Recycling - Week 4 Entry 2


I stumbled upon a video recently that briefly puts to the test of a couple of people as to which part of a standard coffee cup (plastic lids with paper cups) is recyclable. Many of them stared blankly into the cup with confusion evident in their eyes, places both parts of the coffee cup amongst the recyclable contents. This had me realise, despite learning about recycling since young, knowing what to recycle and what not to recycle beyond the common paper, cupboard and aluminium cans, is an enormous question mark.
After decades of advocating recycling, I believe it has reached the conscious side of people where majority of people would actively attempt to sort their trash into recyclables and non-recyclables. However, many contaminated articles frequently end up falling into the recycling bins, articles such as plastic and garbage bags, garden waste, rubbish and food scraps.
This causes a problem as these contaminants will affect the recycling process. Most recycling management companies might end up dumping recyclable items into landfills as the cost to separate out the contaminants from recyclable materials is simply too much. These contaminants can also affect the recyclability value of recyclable materials exposed to these contaminants, which might devalue an otherwise valued recycling material. In turn, wrong recycling practices might affect a recycling facility to refuse service from someone who constantly makes these mistakes, which means more recycling materials ending up in landfills. These contaminants can also endanger maintenance staff within recycling facilities as sorting through contaminated recyclables can expose the sorters to hazardous waste. Certain objects such as plastic bags can also damage recycling equipment and raise maintenance costs for the facility.
Advocating proper ways of recycling is therefore crucial to allow for a smooth transition from bins to its recycling process. However, advocation can only come to a certain extent, and it is important for everyone to be conscious of what not to toss into recycling bins. Taking an extra step when in doubt to search up on what not to recycle or communicating with fellow peers who has better experience.

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