Am I recycling correctly?
Learn about recycling
What is Recycling?
Recycling is the process of collecting and processing materials that would otherwise be thrown away as trash. This way items are sorted, cleaned, and filtered of contaminants in order to create new items and reduce the use of new natural resources.
Most people WISHCYCLE – Putting any item in your recycling bin you wish or think should be recycled. Unfortunately, it does not always mean they will be, or CAN be recycled in the first place. Am I recycling correctly?
Why we need to do it?
Recycling helps reduce global climate impacts. Recycling benefits our communities, businesses, and the environment by reducing pollution, how many raw materials we use, and creates jobs. When done correctly, it reduces the amount of waste sent to landfills and incinerators.
It is important to note that recycling is in fact a business and sometimes certain items are not recycled because there is not enough demand for them.
How it impacts your planet?
Recycling helps reduce greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide and more. In addition to this it helps reduce pollution of our environment, water, and air.
Unfortunately, in Miami-Dade County our recycling rates for many items are very low. Currently, only 2% of steel cans and 7% of aluminum are recycled along with only 1% of plastic bottles. This is alarming since about 50 billion are sold in the USA each year which can account for over 9 million pounds of C02. Other common items like steel and aluminum cans can cause up to 2.8 pounds of CO2 emissions per can! This is why recycling right is so important!
Get Involved in your Community!
Check out one of our partners who helps clean our beaches and community.
HandsOn Miami inspires, equips and mobilizes people to take action to effect positive change in our Miami-Dade County community.
Reduce your waste – composting
Recycling Basics!
Recycling can sometimes sound complicated, but if we work together we can do it easily! Check this video out.
A to Z with MDC
It is important to note that recycling is in fact a business and sometimes certain items are not recycled because there is not enough demand for them.
Tips and tricks!
Games and Quizzes!
Check out some of these fun resources for games, quizzes, and more!
Reading List!
Interested in learning about our planet? Check these books out!
Join the Green Schools Challenge!
K-12 students and teachers looking to learn more about waste reduction, energy efficiency, water conservation and more, join the Green Schools Challenge to have access to full lesson plans to promote environmental stewardship.
