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Easy Ways to Recycle
Easy Ways to Recycle
There are plenty of ways to be environmentally friendly in today's world of convenience. Perhaps the easiest and most beneficial method is to recycle. Recycling is the recovery of common and useful materials, such as paper or glass, to make new products so the amount of new material needed decreases. According to the United States Environment Protection Agency, in 2011 recycling and composting stopped 86.9 million tons of material from being disposed of. This is up from the 1980 total of just 15 million. Check out these tips to help you jump on the recycling bandwagon and get your household into the environmental mindset.
Most everyday materials can be used more than once. Even something as simple as using both sides of a piece of paper can help reduce the amount of trash out in the world. Sometimes it may slip your mind, but reusing everything you can before you throw it in the garbage is the first step on your way to becoming environmentally friendly.
Buying rechargeable batteries, along with being cost-effective, can greatly reduce the number you throw away each year. According to Battery Savers, in desirable conditions, rechargeable batteries can give up to a thousand recharges. However, batteries, including rechargeables, are considered hazardous waste and must be disposed of properly. Online resources, such as environmental safety website Earth 911, show where you can recycle potentially hazardous materials such as batteries and electronics in your area.
Make recycling convenient
In order to make recycling a habit of everyday life, the resources necessary must be convenient and readily available. Green website Environmental Protection suggested making recycling bins for paper, plastic and metal clearly labeled, visible and within easy reach. This way any excuse to not recycle can be eradicated.
Placing bins in a well-trafficked area of the home and office, even if not needed at that moment, can serve as a constant reminder and point to the importance of recycling.
Recycling isn't just about what you do with your trash. The practice also involves saving one of the world's most precious resources: water. One of the tips to save water provided by Earth 911 is to water your lawn in the cooler morning hours. This way the amount of water that evaporates is minimized. It's also suggested to ensure that sprinklers are aimed properly, so every bit of water ends up where it needs to be.
Other recommendations to save water include turning off the tap when you brush your teeth, fixing any faucets that constantly leak and sticking to shorter showers.
The practice of recycling has grown exponentially in the past few decades. As the world becomes more aware of the troubles plaguing the planet, we've all come together to do our part in reducing our environmental footprint. These tips, along with many others, can get you on the track to reducing your impact on the earth and keeping our planet beautiful.