When you recycle plastic bottles, check if the label says crush to preserve. If so, remove the cap and crush the bottle by turning it from the top and pressing it down. After shredding it, place the cap back on the bottle so that it can also be recycled. Food waste contaminates entire loads of recyclable material, rendering it useless and leading it quickly to landfills.
In the U.S. In the US, the current study outlines an approach that can make recycling processes cost-effective. This would revert plastic to its basic chemical components, which can then be used to produce fresh plastics or items such as fuel. The approach involves undergoing the refining process “in reverse,” according to Vlachos.
It is based on zeolite and platinum as catalysts (both are already widely used in the plastics industry to produce them from crude oil). Both platinum and zeolite can help break the long chemical chains that make up plastic, but neither can bring the process to completion on their own. However, if combined under high pressure, the team found that catalysts can completely degrade the plastic molecule. In some cases, such as in Montgomery County (Maryland), when plastic bags full of recyclable materials arrive at the facility, workers cannot open them, says Griselda Guillen, from the county's recycling center.
While batteries are recyclable, most batteries, including lithium-ion, lithium-metal, lead-acid, nickel-cadmium and other rechargeable batteries, should NOT go to household waste or recycling bins. Recycling is a regional company and every city has different rules, complicating things for residents who just want to know how to recycle properly. Most sidewalk recycling programs agree to mix different types and colors of glass and then classify them in recovery facilities. Cities have certain thresholds to meet when sending their recyclable materials to third-party waste management companies.
The team explains that practically all of the major types of plastic used today can be recycled with this approach, including plastic bags and bottles (PET), HDPE, PP, polystyrene (PS) and even layered plastic composites (PP-PE-PS). Check with your local recycling or household hazardous waste center, or visit Earth911 for more information on ways to properly dispose of it, as some thermometers are considered household hazardous waste. New research reports an approach that could finally mark the beginning of energy-efficient plastic recycling, with enormous implications for both industry and the environment. Manufacturers and retailers offer several options for donating or recycling electronic products, including cell phones, computers, and televisions.
Once you've gotten used to reducing your waste, perhaps without buying so many bottles of water, you can start reusing the things you have and recycle them or compost them before reaching a landfill.
