Today, most of us are trying to make
environmentally sound decisions in our everyday lives. Buying recycled products
is a good place to start.
Recycling is a three-part process:
- People collect recyclables.
- Recycling centers sort, process, and prepare them for re-manufacturers,
who make them into new products.
- Consumers purchase products made from recycled materials.
These three inseparable and equally important phases of recycling –
collection, remanufacturing and reuse – make recycling work.
WHAT IS A RECYCLED PRODUCT?
A recycled product is a product made in
whole or in part from recyclables collected from you or other post
consumer-sources. It is a commodity that has been rebuilt or remanufactured,
such as a rebuilt engine or a remanufactured laser toner cartridge.
WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN RECYCLED AND RECYCLABLE?
A recycled
product contains material that the consumer has discarded (post-consumer waste).
It may also contain scraps produced from the manufacturing process (pre-consumer
waste). Recycled simply means that a product contains some recovered materials;
it is a broad term, covering both post-consumer and pre-consumer materials.
A recyclable product can be recycled through programs like those at the Santa
Monica Community Recycling Center. It may not have been made of recycled
material.
When shopping, look for the highest percentage of post-consumer recycled
content you can find. Terms such as environmentally friendly, eco-safe, safe for
the environment, or natural do not necessarily mean that the product can be
recycled or contains recycled material. These terms do not have legal
definitions.
WHAT HAPPENS TO RECYCLABLES?
At the Santa Monica Community Recycling Center,
recyclables are sorted, baled, and transported to a processor or manufacturer,
where they are crushed, melted or pulped, remanufactured into another product,
and returned to the marketplace.
WHY SHOULD WE BUY RECYCLED PRODUCTS?
There are many reasons we should
buy recycled products. Buying recycled products:
- Creates new and stable recycling markets and reduces waste disposal
- Convinces manufacturers to use more recycled materials and helps them
justify their investments in recycling
- Creates jobs and economic development opportunities
- Demonstrates that a company or community is environmentally aware and
interested in reducing pollution of the air, land, and waterways.
Buying recycled products also conserves resources:
- Recycled paper. Making a ton of paper from waste paper saves
approximately 17 trees, enough energy to power an average home for six
months, and 7,000 gallons of water. It also eliminates 60 pounds of air
pollutants.
- Recycled aluminum cans. It takes 95% less energy to make a new
aluminum can out of an old aluminum can than to make an aluminum can from
bauxite ore. A new can made from an old can is usually back on the store
shelf in less than 90 days after collection.
- Recycled steel. All steel packaging contains about 28% recycled
steel. In fact, recycled steel is a necessary part of the process of making
new steel.
- Recycled glass. Glass containers are 100% recyclable. They never
have to reach a landfill. At least 25% of the glass on store shelves is
recycled glass. Recycling one glass bottle saves enough energy to light a
100-watt bulb for four hours.
- Recycled plastic. More than 1,300 quality products made with or
packaged in post-consumer recycled plastics are now commercially available.
As much as 40% of plastic parts from damaged or discarded cars are repaired
and reused.
HOW TO BUY RECYCLED
Choose products made with post-consumer
materials. If they are not carried in your local stores, ask your store manager
to begin stocking them. Write to manufacturers and ask that they produce
products with recycled content. Shop by mail for items with recycled content if
you can’t find these products locally. Encourage others in your school,
business, and community to buy recycled products.
