Want to know what you can easily do to make a great contribution to the environment? Recycle. We’ve talked about it in school, there’s no shortage about promoting it everywhere – and yet there’s actually very little being done to really make a significant impact when it comes to this.
Consider this: On an average, each American generates around four pounds of trash each day which translates to around 1.5 tons of trash per year. Out of all the trash we generate, the EPA states that around 75% of it is actually recyclable. Now, here’s the real eye opener: we only get to recycle about 30% of that.
Our average indicates poor performance when it comes to recycling compared to other nations, which are way ahead not just in reusing recyclable materials but also in harnessing renewable energy sustainably. These good-for-all practices have translated into nothing but good things for the countries that apply them: significantly reducing their waste generation, instilling self-responsibility about the environment at individual, corporate, and national levels, and translating these into economic savings.
What America must do now is to follow suit. While we currently live under a presidency that obviously doesn’t give two hoots about recycling, it doesn’t mean that both small- and large-scale industries should stop innovating and finding more ways to do better every time. At the personal level, a sensible step is to begin with the basic knowledge of what can and ought to be recycled – which includes making a daily habit out of recycling trash in the home (these recycling waste baskets should make the task a whole lot simpler).
With simple but daily steps that each person commits himself to do, we will definitely be on the right track when it comes to recycling. Clearly, creating a culture of recycling should begin with each person and in every home – until the impact becomes so glaringly significant that those at the top will have no excuse not to sit up, pay attention, and do something about it.
Source:
https://www.dosomething.org/us/facts/11-facts-about-recycling