Easy recommendations to correctly recycle items in your house

Ricardo Avella June 19, 2017

260 1 minute read

recycle

There are many ways you can start a more environmental-friendly life and one of the most effective is to recycle

The world is producing and consuming in accelerated rates and this way of living is not beneficial to the environment. This consumerism is generating enormous pressure on our natural resources as some products are design for disposal after a single use; they usually whine up in our oceans and/or landfills.

Home recycling requires small amount of time and offers substantial benefit to the environment. First, you need to adequate your residential disposal and separation system. It is recommended to at least have two bins for organic materials, such as food residues or items contaminated with food, and a second one to locate all the recycled products.

In the latter, it is important to consider that most recycling centers cannot accept items with more than 10% of food waste. Therefore, it is important that you take some time and rinse out the plastic containers, glass bottles, and aluminum food packaging before putting them in the recycle bin.

When recycling paper it is important that it is not shredded or soiled. Also, check for any plastic or metal lining used to protect the product inside. In that case, remove it before putting it IGNORE INTO the recycling bin. To identify which type of plastic is recyclable follow the general rule of the thumb: if it holds its shape, it can be recycled otherwise it is disposed in a landfill (this includes plastic bags).

Lee County in Southwest Florida has an excellent way to explain consumers how to correctly recycle any product. The following brochure will help you understand the do’s and don’ts when recycling.

Remember that taking a few minutes of your day to correctly separate and dispose recyclable items helps the environment. It also reduces greenhouse gas emissions and toxic residues form the decomposition processes in landfills, as well as reduce contamination in oceans.