Plastic Recycling

Plastic has become a common material in many areas of our lives. It has been introduced to replace more expensive types of materials. Yet there is an abundance of it being wasted each day. There is no reason not to college various types of plastic so they can be recycled. Those milk jugs you go through each week, crates, holders, and anything else you can think of that is made from plastic can be melted down and molded into something new.

It is extremely expensive to recycle plastic though. This is due to the elaborate sorting process that has to take place. There are too many different types of plastic out there. They can’t all be lumped tighter or you will have products that are new but not of good quality. One way to take care of this is to sort them out by the resin code. They have been placed on all plastic materials since 1988. The lids often have to be removed as well because they are likely from a different type of material other than plastic.

One of the largest contributors of plastic waste comes from shopping. Most retail stores and grocery stores now use plastic bags instead of paper. Yet if you just through these bags away they can really add up quickly. Many people save them at home and use them for small trash cans and to carry supplies in. Some of these stores also have plastic bag recycle bins in the front. You can take what you have collected back the next time you shop.

Of all the products out there that are wasted, plastic has one of the highest percentages. If more people took an interest in recycling it though that number would decrease. There are many locations where you can drop of plastic to be recycled. If you don’t know where yours are then contact your local health department or Chamber of Commerce. If your community doesn’t participate in such recycling efforts then make a motion to get it started.

Recycling plastic is one area where more information needs to be getting into the right hands. Too many people don’t recycle plastic simply because they don’t think about it. If you are already recycling glass and paper then simply add a place to store plastic for recycling as well.