Just take a look around you! How many items are there which you think are useless? You will definitely come across many items like polythene bags, plastic mugs, waste paper, aluminum items, etc. that you think are useless.
However, do you know that these things can be recycled or reprocessed into useful items? Moreover, recycling provides numerous benefits. Most importantly, it makes our environment better.
A good and healthy environment is a priceless gift that we can pass on to our coming generations. Let us understand what recycling is and how it can benefit us!
Meaning of Recycling - What is Recycling?
Technically, recycling involves gathering products/objects that are considered useless, sorting them and processing them into useful products/objects.
Recycling is done through three steps. These steps include gathering & processing waste materials/objects, manufacturing new products out of useless things and buying objects that are manufactured through recycled materials.
The simplest meaning of recycling is to reuse any product again to avoid making new products. Recycling is an Eco-friendly process which decreases waste and help us in making our environment healthy.
Why make our environment healthy?
Making our environment healthy is necessary to improve the quality of our life. A healthy environment is the one which has less or no pollution, less diseases and of course, which contains many trees. We can live a healthier, longer and happier life by achieving healthy environment! The three Rs formula is a great way to keep our environment healthy. These Rs stand for Reduce, Recycle and Reuse!
Why is it important to recycle?
Recycling is essential as well as beneficial for us. Let us now analyze the significance of recycling through the points given below.
- Recycling Helps Avoid Pollution & Decrease Waste – Many harmful chemicals and poisonous materials are used in the production of different items. Also, the manufacturing processes involving raw material make way for emission of toxic gases. On the other hand, recycling does not involve use of harmful chemical or materials in the production of recycled usable items. Thus, it helps in reducing pollution. In addition to this, as most of the waste materials are used during the procedure, recycling also results in reduced waste which further results in decreased pollution. Disposing waste otherwise involves procedures which contribute to environmental pollution.
- Helps Avoid Emission of Harmful Gases & Chemicals – Have you ever given it a thought that so many breathing diseases are occurring because of air pollution? Air pollution is the result of toxic gases that are emitted through various manufacturing and industrial processes. Encouraging use of recycled products is beneficial as recycling does not involve use of dangerous chemicals and therefore, helps in avoiding emission of toxic gases.
- Helps Save Environment, Save Trees, Plants – Recycling and reusing waste paper helps in saving thousands of trees because otherwise, paper manufacturing requires cutting of numerous trees. Therefore, recycling is very helpful in saving environment including plants and trees.
- Helps Save the Habitat of Animals – Recycling does not involve deforestation. It rather helps in saving plants and trees which are habitats of numerous animals. Henceforth, recycling helps save habitats of animals as well.
- Helps Save Fossil Fuels to Get Exhausted – Fossil fuels like coal and gas are used by a lot of plants and industries. We should understand that these are non-renewable sources and that means if we keep using them quickly, they will soon be exhausted. Recycling limits the use of such resources as it works on already used products and does not involve natural fuels in its processing.
- Helps Save Energy for Future Generation – When raw material is used for making anything new, the amount of energy consumption is much higher than the energy used in recycling and processing used material to produce recycled goods. Therefore, we can save energy for future by recycling as much as we can!
- Less Dependence on Machine Made Goods & New Products & Helps Save Money – Naturally, when we use recycled products, we become less dependent on machine made goods and new products as well. Also, the price of recycled products is much lesser than the newly made items. Therefore, we also save money through recycling.
- Helps Save Resources & Reuse Product Again to Avoid Making New Products – Be it the natural fuels like coal or gas or precious metals like gold, silver, etc., the natural sources are available in a confined amount. Hence, we need to preserve them. Recycling great amounts of papers and other products help in the preservation of natural resources. Also, reusing these products help in less production of new things. This way, we also get to save on many materials that are used in the manufacturing of various products.
- Make Cheaper Products Available – As recycling requires processing of already used things, the end products are cheaper in price. Furthermore, no raw materials are used for making these recycled products. Thus, recycling also helps poor people by making many articles available in a reasonable price. Also, it generates jobs for poor and needy people.
- Benefits Biodiversity and Ecosystem – By recycling paper, we can save millions of trees every year. Animals that are dependent on plants and trees for their food can survive in a better way when trees are available in huge quantity. Thus, recycling helps maintain the right balance in biodiversity. Also, the availability of natural sources helps build a better ecosystem.
Conclusion
Recycling help us attain numerous environmental achievements. It does not only give us a better environment to live in but also generates jobs for millions of people. It helps us save energy and natural resources. It is the duty of every individual to encourage and use recycled goods. We should use recycled products in our everyday life. We should also encourage our kids for using recycled products. The first step of recycling begins from household waste. All you need to do is to categorize your household waste in separate parts like plastics, paper, aluminum, etc., and contact the recycling units for getting the waste recycled into something useful!
‘Sehba Jalal’