If you are one of the people who frequently walk past a group of blue bins without a second glance, holding an empty can of soda, only to trash the can later in a trash bin or someone who sends all of the scrap papers and cardboard boxes straight to the trash after cleaning up your room, you may want to think again.
Recycling is imperative for the long term good of the environment. It is a habit we all have to develop and is not something to be done occasionally. Critics might challenge the benefits of recycling or dispute the costs involved, and you may have chosen to believe them, but, looking at not just today or this month, but years and decades down the line, this is definitely the path to take. Especially once we allow recycling programs to mature and to be adopted more widely around the world. According to EPA statistics for Municipal Solid Waste Generation, recycling and disposal for the year 2008, Americans generated about 250 million tons of trash and recycled and composted 83 million tons of this material, which resulted in a 33.2 percent recycling rate. That means we still sent out a good part of our recyclables to landfills. Our recycling efforts alone provided an annual benefit of 182 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions reduced, comparable to annual greenhouse gas emissions from more than 33 million vehicles.
At N.C. State, the Waste Reduction and Recycling (WRR) group oversees recycling efforts. According to statistics from the WRR website, the ratio of recycled waste to the net waste produced, called the diversion rate, was 45 percent for 2008 to 2009. NCSU itself has set the goal of increasing the diversion rate to 65 percent by 2015. We can definitely aid them in their efforts by being more conscientious as we dispose of paper, plastics, metal and a host of other materials.
According to Analis Fulghum, WRR’s education and outreach coordinator, about 40 to 45 percent of the trash that comes from residence halls could have been composted, reused or recycled. By being more careful of what we throw into trash bins, we could greatly increase the diversion rate at the University overall. The WRR website gives tons of information on what can be recycled, how to recycle even if you live off campus, how to request a service and how to participate in the events planned to highlight the importance of recycling. They even have a “WE Recycle” Program that recycles 22 tons every football season Ð and they are hoping to double this amount. Earth911, a sustainability website, even has Back to School guides that list out how every one of us can contribute towards a greener planet, one step at a time.
Recycling helps conserve energy, reduce pollution, save trees and decrease costs on various fronts. And there is no better time than now to develop it into a habit, if you have not done so already.