What is the Environmental Impact of Recycling?

Juliet D'cruz

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Why are changemakers and activists related to the green movement so obsessed with recycling? What exactly is the environmental impact of recycling? 

In 2018, according to the Environmental Protection Agency, out of the 292.4 million tonnes of trash Americans generated, 146.1 million ended up in landfills! Despite the magnificence and sheer vastness of Earth, we still have a limited area to throw our garbage into. Eventually, we are going to run out of landfill space if we keep discarding garbage indiscriminately.

But there are many more reasons to start recycling right away. Let’s keep reading to find out more.

Reusing Precious Resources

Every time, you recycle your electronics, batteries, plastic bags, or metals, instead of trashing them, you are allowing the precious resources that make up these items to be reused. Did you know that your old iPhone that you throw away without a second thought has around 0.034g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium, and less than one-thousandth of a gram of platinum?

Instead of reusing these precious metals and making something out of them, most people throw away their electronics and other items. Electronic recycling can allow us to gather these precious metals to be used somewhere else. The same thing applies to metal recycling and plastic recycling. 

Avoiding Chemicals Seeping Into the Earth and Water

You might not think much about where your garbage goes once you throw it in the trash can and the local garbage handling company picks it up. But there’s only one place for it to go to. Your local landfill. And this landfill, no matter how diligently prepared, will eventually lead to toxic chemicals seeping into your local land and water. 

No wonder the cases of contaminated water sources are becoming more common in America. The Flint Water Crisis is a well-known phenomenon where lead-contaminated water from the Flint River caused hundreds of residents to be taken ill. 

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Reducing the Resources Humans Tap Into to Leave for Future Generations

Humans only have this one precious Earth. There’s no other planet, yet, that humans can tap into for further resources. If humans wish to leave this Earth behind for future generations to live safe and sound, recycling has to become more common. 

In addition, humans are not the only ones living on this beautiful blue planet. Animals, plants, insects, fishes, and bees are sharing this planet as well. Remember that and use resources with caution and care. 

It’s simple to make recycling a no-brainer by using smart waste bins from https://www.mr-fill.com/products/smart-bins/

The Environmental Impact of Recycling Is High

As seen above, the environmental impact of recycling is far-reaching, not only on your generation but on generations to come. There’s no way to get around it. Make recycling a part of your daily repertoire and build this useful habit into your children as well. 

We are all in this together. It starts with you and it ends with you. Without your efforts in recycling, our precious planet doesn’t have a chance. 

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