Waste Materials that are Acceptable and Recyclable - Essay Example

Running Head: Recycling Recycling [Institute’s Recycling Introduction Every human being uses part of the earth’s resources everyday. Our world has grown a constant increase for more available resources. As our consumption increases, so does the production and reduction of our natural resources. Because of our everyday consumption, we produce waste daily as well; causing mountains of waste to develop in every city. Due to these piles of waste, different forms of pollution develop such as air pollution, water pollution, and noise pollution. Even before the twentieth century, humans have devised of a way to reuse certain resources to promote the sustainability of our world. The process we call recycling is the act of making used materials into other forms of materials that will benefit the end user and the environment we live in. Everyday we live on resources and produce waste after consumption. However, millions of individuals neglect these waste materials and do not realize their worth for other functions in our environment. So one question comes to our mind, why is recycling important? An old saying goes, “it’s easier said than done.” I have seen hundreds of world leaders talk about recycling, making our earth a greener place to live in etc. but they have never successfully campaigned for recycling. As soon as they newly elected officers sit on their desk, they forget about their vision and just ride along the power trip. For me, recycling is very essential to us, human beings, because it affects not only ourselves but also our future generations to come. We must preserve the beauty of our environment for our children to see as well. The thought in recycling is comparable to the thought of reincarnation in the Christian bible. As our human bodies decay and our souls depart, we are reborn into other creatures or species and form part of society in a different perspective. When we pass away, our spirit is reborn into a different being. We may be a dog, cat, or insect in the next life. Recycling does the same function through a cycle of waste to a new form of use in society. Science tries to explain the importance of recycling because our world does not have unlimited resources. By providing an alternative of producing new light from garbage, we are able to save nature and preserve it. We can compare recycling to religious practice because religion observes certain rituals and traditions to nurture their beings. Almost any church needs rituals and weekly collection (Ackerman, 1997). They collect resources and impose a “bringing back to life” of used resources such as office paper, batteries etc. However, religious practices not only practice the sense of recycling but also the sense of right and wrong and the awareness of our fragile earth. The United States started recycling for the intention of realizing worth from used items and not because of our volatile natural resources; however, nowadays, we recycle because we care for our environment. Laws imposed to promote the recycling of used resources for a sustainable future (Ackerman, 1997). Lately, the government has also provided incentives for families and citizens to recycle. These incentives raised the participation of participants from 7% to 90% (Carless, 1992). There has been strong evidence that recycling brings about negative effects to our ecosystem. Lets us discuss further as to the validity of this claim. Using the means of observation by researchers, recycling has also started taking its toll onto the ecosystem. Further in this paper, I will discuss various viewpoints made based on observations. We will see how recycling, a common practice nowadays, is slowly taking its toll onto our ecosystem. Viewpoints How can we prove that recycling produces negative effects to our ecosystem? We start by presenting two different viewpoints: a scientific perspective and a different perspective. Recycling produces a solution that focuses on changing our lifestyle and awareness rather than wasting away our time and resources. As the old saying goes, “You realize the value of something special once you have already lost it” (Ackerman, 1997). That is why on the 1970s, the United States federal policy makers started to address recycling and solid waste management later on enacting the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (Ackerman, 1997). However, how are these recovered resources marketable to the economy? Does the fact that most items purchased are recycled items discourage them? There are two viewpoints on the issue of recycling that must be justified. The first viewpoint: the harmful effects caused by recycling. By far, the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act only states those municipal units should come up with a waste management program to battle the high increase of waste collected everyday and promote proper segregation of waste (Carless, 1992). However, the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act turned out to be a major flop because it was not able to promote recycling but failed to provide guidelines and meet the normal standards that the citizens experienced. During the process of resource recovery, problems in information, jurisdiction, marketing, and implementation occurred. The local government unit was not able to fund the program sufficiently to provide participants with adequate information on the bill. Jurisdiction issues encountered by different states; a policy in one municipality was different from other municipalities. Americans have grown accustomed to recycling yet do not see the hazards of it. Through mismanagement of waste materials, soil and water pollution erupts. When chemicals left in containers seep through and mix with oil and the soil, soil pollution surfaces, which may affect the livelihood for those collection centers near farm or fishponds because of water pollution. However, some states have successfully carried out their recycling program. One good example would be Florida. Florida made a mandatory rule to recycle items such as plastic bottles, cans, paper, and plastic bags. Aside from the guidelines, they have also provided an incentive for early recovery of waste materials. Another example of poor governance would be the Philippines. The local government units have launched recycling programs and have often campaigned recycling but there has been minimal growth ever since its implementation. Scientists also propose another viewpoint that no harm can be done by recycling. This statement is true if every law abiding citizen would practice proper recycling. If done the wrong way, negative effects may surface. Recycling has brought about an alternative solution for our not only environment but manufacturers as well. Through recycled products, manufacturers can produce items using the recycled materials such as bricks, tissues, papers etc. Aside from the benefit to manufacturers, it has also opened its gates to employment opportunities to the unemployed labor force (Weinberg, Pellow, & Schnaiberg, 2000). The shift from office skilled personnel moved to the opportunities provided by the various factories that took advantage of the recycling process. Many executives turned in their clean jobs for the dirtier and rewarding job. An example would be in the early 1980s that included a social class conflict and culture in America. The lower classmen resorted to dumping waste in the streets while the upper classmen were able to mobilize their garbage off the streets. Politics, ecosystem, and culture were three main determinants of the progress of recycling in early America. Politicians refurbished resource conservation through its passing on of bills that will help protect our ecosystem while people grew into a sense of practice of recycle not only for the means of the environment but for incentives received as well. Conclusion Recycling is an alternate solution that has brought wonders to our ecosystem. Like in the movie “2012,” we learn to take care of our environment more. We must not neglect resources that are available at hand. We must learn to segregate waste by various categories properly for more efficient recycling. My stand on the issue of recycling is as firm as the mountains. I believe in the goodness that recycling has brought about to humankind. Yes, energy cannot be recycled but almost every other resource found on earth can be recycled. Through decomposition of waste materials, a different form of energy results from the production of methane gas. The increase of recovered used papers brought about the increase of recycled papers that were reusable and good as new. The conversion of automotive parts into other functional items and the conversion of used paper into brand new recycled paper. When it comes to the various viewpoints, I believe that recycling is an ongoing process that needs constant supervision. The lack of investment for research and development could prove to be a hindrance to the growth of recycling. If our country would be like Japan, which researched on ways to recycle trash into fuel, then we would make waste more efficient for our earth to use. For example, if each neighborhood cooperates with proper segregation of waste materials, production of new resources shall increase. Used soda cans should separate from used papers so the used papers would not be spoiled and used for other good quality paper. Aluminum cans would be very effective in the production of other types of tin products. Therefore, I may conclude that recycling can bring about negative effects to our ecosystem if recycling is performed improperly. Recommended Plan of Action As I have gone through all the research data that I have gathered, I believe that weekly waste management groups that promote recycling, collect waste, and give back new recycled items and cash rewards would be a very feasible activity. I can initiate this plan of action but will require many participants to successfully implement this campaign. I believe that this action plan is effective because this activity that targets the youth and young professionals who can actively participate in the drive for zero waste. This group would be composed of mostly volunteers from non-profit organizations and universities. A formed group will undergo a 2-week period of training that will be provided by the volunteers. This training will be all about the various waste materials that are acceptable and recyclable. Funding of this project will come from donations that we will solicit from individuals. Materials such as used office papers, magazines, newspapers, batteries, tires, aluminum cans, plastic bottles, plastic bags, mobile phones, printers and small hardware and automotive parts. After the training, the next step would be to collaborate with local municipalities and hold a two-month weekly waste management fair for the local municipality. This would not only increase the awareness of the participants but also increase their interest and participation in recycling. Sponsorships shall fund the weekly exchange of resources to cash or other newly recycled resources. As soon as a fair ends in each location, we would also invite a speaker to host a talk on our earth as it is and how recycling has helped improve our world. Exposure to college campuses would also increase the purpose of the waste management fair. I, myself, have attended a waste management fair in one campus and have found it very enlightening. I awoke my awareness for recycling and brought recycling to a deeper level of understanding. References Ackerman, Frank. (1997). Why Do We Recycle: Markets, Values, and Public Policy. Island Press. Carless, Jennifer. (1992). Taking Out the Trash: A No-nonse Guide to Recycling. Island Press. McKinney, Roland. (1995). Technology of Paper Recycling. Springer. Weinberg, A., Pellow, D., & Schnaiberg, A. (2000). Urban Recycling and the Search for Sustainable Community Development. Princeton University Press. Zimring, Carl A. (2005). Cash for Your Trash. Rutgers University Press. Read More