Why recycling is important

Recycling is important and if you do not already know why, Enfield Skips are here to help explain to you the many benefits it has on the world we live in. If that’s not enough, we’re also here to share with you what materials you should be recycling. So you too, can make a difference along with the majority who are already separating their waste.

What’s the big deal about recycling?

Waste that is carelessly thrown into your normal bin is unloaded into landfill and covered by soil. You may be thinking ‘that’s great, it’ll disintegrate and the whole process will do a full cycle’ – but the point is, not everything does decompose but those items that do, degrade at different rates.

The world is producing more waste than we can keep up with and because of this, a lot of people don’t stop to think about the effects it has on our planet. For an idea of how long it takes some materials to decompose, see for yourself:

• Glass bottles – undetermined
• Plastic bags – 500+ years
• Plastic bottles – 500+ years
• Aluminum cans – 200 years
• Cigarette ends – 1-5 years
• Newspapers – 2-4 weeks
• Apple core – 1-2 months

There are also many items that are harmful to the environment too – items such as batteries and electronics – should not be disposed of in our normal bin. They should be recycled/sent off to specialists who can repurpose or dispose of parts correctly.

When these hazardous items, like batteries for example, are placed into the ground, their harmful chemicals are released and disperse their way through the soil. What you need to remember is – contaminated soil can affect our crops and poison our water systems. Yet, we are still notorious for unnecessary wastage and doing things because it’s convenient to us.

There are many reasons why recycling matters:

It conserves energy – by recycling and reusing old items, we are able to reduce and save other natural resources taken from the Earth through mining and deforestation. By conserving energy and placing old used items into a box for recycling collection, you could help to save natural habitats for animals and conserve the Earth’s raw materials.  

It saves energy – it takes up less energy creating new items from old materials than it does making brand new items from scratch. A lot of energy is wasted on raw material extraction, building the items, transportation and processing – whereas recycled items are simply remodelled and processed.

It protects the environment – when you recycle, you reduce the pressure on mining, logging, quarrying. This, of course, saves natural materials but also reduces air and water pollution.

Reduces landfill – by carefully selecting recyclable materials, we are physically removing items from landfill, therefore reducing the amount of rubbish we’re placing underground! In the UK, around one quarter of our emissions are made from our landfill sites.

If you’re looking to perfect the art of waste management, turn to Enfield Skips. We’re here to offer you a great wealth of experience along with skip hire including roll-on, roll-off skip hire solutions, asbestos disposal & collection, waste reclamation and recycling. So give our friendly team a call today and let’s see what we can do for you!