the same overall purpose: re-purposing the item for use in creating another.
Re-purposed
After they've been stripped down to a more basic function, the materials are packaged together and sent off to whichever project needs them. Recycled paper tends to wind up phone books while plastic can be used for many different projects. Benches, chairs, trash bags, carpets, pipes, buckets, and even fabric from clothing can be made out of recycled plastic. Glass can be turned into paving stones, drinking cups, and jewelry. Finally, metal is used in construction projects like bridges and railroads, or used to remake the same item it was recycled from. Each item has now been given a new purpose, doubling its lifespan.