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Emily Stelling
Dr. Sterling
ENGL 1301
18 April 2017
Recycling: A Must
Recent studies show that [every] year, the United States generates approximately 230
million tons of trashabout 4.6 pounds per day (Solid Waste). The Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) recently stated that Americans recycle 34 percent of all the waste they create
(Recycling Rates). The other 76 percent of trash collected is incinerated or buried in landfills
(Solid Waste), but these options create more problems than they solve. Quite a few countries
surpass the United States when it comes to the percentage of trash they recycle, and with the
amount of trash that the United States accumulates, along with the plights that trash brings, the
United States should follow by example of those other countries, as well as expand on its efforts
of enforcing recycling to conserve resources, and energy, and protect the environment.
Before all trash reaches its proper receptacles, some people have taken the liberty of
throwing their trash on the ground, or anywhere else it does not belong. Litter presents harmful
situations on its own in multiple ways, with broken glass as one of the most harmful types of
litter, regardless of its location. Large debris found on or around major roads or highways, like
tire chunks or unwanted furniture, makes drivers more susceptible to getting into car accidents.
Litter in suburban areas often attracts unwanted animals, those which may be carrying dangerous
diseases, and lastly, litter in the environment can kill plants and animals, both in and out of the
ocean. It is estimated that 9 billion tons of litter ends up in the ocean every year (King) with
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most of it coming from what was on land, and the rest from those intentionally littering into the
ocean. Sea turtles and fish may see some of this debris and mistake it for food; unintentionally
As stated previously, 76 percent of trash collected in the United States does not get
recycled. When people incinerate their trash instead of recycling it, they produce toxic smoke
and ash, since a lot of plastics and paper [are] treated with chemicals, coatings, and inks (Don't
Burn Your Garbage). When trash sits in landfills, the trash gets broken down by different bacteria
and fungi, but the decomposition of trash does not happen quickly. A paper towel can take
approximately 4 weeks to decompose, a plastic bag 20 years, tin cans 50 years, and glass can
even take up to 1 million years to decompose. During this prolonged process, methane gas and
leachate are produced. Methane gas is a greenhouse gas that helps with the progression of global
warming and leachate is a liquid that forms as trash decomposes. Both products pose threats to
the environment, especially older landfills [that] do not utilize [synthetic liners] (Q & A's
About Landfills), since leachate can contaminate groundwater, and although methane gas can
potentially be collected ... and then used as a power-generating fuel (Q & A's About
Landfills), methane emissions remain harmful for those without the ability to harness it.
Recycling provides benefits in many ways. When more people become responsible by
picking up their trash, and then they sort it accordingly so that certain materials can be reused, it
reduces the need to burn trash and use landfills. Companies that use recycled products instead of
producing new products help protect the environment while saving money. Certain material
production, like papers and cardboards, can lead to deforestation. When recyclable material is
deforestation (Recycling Is Important). Recycling instead of using fresh resources also cuts
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back on the massive amount of energy it takes to make new materials. This preserves natural
resources for the future (Recycling Is Important), those which may become inaccessible in years
to come. Recycling also produces many jobs, since for every job collecting recyclables, there
are 26 jobs in processing the materials and manufacturing them into new products (National
Recycling Coalition). Creating more jobs becomes beneficial for those in need of jobs, without a
college education.
While considering the pros to recycling, the cons to the process must also be considered.
Some communities do not find recycling affordable. The price to pay to recycle something
depends on the material, and paper recycling is more expensive than other recycling (Carson).
Recycling also produces different types of pollution, compared to burning trash and using
landfills. Recycled electronics arrive to other countries after shipment overseas. Workers sort
these electronics by hand, and during the sorting process, metals and other chemicals may leach
into the land and water where the recycling is taking place (Josephson). For some recycling
centers, an issue persists where every manner of waste is piled [and allows] the formation of
debris and spread of infectious diseases (Rinkesh) during the separation of different materials.
Not only do these situations pose threats to the environment, they also post threats the health of
the workers present. The belief that re-recycled materials only create products that are less
durable and low priced (Rinkesh), also exists. People question whether a recycled product will
last long enough for its intended use versus a new product.
With these cons in mind, one might wonder why anyone should persist with recycling.
And yet, other countries persist in getting their citizens to recycle. These other countries also out-
recycle the United States, too, with Austria and Germany boasting the highest recycling rates at
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63 and 62 percent (Recycling Rates). These countries understand the importance of recycling,
and even take recycling to new levels. In Sweden, they convert their trash into energy. In Italy,
if you dont separate your recycling from your waste you can be fined up to 619 Euros
(Carriere), which is the equivalent of $833. In Switzerland, they have initiated a ban on landfills.
In Canada, they are piloting a program to find ways to recycle cigarette butts. There are other
countries with different ways of reusing materials, or setting regulations on what happens to
certain types of trash, but the fact remains that these countries believe that the pros outweigh the
Most people are familiar with the slogan, Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, but sometimes
people do not think to reduce the amount of waste they create. Without reduce as a
forethought, people must force themselves to take responsibility by getting into the habit of
recycling the waste that they accumulate, especially in the United States. Recycling remains
active worldwide, and reusing and recycling products will save money, energy, resources, and the
environment, for the coming future. Plenty of examples exist where recycling works, both
businesses and other countries have proven this, and they [would not] recycle if it [did not]
Works Cited
Carriere, Nadia. Recycling Around the World: 7 Practices We Should Adopt from Other
Carson, Amy. The Pros (and Cons) of Recycling's Impact on the Environment. Edited by Laurie
Apr. 2017.
Don't Burn Your Garbage. Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, Minnesota Pollution Control
Apr. 2017.
Josephson, Amelia. The Pros and Cons of Recycling. SmartAsset, SmartAsset, 7 Oct. 2016,
King, Luther. 9 Interesting Facts and Statistics about Littering. Litter. It Costs You.,
National Recycling Coalition. Recycling Benefits:The Many Reasons Why. A Recycling Revolution,
Apr. 2017.
Q & A's About Landfills. Air and Waste Management, Air and Waste Management,
Recycling Rates Around The World. Recycling Rates Around the World, Planet Aid, Inc., 2 Sept.
Rinkesh. Advantages and Disadvantages of Recycling. Conserve Energy Future, Conserve Energy