Most people don&#;t give much thought to what happens after they place items in the recycling bin, or where their waste goes after they throw it in the trash. But the logistics and operations of waste management and recycling are a lot more than placing waste in the appropriate waste bin.
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We&#;ve put together a list of the top recycling facts you should be aware of. Learn about the ins and outs of recycling in the United States and why it&#;s so important to continue sorting your waste.
1.
Recycling has been around for thousands of years.
Although recycling is a common practice now, the concept of recycling has been around for thousands of years. Long before recycling was the production it is today, recycling as an idea was something that households carried out to conserve and reuse materials because goods could not be made as quickly and cheaply before the industrial revolution.
2.
75% of all aluminum produced in the US is still around today.
Unlike most materials, aluminum can be recycled indefinitely. Because of this, almost 75% of all aluminum produced in the United States is still in use today. Keep this in mind when making decisions at the grocery store and reach for products packaged in aluminum instead of plastic or glass.
3.
Plastic bottles are often recycled into downgraded products, like carpet and fiberfill for jackets.
Recycling plastic back into food-grade plastic requires more energy and labor compared to converting recycled plastic into fiber for apparel and carpeting. In fact, recycling five plastic bottles provides material to create one square foot of carpet.
4.
Recycling 1 ton of cardboard saves 46 gallons of oil.
Due to the increase of online shopping, millions of products are delivered in cardboard boxes daily. Thankfully, recycling cardboard uses considerably less energy compared to creating new &#; recycling cardboard only takes 7% of the energy needed to make cardboard out of virgin materials.
5.
Across the globe, nearly 1 trillion single-use plastic bags are used every year.
Although plastic bags can be recycled in a separate waste stream in certain locations such as grocery stores, the majority of plastic bags are thrown into the trash to sit in landfills. An easy way to reduce your use of plastic bags is to bring your own reusable bag. If you do end up with a plastic bag, try to reuse it as much as possible and recycle it at the end of its life.
6.
Over 11 million tons of glass bottles and jars are thrown into landfills each year.
Although glass is 100% recyclable, curbside glass recycling programs are starting to disappear in the US due to cost. Some municipalities have started collecting glass separately at specific locations to recycle. If glass recycling is no longer available in your area, try reusing your glass containers for bulk grocery storage and craft projects.
7.
By recycling 1 ton of paper, 17 trees are saved.
Trees are so important to the health of the planet. One tree has the ability to filter up to 60 pounds of pollutants from the air each year. That means that when 1 ton of paper is not recycled, 1,020 pounds of pollutants are not removed from the air.
8.
Every day in the US, millions of single-use plastic straws are thrown away.
Even though plastic straws are made from recyclable plastic, most recycling machines can&#;t recycle them because they&#;re too small and light. Plastic straws tend to contaminate recycling waste streams, or they get disposed of as garbage through the recycling process.
9.
There is more plastic in the ocean than there are stars in the Milky Way.
Unlike other materials like paper that may biodegrade when they reach the ocean, plastic does not. Plastic breaks down into smaller pieces of plastic, called microplastics. These microplastics make their way into our bodies through groundwater and our food supply.
10.
Electronic waste, or e-waste, represents only 2% of trash in landfill in the US, but equals up to 70% of overall toxic waste.
Electronics, new and used, are made up of heavy metals and toxic substances such as lead which can cause damage to nervous systems, blood, and kidneys. Because of this, e-waste should always be recycled in specific collection sites to ensure that these heavy metals and toxic substances are handled by professionals and reused or disposed of correctly.
Considering these facts, what small improvements can you make to prevent waste from ending up in landfill? For more information on how RTS can help your business manage waste and recycling, contact one of our LEED-accredited advisors today to discuss your requirements.
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Here at RoadRunner, we know the recycling process can be very confusing. That&#;s why we wanted to simplify it for you and answer some of the more common questions surrounding recycling.
Commonly asked questions
What is Recycling?
Is it really beneficial for the environment?
I've seen headlines that recycling isn't cost-effective. What does that mean?
Can recycling help my business?
What's the difference between single-stream recycling and what RoadRunner offers?
What can be recycled?
What can NOT be recycled?
Why can't I put plastic bags in my recycling bin?
What should I do with my pizza box?
Are clothes and shoes recyclable?
The arrows on a plastic container mean it is recyclable, right?
What happens after they collect the items from my recycling bin?
What can be made from the stuff in my recycling bin?
What is recycling?
Recycling is the process of collecting items that would otherwise just be thrown away as trash and processing those materials into new products. It is important to understand that just because you put something into your recycling bin does not mean it will in fact end up being created into a new product.
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Is it really beneficial to the environment?
If you want to learn more, please visit our website Recycled Plastic Products.
According to the Environmental Protection Agency, that&#;s an absolute yes! Data has shown over and over that recycling conserves energy and natural resources. Recycling cardboard only takes 75% of the energy needed to make new cardboard for example. More energy is needed to produce cardboard from a tree than what is required to manufacture it using recycled materials. Products being recycled often do not require as much processing to turn them into usable raw materials.
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I&#;ve seen headlines that recycling isn&#;t cost-effective. What does that mean?
This isn&#;t a new debate. For years, the costs and benefits of plastic recycling have been looked at for example. It comes down to how much it costs to collect, transport, sort, break down and reform into new products. It also involves the supply and demand of materials. It is cheaper in many cases for a petrochemical company to make virgin plastic from oil than it is to use recycled material to create products.
On the other hand, a well-run and properly managed recycling program can be cheaper than other forms of waste disposal for a business. Recycling metal and glass is absolutely cost-effective. Aluminum is a material that can be recycled indefinitely and takes as much as 95% less energy to produce products than using virgin material. Glass is highly recyclable in a way that doesn&#;t lose quality each time it&#;s broken down. Beyond dollars and cents, other factors to consider in the debate are the impacts on people and the environment.
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Can recycling help my business?
The short answer is yes! Recycling can reduce your operating costs. You&#;ll generate less trash which means dumpsters take longer to fill up. They won&#;t need to be emptied as often meaning lower waste disposal bills. Recycling elevates your company&#;s image and improves your Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG) rating. Major Wall Street companies are now tracking investor behavior related to a company&#;s environmental impact. Implementing a program in your office can be easy, efficient and helps your bottom line.
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What&#;s the difference between single-stream recycling and what RoadRunner offers?
Single-stream recycling is easy on the consumer. Everything gets put into one recycling bin that gets emptied. The materials are mixed together meaning it takes longer to sort and therefore costs more money. It often results in contamination resulting in lower prices for the material and much of it is sent to the landfill. The companies RoadRunner works with do offer single-stream recycling if that is what a customer wants, however.
RoadRunner's RecycleMORE&#; program, on the other hand, offers location-specific, tailored recycling services that not only increase the volumes diverted from landfill but also drive cost savings. RoadRunner's professional recycling advisors work with individual businesses to analyze each location and waste stream to determine the type of recycling that is best suited.
Additionally, when and where it makes sense for your business, RoadRunner can implement our innovative CleanStream&#; recycling services to improve landfill diversion, drive additional savings and improve ESG reporting. Stream-specific bins are provided so that recyclables can be pre-sorted prior to pick up. An efficient fleet of local haulers is able to take these materials directly to a recycling facility without any time-consuming sorting or contamination issues.
These programs are just one part of the fully-managed waste services RoadRunner offers.
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What can be recycled?
This isn&#;t an exhaustive list and the best advice is to check with your local municipality, borough, city or town to find out what is and what is not recycled where you live. Additionally, just because your recycling program doesn&#;t accept an item doesn&#;t mean it can&#;t be recycled. You may have to find a specialized facility, drop-off location or event near you.
Here are items that are widely accepted in recycling programs:
- Paper
- Newspaper
- Envelopes
- Junk mail
- books
- Brochures
- Magazines
- Flattened cardboard
- Boxes
- File folders
- Posterboard
- Frozen food boxes
- Milk cartons
- Plastic bottles, jugs, tubs, cups
- Milk jugs
- Soda bottles
- Water bottles
- Shampoo/soap/detergent bottles
- Glass bottles and jars
- Metal cans
- Aluminum cans
- Tin cans
- Scrap metal
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What can&#;t be recycled?
The answer depends on a number of factors including location, cost, size, condition of the materials, and so on.
While the majority of these items are typically not acceptable in curbside recycling programs, you can often find places nearby that will recycle some of these things. Take a few seconds to do an internet search and you&#;ll likely find a facility or hard-to-recycle event close to where you live. Don&#;t just blindly throw things into the recycling bin either. It causes contamination and the whole load will just end up in the landfill.
Here is a general list of items typically NOT accepted in curbside programs:
- Appliances
- Aerosol cans that aren&#;t empty
- Batteries
- Bubble wrap
- Broken glass
- Bowling balls
- Christmas lights
- Wire coat hangers
- Diapers
- Electrical cords
- Electronics
- Food waste
- Food wrap
- Garden hoses
- Needles
- Plastic bags
- Polystyrene (styrofoam)
- Propane tanks
- Rubber balls
- Sports equipment
- Stuffed animals
- Syringes
- Razor blades
- Tires
- Wood
- Yard waste
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Why can&#;t I put plastic bags in my recycling bin?
Single-use plastic bags shouldn&#;t be put in your bin because they can wreak all kinds of havoc at facilities. They can often clog equipment and get tangled around moving parts. This causes equipment to break and forces shutdowns until things can be repaired. During that time, the materials are then simply diverted to the landfill or pile up, causing a backlog that takes longer to process. Many local grocery stores offer bins in which you can drop off plastic bags to be recycled.
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What should I do with my pizza box?
How greasy and cheesy is the cardboard? If it&#;s only lightly soiled or is in great condition, you can recycle the whole thing. Sopping with grease? Toss it in the garbage. Even consider cutting or ripping off the soiled part and recycling the rest of it. Pizza boxes are cardboard, a highly sought-after material that can be recycled into new products. Your best bet is to contact your local recycling company or facility for more information.
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Are clothes and shoes recyclable?
Don&#;t put them in your bin. Textiles, much the same as plastic bags, will snarl equipment causing it to break and shut down. Instead, find a charity that will take gently used items. Some retail stores like Nike have bins inside where they will accept and recycle shoes. A quick internet search will give you a few places close to where you live where you can drop off items.
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The arrows on a plastic container mean it is recyclable, right?
Not so fast. Just because it has a number inside the arrows does not mean it is recyclable. Called the Resin Identification Coding system, manufacturers stamp a designated number on their product to indicate what it&#;s made out of. Plastics 1 and 2 are widely accepted by most recycling programs. You&#;ll have to find out on your own if Plastics 3 through 7 are accepted. If not, there may be a place nearby that will collect it. No one regulates the symbol, however, so any company is free to place it on their product.
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What happens after they collect the items from my recycling bin?
Often, the items get trucked to a Material Recovery Facility (MRF) located nearby. At the MRF, humans and machines sort the recyclables by their different material types. Bottles and cans are crushed to create what&#;s called a bale. The materials are then sold to companies that process them and create new products.
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What can be made from the stuff in my recycling bin?
Everything around you right now could be made from recycled material! Cardboard is typically used to make new cardboard, paperboard and paper bags. Newspapers can be made into books, construction paper and egg cartons. Plastics can be made into new milk jugs, water bottles and even benches and playground equipment. Recycled glass is used in road construction, new glass containers, flooring and pipes. Constantly evolving technology and a growing emphasis on a circular economy means the list of items that can be made from recycled materials is always expanding.
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Hopefully, this helped answer a few of your questions surrounding recycling. As stated above, we encourage you to contact your local recycling programs and facilities to get a better understanding of how the process works where you live. The more we can all divert items from the landfill and recycle them into something new, the better off we&#;ll all be.
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