My Clearwater
Summer 61
What Does Recycling Do for the Planet?
Recycling is important for many
reasons. Every time you recycle, you
make an impact on the planet.
Recycling conserves natural resources in several ways.
Using recycled materials instead of making new
materials saves energy and water that would be
needed to create those new materials. In some cases,
such as with metal cans, using cans that have already been
recycled saves up to 95 percent of the water and energy it
would take to produce a brand new metal can.
By putting items into your blue recycling bin, you are also
preventing potential litter from entering our waterways. This
includes lakes, rivers, bays and our beautiful beaches.
Paper is a big one! On average, Americans use around seven
trees worth of paper, wood and other products made from
trees each year. That’s about 2 billion trees. In 2018, 62
million tons of those paper and paper products were recycled
in the United States. Every ton of paper recycled can save 17
trees, 4,000 kilowatts of energy, and 7,000 gallons of water.
That’s a lot of trees!
Plastic can be challenging because there are so many types,
and many cannot be recycled curbside – or at all – for
different reasons. Recycling plastic is mainly beneficial to
avoid making new plastic, which comes from crude oil. The
process of extracting oil can be harmful to the environment
and local communities.
Plastic does not degrade easily. When it does break down,
it turns into microplastics, which enter waterways and the
food chain. Microplastics are then ingested by animals and
humans through food, water and the air we breathe.
It is estimated that 1,500 plastic bottles are used every
second with only around 20 percent of them being recycled.
Americans use even more plastic bags per year, at about 100
billion plastic bags and recycle about 1 percent of those.
Recycled plastic can be given a new life by being turned
into picnic tables, buckets, clothes, and more. Look for
items made from recycled goods to ensure there is a market
for your recyclables once you’ve turned them over to your
service provider.
Metals, such as steel and aluminum, are great choices
for recycling because they can be recycled indefinitely.
Around 75 percent of the aluminum ever produced is still
in circulation today. In addition, the energy saved from
recycling a single can is enough to power a television for
three hours. Choose beverages packaged in metal containers
to reduce demand for plastic and keep aluminum in
circulation.
Recycling also reduces the amount of materials entering
landfills. Even with waste-to-energy facilities like ours in
Pinellas County, landfills are still filling at a rapid pace,
leaving communities with the difficult decision of where to
locate the next one.
In 2018, the United States recycled only about 32 percent
of waste (including compost), while several European
countries, such as Iceland, Norway, Switzerland and
Germany, came in around 50 percent or higher.
We can do better for ourselves, the environment, and our
future. Make sure your recycling is able to be repurposed
by recycling only items that are accepted by the city. In
Clearwater, we Simplify to 5.