The Role of Recycling - Research Paper Example

Recycling Name Institution Date Table of Contents Table of Contents 2 1.0 Introduction 3 1.1 Background 3 1.2 Problem statement 4 1.3 Research questions 4 1.4 Statement of significant 5 1.5 Purpose of the Study 5 2.0 Literature review 6 2.1 Options for waste recycling 6 2.1.1 Wastewater recycling 7 2.1.2 Solid waste recycling 7 2.2 Impacts Waste Recycling as a Waste Management Strategy 8 2.2.1 Positive impacts of recycling 8 2.2.2 Negative impacts of recycling. 8 3.0 Questionnaire 9 4.0 Methodology 9 4.1. Research design 9 4.2 Study population 10 5.0 Results and Discussion 10 5.1 Results 10 5.1.1. Frequency of recycling 10 5.1.2. Concern for Waste Reduction 11 5.1.3 Reason for Recycling 12 5.1.4. Common Recycled Material 13 5.2. Discussion 14 5.2.1. Reasons for Recycling 14 5.2.2 Need for sustainable development 14 5.3 Health consideration. 15 5.4 Natural resource management. 15 5.5 Waste Management 15 6.0 Conclusion 16 7.0 References 18 1.0 Introduction 1.1 Background Human beings have to satisfy three basic needs to be able to survive in this world. The three basic needs are food, clothing and shelter (Un-Habitat, 2010). The human population, however, has grown to an extent that the natural resource base cannot replenish once exploited. In addition, technology has expanded the capacity of human beings to produce commodities that are used to satisfy basic human needs (Pichtel, 2014). The technology has come in the form of industrialization. Industrialization is characterized by acquisition of raw materials, processing of raw material and products of raw material (Chandak, 2010). Literally, all the raw materials are from the natural environment, and almost all industrial processes produce wastes that end up dumped in the natural environment. Consumption of finished products is the final phase that also produces wastes. According to Un-Habitat (2010), the trends and rates at which wastes are released to the environment overwhelm the natural degrading capacity of the environment. The wastes may come in the form of gas, effluents or solid from both industrial processes and consumption. Wastes interfere with known natural cycles like a hydrological cycle, carbon cycle, phosphorous cycle and nitrogen cycle (Chandak, 2010). Some wastes degrade the aesthetic value of an environment, as well as release toxic substance that compromises the chemical composition of the natural environment. The trends for many years have been considered unsustainable, calling the environmentalist to develop the 3Rs for Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle. Recycling is one best option for reducing a wide range of wastes that choke the environment. Recycling has a wide range of benefits towards the environment. This study aims at establishing the relevance of recycling as a waste management technique. 1.2 Problem statement Many human activities produce wastes that are discharged into the environment. Reducing and reusing option of the wastes products may not apply to all wastes. The trends and rates at which the wastes are released are so fast. Stimulating factors like economic growth and growing market for products daily increase production of goods and services, as well as wastes. Most of the wastes are non-biodegradable, and even the biodegradables are produced at a faster rate than they can naturally degrade. The state of waste accumulation has developed to an issue of environmental health and safety. Emerging issues of heavy metals, bioaccumulation and biomagnifications have turned out to threaten human health. For instance, heavy metals have been established to have carcinogenic effects that are responsible for human cancer. Education and sensitization to minimize or avoiding waste generation has failed in many parts since human beings invent new products every day. Something needs to be done to reduce aesthetic pollution, water pollution, soil pollution, and air pollution. A transformation has to be done on the wastes to produce other products to satisfy other human needs. For this reason, recycling can be considered as one option that can realize waste reduction. 1.3 Research questions 1. What options for waste recycling exist in the field of waste management? 2. What are the impacts of adopting waste recycling as a waste management strategy? 1.4 Statement of significant Human activities generate wastes in almost all activities. The rates at which these wastes are produced are so high and keep growing. The environment, on the other hand, serves as the final recipient for these wastes. Naturally, the environment has a way of degrading some of these waste products but now the rate at which the waste products are produced is overwhelming. The wide range of wastes produced is responsible for a variety of pollution, which includes water pollution, soil pollution, and aesthetic pollution. As the human population continues to exert pressure on the environment so does the waste products. The environment, which is a fixed resource, cannot change yet it the volumes of wastes disposed of keep increasing. The waste products for many years have proven to be health hazard capable. On the other hand, the issue of sustainable development is real. For this reason, the current generation must satisfy their need without jeopardizing the ability of future generations to satisfy their needs. For this reason, the natural resource base has to be conserved by controlling exploitation and preserved from pollution by waste products. There is a variety of options to achieve sustainable development and one solution for this can be recycling. 1.5 Purpose of the Study Waste management is a menace in many economies, and many options have been employed to tackle wastes. The rate at which the waste is produced especially in developing countries is alarming, and there is a possibility that recycling can provide a useful opportunity. Therefore, the study on recycling was set to understand the entire concept of recycling. The study aimed to establish the types of wastes that can be recycled given that many kinds of wastes are produced through a variety of human activities. Wastes may vary depending on its chemical and physical state. The study, therefore, attempts to determine the waste materials that are commonly recycled. In addition, the study on recycling was established to identify the differences that exist between recycling and reusing since the two are often misunderstood. Recycling is one important waste management option; the study was determined to identify the economic value of recycling, the positive impacts of recycling and the negative impacts of recycling. Most importantly the study aims to analyze Effat University students’ perception on waste recycling. 2.0 Literature review This section reviews a variety of secondary data resources containing information about the study of recycling. The review focuses on the two research questions that form the basis of this study. Therefore, the literature review tackles; options for waste recycling and impacts of waste recycling as a waste management strategy. 2.1 Options for waste recycling Recycling is a waste management strategy that aims at re-introducing waste products into a processing system or plant (Chandak, 2010). The wastes are re-introduced as a raw material in various forms depending on the type of waste. Recycling has proven to be more effective for controlling effluent and solid wastes. 2.1.1 Wastewater recycling Wastewater in many regions is directed into freshwater bodies where the organic components are left to decompose in the aquatic ecosystem (Letcher and Vallero, 2011). The method, however, depletes the dissolved oxygen by increasing the biological oxygen demand of the recipient water body. Recycling of wastewater involves treating this water and supplying it for other human activities. Treated water can be used for human consumption, industrial use and domestic use depending on the chemical composition of the recycled water. Wastewater containing high concentration can be recycled only to suit industrial processes, such as cooling. Wholesome water can be recycled from domestic effluent whose main composition is organic wastes. 2.1.2 Solid waste recycling Solid waste management is one important area with numerous opportunities for recycling. According to Ramachandra (2011), solid waste comes in various types and can be classified into; commercial wastes; agricultural wastes; institutional wastes; industrial wastes; domestic wastes; and institutional wastes. The wastes can also be classified into biodegradables and non-biodegradable. Both organic and inorganic wastes can be recycled to provide new products. Solid wastes can be transformed to produce energy or new product for human use and consumption. For instance, most of the organic agricultural wastes can undergo double recycling for the benefit of the farmer. According to Diaz et al. (2011), organic wastes can be digested to generate biogas and further degrade to form organic manure. Plastic wastes can be transformed into energy for industrial and domestic use. In addition, the plastic wastes can undergo transformation to form new products. Institutional waste like paper provides an important opportunity for recycling to produce usable products like toilet paper and boards. 2.2 Impacts Waste Recycling as a Waste Management Strategy Waste recycling has both advantages and disadvantages as far as environmental management is concerned. The impacts affect both the environment and different management practices. Some of the impacts are identified below. 2.2.1 Positive impacts of recycling Waste recycling is an advantage to natural resource managers and stands a chance to benefit the environment. The environment is protected from polluting effects of wastes, as well as protection from over-exploitation for raw materials. Aquatic ecosystems, aesthetic value, natural cycle and authenticity are preserved and conserved when recycling of wastes is practiced. Recycling is beneficial for areas where raw materials are scarce (Ramachandra, 2011). Waste recycling provides a fruitful option for solving the menace of solid and liquid waste management. Recycling of wastes to produce energy diversifies the sources of energy and reduces over-reliance on non-renewable wastes. 2.2.2 Negative impacts of recycling. Despite the fact that recycling has many environmental advantages, recycling has economic challenges (Ramos et al., 2012). The cost of production increases when using the waste material as the raw material for an industrial process. According to Neil Peters (2014), the cost increases due to related costs of collecting, transportation, and conversion of the waste material. Specifically, plastic recycling uses a lot of energy to convert it into a new product (Ramos et al., 2012). Waste recycling jeopardizes the efforts of industries adopting cleaner production. Through recycling, some undesirable products are only transformed into shape and not chemical composition. The effects of such products on the environment will still be felt in future (Miller et al., 2014). Furthermore, recycling can lead to wastes that are more complex. The recycled products can pose more challenges to natural resource managers and waste management. 3.0 Questionnaire 1. How often do you recycle? 2. Are you interested in learning more about things you can do to reduce your waste? 3. Why do you recycle? 4. If you recycle, what is the most common object that you recycle? 4.0 Methodology 4.1. Research design The research design adopted in the study was a descriptive research design. Data was collected to respond to questions concerning current practices of recycling. Given little time, the study utilized the cross-sectional approach where all the data from the sample population was collected at the same time. The unit of analysis comprised of students in the institution who were required to respond to four questions. 4.2 Study population The study population comprised of students from Effat University. The sample size had a total of 35 respondents randomly selected from the total study population. Due to time limitation, no formula was adopted to calculate the sample size and 35 was preferred. 5.0 Results and Discussion 5.1 Results During the research, students were required to respond to various questions. The study population comprised of students and the sample size was 35. The responses were recorded and analysed. This section discusses the data collected from the students. 5.1.1. Frequency of recycling The table below shows the summary of responses from students concerning frequency of waste recycling. Choice Percentage No. Always 0.00 0 Most of the time 54.29 19 Never 45.71 16 Total 35 Table 1: table showing the distribution responses from students concerning frequency of waste recycling According to the data collected, it was established that no student consistently recycles wastes. However, most of the students recycle wastes most of the time. The difference between students who recycle waste and those who do not recycle was small. More than half of the respondents practice waste recycling. 5.1.2. Concern for Waste Reduction Students were asked if they could have any interest in learning more about waste reduction techniques. The three choices provided were; ‘yes’, ‘no’ and ‘if I am getting graded’. The responses were analyzed and presented in the table below. Answer Choices Response No. Responses (%) Yes 85.71 30 If I'm getting graded on this then maybe. 8.57 3 No, I don't care 5.71 2 Total 35 Table 2: table showing the distribution responses from students concerning willingness of respondents to learn waste reduction techniques. The data collected established that a larger percentage of students were willing to learn on the various means of wastes reduction. There was a positive response to the question from over four-fifths of the total respondents. A smaller percentage from the study population did not care learning about waste reduction strategies. Some of the respondents expressed willingness to learn waste reduction strategies only if it were examinable. 5.1.3 Reason for Recycling Another question required students to state their reasons for recycling. The responses were analyzed and presented in the table below. Answer Choices Responses (%) Responses (no.) Saving energy 2.94 1 Good for the economy 5.88 2 Helps our climate problems 17.65 6 All of the above 73.53 25 Total 34 Table 3: table showing the distribution responses from students concerning respondents’ reasons for recycling. The study recorded a number of varying reasons for recycling. Many students share multiple reasons for recycling that include need to save energy, economic considerations and climatic considerations. Some students were specific on their reasons for recycling wastes with 6 students recycling to save the climate, 2 recycling for economic reasons and a single respondent recycling to save energy. 5.1.4. Common Recycled Material Paper, plastic, aluminium were the common recyclable materials in the questionnaire. Any other recyclable materials was recognized under the group referred to as ‘others’. Data was collected on common recycled materials around the school and the data presented in the table below. Answer Choices Responses (%) Responses (no.) Paper 42.86 15 Plastic 40.00 14 Aluminium 8.57 3 Other 2.86 1 Responses Multiple ethnicity / Other (please specify) 5.71 2 Total 35 Table 4: table showing the distribution responses from students concerning the types of recyclable wastes. The data collected indicated that students recognized a range of materials to be recyclable. Almost half of the respondents recognized waste paper as a recyclable material. Two-fifths of the respondents also recognized plastic waste as a recyclable material. Very few students recognized aluminium waste as recyclable. 5.2. Discussion 5.2.1. Reasons for Recycling The research established that students recognized the recycling is important in saving energy, preventing climatic changes and economic friendly. The findings are consistent with Waste Management Sustainability Report, (2014). However, there are many other reasons for recycling as discussed below. 5.2.2 Need for sustainable development According to Waste Management Sustainability Report, (2014), recycling provides an important opportunity for achieving sustainable development. Sustainable development requires that the efforts of the current generation to meet basic, secondary and tertiary needs do not jeopardize the future generations from meeting the same needs. Sustainable development also requires that intra-generational and intergenerational equity be upheld. The aesthetic value witnessed by the current generation should not be compromised to disadvantage the future generations. The idea of sustainable development has been prioritised among the millennium development goals. Waste recycling has the potential to protect natural resources over-exploitation through providing raw materials for industries (Miller et al., 2014). Waste products like plastic and scrap metals can be incorporated into a manufacturing sector to produce useful products like tins, cans, containers and plastic bags. In this case, recycling protects the natural environment in two main ways; the reducing volume of materials dumped and saving the natural sources of raw materials. In this case, the study established the viability and efficiency of recycling as an option for waste management and environmental quality management. 5.3 Health consideration. Waste products are discharged in the form of gasses, liquids and solid. All the types of wastes have been associated with some health complications to people and other components within the ecosystem (Anthouli et al., 2013). Effluents have been associated with waterborne diseases, marine pollution and threatening aquatic life in the freshwater ecosystems. Solid like the biomedical wastes and nuclear wastes are a health hazard. Wastes are also capable of causing physical harm to people. The study, therefore, attempts to identify the role and impact of recycling in preventing the health hazards caused by waste disposal. 5.4 Natural resource management. Natural resource management is one broad field that environmentalists recommend a multidisciplinary approach to tackle the situation. Human consumption and waste generation trends are alarming and call for action to be taken to reduce their impact on the environment. It is more challenging to control the situation with a human population rapidly increasing, as the resources remain fixed. Resource managers find it hard to establish a means to balance the rate at which natural resources are exploited and destroyed. Over-exploitation of resources for raw materials is real, and so is the over-reliance on the natural environment for disposal of waste products. The opportunities in waste recycling provide natural resource managers an easy time in conservation and preservation of natural resources (Anthouli et al., 2013). 5.5 Waste Management According to Australian Packaging Covenant (2013), many economies in the world struggle to deal with the menace of waste management. The issue of waste management has become so complex to handle especially in the developing countries where industrialization has taken off. Developing countries face new and more complex demands to manage wastes, such as nuclear wastes. Middle and developing economies struggle to tackle a wide range of wastes. Many management approaches have been recommended but the success still not realized. Waste management has been divided into many categories, which include solid waste management, liquid waste management, and gaseous waste management. The study, therefore, is important in establishing the contribution recycling has towards waste management. There are various challenges that emerge when recycling is adopted as a waste management strategy. For instance, recycling plastic to form new plastic products does not eliminate the challenge of managing plastic wastes (Australian Packaging Covenant, 2013). The recycling of plastics only postpones the menace that will emerge in future. Recycling plastic to produce fuel pellets can release noxious compounds during combustions that are a health hazard. The cost of production that involves use of waste material as the main raw material has been established to increase 6.0 Conclusion The study established that the concept of waste recycling needs public education and sensitization. Wastes for many years have choked the environment and threaten the Millennium Development Goal that foster for sustainability. Different types of wastes are responsible for a wide range of pollution ranging from water pollution, air pollution, and land pollution. Solid waste specifically has been a menace to many developing countries. Recycling is one important transformation in the material state to reduce the materials impact towards the environment. Recycling is a different practice from reusing in that it involves physical or chemical alteration of waste product. The physical and chemical alteration can result in new chemical products or new shapes of the same chemical composition as the waste. Recycling provides one important opportunity of realizing sustainable development since the environment is protected from exploitation and pollution. Recycling can help natural resource managers in conserving and preserving a wide range of natural resources. Despite the advantages, the practice of recycling has some loopholes. Recycling plastic wastes to new materials only postpones the menace of plastic wastes. However, the disadvantages are minimal. Therefore, the option of adopting recycling is viable and feasible. 7.0 References Anthouli et al. (2013). Opportunities and Barriers of Recycling in Balkan Countries: The Cases of Greece and Serbia. Retrieved from Australian Packaging covenant. (2013). An Introduction to China: Challenges and Opportunities for Australian Recycling. Retrieved from Chandak S.P. (2010). Trends in Solid Waste Management: Management: Issues, Issues, Challenges Challenges and Opportunities Opportunities. International Consultative Meeting on Expanding Waste Management Services in Developing Countries. Retrieved from Diaz et al. (2011). Compost Science and Technology. Elsevier. Ramachandra R.S. (2011). Resource Recovery and Recycling from Metallurgical Wastes. Elsevier. Letcher T.M & Vallero D. (2011).Waste: A Handbook for Management. Academic Press Miller et al. (2014). Challenges and Alternatives to Plastics Recycling in the Automotive Sector. Neil Peters-M. (2014). Electronics Recycling: A national perspective on challenges and successes. E-Cycle WI Stakeholder Meeting. Retrieved from Pichtel J (2014).Waste Management Practices: Municipal, Hazardous, and Industrial, Second Edition. CRC press. Ramos et al. (2012). Challenges and Opportunities of Waste Collection in Caracas: Sucre Municipality Case Study. Consilience: The Journal of Sustainable Development 7(1) pp115–129. Retrieved from Un-Habitat. (2010). Solid Waste Management in the World's Cities: Water and Sanitation in the World's Cities 2010. Routledge. Waste Management Sustainability Report, (2014). Creating a circular economy. Retrieved from Read More