Facts and trivia about recycling, along with environmentally friendly alternatives.
Mineral Water: Bottled water containing not less than 250 parts per million total dissolved solids may be labeled as mineral water. Mineral water is distinguished from other types of bottled water by its constant level and relative proportions of mineral and trace elements at the point of emergence from the source. No minerals can be added to this product.
Purified Water: Water that has been produced by distillation, deionization, reverse osmosis or other suitable processes and that meets the definition of purified water in the United States Pharmacopoeia may be labeled as purified bottled water. Other suitable product names for bottled water treated by one of the above processes may include "distilled water" if it is produced by distillation, "deionized water" if the water is produced by deionization, or "reverse osmosis water" if the process used is reverse osmosis.
Depending on its processing and thermal history, polyethylene terephthalate may exist both as an amorphous (transparent) and as a semi-crystalline polymer. The semicrystalline material might appear transparent (particle size < 500 nm) or opaque and white (particle size up to a few microns) depending on its crystal structure and particle size. Its monomer (bis-β-hydroxyterephthalate) can be synthesized by the esterification reaction between terephthalic acid and ethylene glycol with water as a byproduct, or by transesterification reaction between ethylene glycol and dimethyl terephthalate with methanol as a byproduct. Polymerization is through a polycondensation reaction of the monomers (done immediately after esterification/transesterification) with water as the byproduct.
- HDPE leaks no toxic chemicals into the soil or water.
TIP: Don’t put your recyclables in a plastic bag and tie it shut. The workers in the recycling facilities do not have time to open bags and sort its contents so all bags found tied shut are thrown into regular garbage and ends up in the landfill. This totally negates your recycling efforts.
Is one of the most socially controversial forms of container along with PET
In the United States alone, an estimated 12 million barrels of oil is used annually to make the plastic bags that Americans consume. The United States International Trade Commission reported that 102 billion plastic bags were used in the U.S. in 2009. These bags often wind up in waterways or on the landscape, becoming eyesores and degrading water and soil as they break down into toxic bits.
Their manufacture, transportation and disposal use large quantities of non-renewable resources and release equally large amounts of global-warming gases. Ecologically, hundreds of thousands of marine animals die every year when they eat plastic bags mistaken for food.Governments around the world have taken action to ban or restrict the use of plastic bags. In 2008, China banned the use of ultra-thin plastic bags, and it is estimated to have eliminated 40 billion bags in the first year. Ireland placed a fee on plastic bags and reportedly reduced consumption by 90%.
Is plastic really that bad? YES
The main problem with plastic -- besides there being so much of it -- is that it doesn't biodegrade. No natural process can break it down, instead, plastic photodegrades. A piece of plastic cast out to sea will fragment into smaller and smaller pieces of plastic without breaking into simpler compounds, which scientists estimate could take hundreds of years. The small bits of plastic produced by photodegradation are called mermaid tears or nurdles.
What is Styrofoam?
The term “Styrofoam” is actually a Dow Chemical Co. trademarked form of polystyrene foam insulation. Also known as Expanded Polystyrene (EPS) foam, Styrofoam is basically one form of polystyrene plastic. In turn, polystyrene plastic is usually coded as #6 plastic.
Styrofoam is widely used all over the world for various purposes including packing, coffee cups, plates, food trays, fabrication of car parts etc.
- Glass is one of the very few products that can be completely recycled again and again. But most often times, it ends up in landfills and never decomposes.
- There is an increased demand for recycled glass referred to as “cullet” in the glass industry. This is because cullet or recycled glass costs much less than raw material used to manufacture glass from scratch. Cullet also consumes very little electricity, thereby conserving energy, which translates to decrease in carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxide, which are greenhouse gases that contribute to the carbon footprint.
- Glass and plastic take the longest to decompose but are completely recyclable, therefore, it is important to purchase, recycle, and reuse both glass and plastic products.
According to The Public Recycling Officials of Pennsylvania, for every ton of paper that is recycled, the following are saved:
- 17 trees
- 275 pounds of sulfur
- 350 pounds of limestone
- 9,000 pounds of steam
- 60,000 gallons of water
- 225 kilowatt hours
- 3.3 cubic yards of landfill space
World-famous chocolate manufacturer, Hershey Chocolate Company, in manufacturing 20,000,000 Hershey’s kisses (every day), uses about 133 square miles of aluminum to wrap the chocolates. This aluminum wrap is recyclable, but most of this recyclable aluminum reaches the trash cans instead of recycle bins, because people often enjoy the chocolate but don’t think about the recyclable aluminum wrap!
How is metal recycled once collected?
After arriving at a smelter and inspected, the crushed aluminum cans are shredded. The pieces are then heated to remove the paint and any moisture, after which the material passes over fine screens to remove contaminants. The material is then heated to melting point (around 600C) and chemicals added to separate more impurities that are then skimmed off. Aluminum and other metals may then be added to bring molten material to the required alloy specification. The molten aluminum is poured into very large ingots and once cooled and cleaned, sent through rollers multiple times until a thin sheet is produced; which can then be remade into cans. It's an energy intensive process, but the recycling energy savings are around 95% compared to mining and smelting from new raw materials and aluminum can be recycled an unlimited number of times.