Recycling Plastic In America

In the United States, over 245 million tons of municipal solid waste (MSW) was produced by consumers in 2005. This is approximately 4.5 pounds of trash per person per day.[3] This same year, 79 million tons of waste were recycled, a dramatic increase from 15 million tons in 1980.[3] Of the total MSW in 2003,11.1% (26.7 million tons) was plastic. Although only 3.9% of plastics disposed in 2003 were recycled, PET was recovered at a rate of 25%.[4]

A reason that recycling should not be apart of everyday american society is that over the years it has been costly and it has been causing more pollution by sending trucks to collect the recycling then the recycling process itself. Data shows

There are so many different ways our world can recycle ,The goal is to reduce the amount of waste ,

Do you know that it will take 1000 years for a plastic bag to decompose? Our world is the most friendly planet for human beings and every other living thing. We should never take our planet for granted because there is no other like this one and in order for us to keep our planet safe and sound, we should get rid of plastic bags. The other most effective way to keep our planet safe is to recycle every plastic bottle that we used. Every plastic product should not be thrown to the garbage because plastic bottles will take several decades to decompose in soil.

Environmental issues have been a part of living on earth since the beginning of time. The only issue with this however, is that resolutions have only just recently been put in place. Environmental concerns have only been discussed since the last half of the twentieth century. While some small steps were taken here and there, The European Union was the first to deliberate environmental policy in an attentive and compulsory nature. The European Union has some of the highest environmental standards to date. These standards have been evolving since the Paris Summit meeting of the European Community that took place in October 1972. The Paris Summit of 1972 was the first to introduce environmental policy on such a vast scale. One outcome of the summit was a declaration on environmental and consumer policy which gave the Environmental Commission the authority to establish the First Environmental Action Programme (EAP) to implement environmental policy. An EAP is essentially a strategic policy document which reflects the fundamental elements of contemporary environmental thinking and problem perceptions, as well as strategic policy orientation. (http://wwweeborg/publication/chapter-3pdf) It is based on a proposal from the Commission, but is now subject to a full legislative procedure leading to agreement between

Looking down the street you live on, do you notice something lacking? Well, for most of America this seems to ring true. Recycling is a process that is very important for the environment, yet much of the country still does not have mandatory recycling or, at the least, an easier way to recycle. No, most perfectly recyclable materials are sent straight to the landfill. Why exactly is this, anyway? Is it the government’s fault, or the people’s?

They do not, in fact, mean that an item can be recycled, but specifically denote which kind of plastic makes up an object. There are six codes for specific plastics, with code number seven being something of a “catch-all” for the remaining plastics and composites. Only four of these seven codes denote a plastic that can be recycled at all, and it is relatively rare for an area to recycle all four of them. Despite the efforts to simplify the process of recycling, we still waste massive amounts of recyclable material. We have improved tremendously compared to previous decades. Nationally the USA went from recycling 6.4% of solid waste in 1960 to recycling 34.1% of waste in 2010 - but we still have a very long way to go (“Stats”). These statistics beg the question “what impact have the Resin ID codes truly had on recycling?” In an effort to discern if there has in fact been a significant impact on our recycling rates, I set out to research the overall changes in recycling since these the implementation of these

We know that nowadays plastic is the one materials that widely used by human in all of the country. Most of our goods become from plastic. The bad news is, plastics wastes that come from our unusable goods end up in the oceans. There are 60% to 80% plastic wastes on the sea are coming from the land and it will cause a big problem to 267 sea species in this world (Moore, Lattin, & Zellers). That one example is more than enough to start recycling our plastic waste. We can start from reduce and reuse first. For reduce example: when we buy something, we should prepare our own bag to put the goods we buy, dispose the waste according to the bin that specially provided for plastic, use a refill bottle for our drink bottle, and prefer a paper bag than plastic bag. How about reuse plastic bag? Some of countries have creative company that selling fine art and use plastic waste as the basic materials. One of the countries that have company like that is Indonesia. Indonesia has a lot of home industry that use plastic waste as their main materials. They make new thing from plastic bottle, such as plastic flower art, windmill toys for children, table lamp, and house accessories. Some schools in Indonesia teach the students how to reuse the plastic waste and make a fine art from it. Reduce and reuse the plastic waste already counted as recycling the plastic waste. Never think

    While taking one of my SMC courses at St.Mary’s University, my professor  began a discussion on plastics pollution and the effects it has on the environment.  My professor began to talk more and more about this uncharted territory known as plastic pollution I  never knew plastic was so harmful and what it is doing to our environment.What I knew then does not compare to what I know now. Everything that I have included in this research paper stems from what I have learned and the policies we have in the United States, the state of Texas, and the city of San Antonio.

Silverman (2007), states that, “Plastic constitutes 90 percent of all trash floating in the world's oceans”. Plastic has become a well-known and wanted commodity around the world. It is a commodity that is involved in most things that we use; however, we are oblivious of its bad effects. In the article “Plastic is rubbish” it shows that in 2010 alone, Americans created 31 million tons of plastic waste such as containers, appliances, and cups (n.d.). When plastic is used this excessively it acts as a hazard and a harmful commodity, since it endangers the lives of many creatures including humans. The way this commodity is disposed off should be efficient and should not result in harming the environment either. To solve this problem, all governments should take action and improper plastic disposal should be made illegal and its production should be moderated to lessen its effect on the environment, human health, and overall on the economy worldwide.

Plastic can be made in to just about anything we use everyday. Just look around you, just about almost anything you use is made out of plastic. Despite its effortless attainability, plastic has transformed the world and the way, we as consumers, use it on a daily basis. There is questions arising to whether or not we should be using plastics the way we are. What will be the long-term effect of plastic usage and its disposal? Many experts and researchers have tried to come to a solid conclusion to the topic. However, its complexity and the way its use is evolving, leaves many holes open to discussion. Eventually, will we have to completely stop using plastic?

Plastic pollution is all over this world. People purchase plastic almost everyday, even if someone does not realize they are purchasing this synthetic product, most of the time the item’s packaging is made of plastic. Even cleaning products and clothes contain plastic. When plastic was man-made the only thought was the benefits it can create, the deficits were not thought of. Humans and animals are being physically harmed by hazardous chemicals inside plastic and sadly, fifty percent of plastic is hazardous. The environment as well is being affected with pollution because of the amount of resources that are taken and used. Many authors have researched the effects of the plastic we use daily. ZHigui He’s article “Pollution characteristics and health risk assessment of volatile organic compounds emitted from different plastic solid waste recycling workshops” researches the various volatile compounds found in different recycling shops that lead to health risks. Charles Talsness’ article is explaining the health risks of the components found in plastic on humans and animals. Along with the article written by Chelsea Rochman, assistant professor, that classifies plastic waste as hazardous as well and W.C. Li’s article focuses on the effects of the plastic waste in the marine environment. All the while, Robert LeBlanc has found many statistics on all negative aspects inside his article “Plastic Recycling Facts and Figures”. All of these articles connect in the agreement of plastic

“Conservationists estimate that at least 100,000 mammals and birds die from them” (plastic bags) “each year, felled by the estimated 500 billion and more plastic bags that are produced and consumed around the world; the numbers of fish killed by them are unknown, but they are sure to number in the millions.” [1] But why are plastic bags so deadly? To answer this question, one would need to know the origins and the debate revolving around plastic bags. Plastic is primarily made of polyethylene which is the most common type of plastic. Polyethylene has many drawbacks such as being made up of harmful chemicals and not being biodegradable (something that can be broken down by living organisms). Plastic bags have become an essential sidekick for shoppers wherever they shop. It may seem like a plastic bag is harmless and there is no harm in littering them. But there are lethal consequences when plastic bags are littered. Many cities have banned or taxed plastic bags. California was the first state to ban plastic bags. Austin, Texas; Cambridge, Massachusetts; Chicago; Los Angeles; San Francisco; and Seattle are some cities that have banned plastic bags. Other cities have taxed the plastic bags. The heated debate behind plastic bags has evolved into a debate to ban or not ban based on the effects of plastic bags on the world. There is an innumerable number of flaws with plastic bags such as plastic bags weakening the economy, there being preferable alternatives to plastic bags and

Throughout history, people have found ways to create extraneous pollution due to a demand that could be filled with a more advantageous option. Thus, in our day and age: the plastic bag. Since the creation of the first synthetic polymer in 1869, to regular usage in grocery stores, plastics have been an integral part of the American way of life and economy (“The History and Future of Plastics”). Yet activists are finding it difficult to stay silent about the damaging effects that plastic bag production and usage have upon our lives, and are calling for taxes, fees and even bans on plastic bags in some communities (Rael 1). This debate is one of paramount importance, as it concerns the entire biosphere; organisms and whole ecosystems are damaged regularly by the effects of the plastic bag. Limiting plastic bags in communities to a serious extent would be extremely beneficial within the environment and the economy, as well as would address a serious issue that is too often forgotten by American consumers.

Americans are generating more plastic trash than ever, and very little of it gets recycled. Plastics and their byproducts are littering our cities, oceans, and waterways, and contributing to health problems in humans and animals.Plastic pollution is one of the greatest threats to ocean health worldwide. In spite of society’s many efforts to properly dispose of plastic waste, between 4 and 12 million metric tons of plastic waste enter the ocean each year enough to cover every foot of coastline on the planet. And that amount is expected to more than double in the next 10 years Stop using plastic straws, even in restaurants. If a straw is a must, purchase a reusable stainless steel or glass straw.