The Economic Benefits of Recycling: More Than Just Environmental Gains

The Founding President of The Bureau of International Recycling, Ranjit Baxi declared March 18 as Global Recycling Day. However, the concept of recycling isn't fairly new, it has been in practice for centuries in various households.

Take Japan, for instance, which began using recycled paper around the 9th century, right around the time the art of papermaking rose to prominence. Similarly, in Philadelphia, the first milling machine was inaugurated by William Rittenhouse in 1690, where he recycled linen rags and fiber from recycled cotton to produce recycled paper.

What is Recycling?

Concern over the epidemic of climate crisis has been looming large for years and is only going to get worse. Henceforth, it is imperative to understand the various ways to tackle it, starting with recycling. Recycling is the process of converting waste into a more utilizable form. Reusing old materials instead of tossing them in the waste can help reduce pollution significantly.

Rapid urbanization, alongside the steady growth of factories all across the globe, brings along the issue of waste disposal. In India alone, the plastic waste generated annually surpasses 3.5 million metric tonnes. Nations need to come together to call forth immediate action against the excessive manufacturing of plastic that exposes our climate to the damaging effects of hazardous waste materials.

How does it work?

Recycling doesn’t necessarily adhere to a large-scale operation, i.e., it can also begin from home. Re-using newspapers as book covers instead of purchasing plastic films, storing bathwater in water plants, and repurposing plastic containers to store as a bird feeder or a first-aid kit, etc., are some of the few ways one can turn waste items into better sustainable products.

Large-scale recycling offers several challenges, following different steps to maximize the efficiency of the process.

• The first step usually includes collection and assortment. Government entities or private organizations are authorized to collect discarded items from landfills or employ specific waste collection vehicles to gather the waste from homes and offices. 
• The next step includes sorting. It is important to separate and categorize environmentally friendly waste, such as kitchen scraps, paper, and cardboard, from non-biodegradable ones, such as plastic or glass.  It can further be segregated into dry waste and wet waste, ensuring better quality material.
• After segregating the waste materials, the process of repurposing begins, depending on the type of material getting recycled. Pollutants, such as plastic, which are difficult to break down are crushed and melted to form pellets, before creating new products. On the other hand, cardboard and paper boxes are mixed with water to create a pulp. After drying, it is thinned out as sheets and reused.

How to Curb Waste Production?

The primary objective of Global Recycling Day is to educate people on the significance of recycling and reusing discarded materials and to influence them to make a switch to using more sustainable products.

• In schools, students can be taught the importance of Global Recycling Day by placing bins in place or encouraging them to use recycled materials such as glass bottles and egg cartons for their art projects.
• Industries can opt for metal recycling instead of virgin metals, to minimize carbon footprint and help reduce the misuse of our natural reserves. Recycled steel can be manufactured with only 25-30% of the energy required to produce virgin steel and has been in great demand for its high durability.

Conclusion:

Climate disruption is a real issue today, with each wrong decision endangering our ecosystem.  Global Recycling Day is an initiative for a better and greener future marked by the use of eco-friendly products, an increase in energy conservation, and reduced pollution, all of which are a testament to environmental sustainability.