Today my company has a presentation on recycling from our recycling company.\u00a0 It’s part customer education and part customer relationship.\u00a0 I learned many interesting fact about recycling, not just for environmental protection but also understand recycling as a business.\u00a0 I won a green company logo hat for asking the best question!<\/p>\n
I always complain recycling is too much work, you have sort the bottoms and paper into different recycling bin.\u00a0 It is easier to throw them into the garbage.\u00a0 It turns out in some cities, they already have single stream recycling.\u00a0 People put everything recyclable into the blue box, the recycling company will use machine to sort out different material.\u00a0 The recycling rate goes up a lot because it is much more convenient.\u00a0 A realistic goal is recycle over 70% of domestic waste.\u00a0 Almost every garbage we produce is recyclable, maybe except baby diapers and Styrofoam cups. \u00a0 No one want to recycle baby diapers is obviously.\u00a0 Styrofoam cup is non biodegradable and it’s too light, so it does not justify the recycling cost.<\/p>\n
Well, actually for those who just throw away things to the garbage should not feel too guilty for our deeds.\u00a0 The garbage goes to landfill, but that’s not the end of the story.\u00a0 The guy from recycling company estimate within the next 50 years, technology will be available to recycle materials from old landfill.\u00a0 Old landfill will turns into a material gold mine.\u00a0 Therefore, don’t burn the garbage, just dump them to the landfill and wait for the time to come.<\/p>\n
I am the one in the company use most paper because I like read a hard copy of all my documents and I am too lazy to wash my own coffee mug.\u00a0 It turns out I am not very environmental unfriendly after all.\u00a0 Paper is a very recyclable product.\u00a0 A printer paper can recycle almost 100% over 20 times.\u00a0 Used paper can made into cardboard boxes.\u00a0 The yellower the cardboard box is, the more time the fiber is recycled.\u00a0 At the end of the life time, the paper fiber is all broken up and degrade into residues that goes to landfill.\u00a0 Since paper fiber is very biodegradable, it decompose fairly soon and does not harm the environment.\u00a0 Paper cup is 100% recyclable as long as they go back to the green box.<\/p>\n
I asked the best question in the presentation.\u00a0 The presenter talked about it is hard to find site to build recycling facilities, because no one want to built a garbage dump at their backyard.\u00a0 I asked why don’t we outsource recycling to third world countries?\u00a0 Ship over the garbage and let them do the dirty work and ship us back the clean recycled material.\u00a0 Actually they are already doing it but China is tightening the law and forbid the import untreated garbage.\u00a0 I commented that we should go to poorer countries in Africa.\u00a0 Other than foreign issues, there are political reason for the government not to outsource recycling.\u00a0 Recycling create lots of jobs and it’s a big business.\u00a0 Although they are garbage jobs, but the government don’t want to upset the unions by moving the jobs overseas.\u00a0 My friends are ealous of me getting the hat and said it is unfair for the most un-environmental person in the company to get the eco-friendly hat!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Today my company has a presentation on recycling from our recycling company.\u00a0 It’s part customer education and part customer relationship.\u00a0 I learned many interesting fact about recycling, not just for environmental protection but also understand recycling as a business.\u00a0 I won a green company logo hat for asking the best question! I always complain recycling … Continue reading Recycling 101<\/span>