National Recycling Day is November 15
According to “National Geographic,” Americans send 64 tons
of waste to landfills during their lifetime. That’s 246 million tons of waste
each year. National Recycling Day aims to reduce this waste by encouraging
Americans to recycle more and purchase more recycled products that can be
re-used, recycled or composted.
I am a big proponent of recycling. Putting things that you
no longer want into the garbage bin so it can he hidden underground somewhere
(but not near you, of course), and too often sent to poorer regions of the country
or poorer regions of the world seems like an infantile means to manage a
problem that seemingly, we don’t know how, or don’t want to fix. We are still
in the mode of making more, throwing away more, and failing to consider the
future. If you have never seen it, I recommend the old movie “WALL- E known as (W aste A llocation L oad L ifter - E
arth-Class” for a realistic, yet humorous picture of life in the future
if we don’t do something constructive about handling our waste.
I am a member of Roscommon County’s
Recycling Committee. Michigan used to be a leader in recycling when we were one
of the first to place a ten-cent fee on beer cans, bottles and glass bottles to
stimulate recycling via the Michigan Beverage Containers Law of 1976. Fast
forward to today. We are still at 10 cents and a Michigan State Senator recently
proposed a bill to cancel even that piddley amount (the rate should now
be 50 cents to keep up with inflation).
We do a lousy job in hiding our waste. For some reason, dropping
things in a trash bin and keeping them enclosed until the waste removal truck
drops them off at a land-fill seems more than we can manage. The evidence lies
in the form of two islands of floating plastic waste in the Pacific Ocean that
are larger in area than the state of Texas. Sheesh! If we can’t do the easy
thing, think of how bad we are in doing recycling; like making something re-usable
from our waste.
America Recycles Day (aka
National Recycling Day) became a national holiday on
September 15, 1990. Pass the word. It is time to take this problem seriously.
Some European nations do a much better job in recycling than we do.
Here is the text from the National Recycling activity that
makes a lot of sense to me. What do you think?
1. Join An Event
Recycling events can be surprisingly fun (and educational).
For instance, an event in Missouri involves making bracelets from plastic
shopping bags, doing a composting activity, and building something out of
recycled goods. Look for events in your area, bring your friends, and get involved. The more you know, the more you can
make a difference!
2. Fully Commit
Recycling is more than just dumping cans into a recycling
bin (although that’s part of it). There’s so much more you can do! Make your
commitment to reduce, reuse, recycle, and buy recycled.
3. Share The Love
Excited about your latest recycling trip? Share it on social
media using the hashtag #BeRecycled. The more we get the word out, the more we
encourage others to recycle and help save the planet!
3 POWERFUL WAYS
RECYCLING SAVES ENERGY:
It fuels your binge-watching--One recycled tin can would save enough energy to power
a TV for three hours.
It maximizes social media time --One recycled glass bottle
can save enough energy to power a computer for 25 minutes.
It keeps the lights on--One recycled plastic bottle can
save enough energy to power a 60-watt light bulb for 3 hours.
It can truly change the world: Think just one person can’t make a difference? Lauren
Singer developed a zero-waste lifestyle where she’s able to reduce, reuse and
recycle everything she consumes. She’s got this down to a science — and is now
able to fit all of the trash she’s produced within the last four years in a
single mason jar. Her website proves that if everyone lived similarly, waste
wouldn’t be nearly as much of a problem. What do you think?
