5 Myths People Believe About Recycling

Every year in the UK, millions of tonnes of trash are created, and more than half of that trash will end up in landfills instead of being recycled. Some of it might even end up on the streets in your neighbourhood or on a vacant lot somewhere. Why isn’t more trash being recycled in our country? While many will say that recycling is too difficult, or it is too time consuming, these are just two of the myths that people believe about recycling that we are going to talk about today.

     By explaining some of the myths surrounding recycling, we can prove that recycling really is easy and that it’s worth it. With that in mind, let’s take a closer look at some of the myths people believe about recycling.

5 Myths About Recycling

Mixed-Materials Packaging Can’t Be Recycled- while you do see separate bins for glass, paper and plastic, and no bin for mixed-materials, that doesn’t mean that they can’t be recycled. There are recycling stations popping up everywhere that accept mixed-material recyclables.

Recycling Requires More Energy Than It’s Worth- we are really not sure where this one got its start, but many people believe that recycling requires a lot of energy and that the payoff is not worth the environmental impact. The truth is that recycling can actually save energy by reducing the amount of energy needed to turn raw materials into new products.

Trash Needs To Be In “Good Shape” To Be Recycled- this isn’t always true either. Most recyclable trash is not in ideal condition to be recycled, but it still can be. The recycling process has changed over the years and is improved over earlier methods.

Most Materials Can Only Be Recycled Once- there are many recyclable items that can be recycled more than once. Plastics and glass are two examples.

Separating Recyclables Isn’t Important- separating your recyclables is more important than you think. Yes, recycling center workers do sort trash from recyclables, but it can be very expensive. By separating your recyclables properly, you can become an important part of making the recycling process easier and more efficient.

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