Build a sustainable tomorrow
In South Africa, only 10% of waste is recycled. The other 90% is thrown into landfills and if we continue to throw all our waste into landfills, we will soon run out of space. This shows that recycling is not just a nice thing to do – it is essential. If we want a greener future, we need to get everyone involved in recycling. Instead of buying and then throwing away, as most of us do, we need to extend the life of things we buy by recycling, reusing, repairing and sharing.
The economic benefits of recycling
It’s not just about the environment. Recycling can boost local economies in different ways, for example:
- Creating jobs: Recycling operations often involve collecting, sorting and processing materials, which can provide jobs for local communities.
- Supply opportunities: Local businesses can supply recycled materials to manufacturers. This reduces the need to import raw materials and keeps the economic benefits within the community.
- New business ideas: Community members can use recycled materials to create products like crafts, furniture or building materials.
- New marketing ideas: By using recycled materials, local businesses can market themselves as eco-friendly, which helps them grow and at the same time promotes environmental responsibility.
- Reducing costs: Using locally recycled materials may be cheaper than importing new materials. This helps small businesses stay competitive.
Other benefits of recycling
Recycling has many more benefits. These include:
- Keeping our environment healthier: This means reusing old materials to make new products instead of taking fresh, raw materials from nature. In other words, we don’t have to cut down as many trees, use up as much water, or dig for as many minerals. By recycling, we help protect forests, save water, and preserve natural resources,
- Lowering energy use: It generally takes less energy to recycle materials than to make new ones. For example, recycling aluminium saves up to 95% of the energy needed to produce it from scratch.
- Promoting sustainable practices: Recycling encourages everyone to be more responsible and take care of the environment.
How to sort waste
Here are some simple tips for sorting your recyclables:
Know what can be recycled, and separate your recyclables into different categories by giving each one its own bag or bin.
Common recyclable items include:
- Paper and cardboard
- Plastics, mainly those marked PET (water bottles) or HDPV (plastic bags)
- Metals (tin cans)
- Glass (clear, green and brown bottles)
- Separate items that can and can’t be recycled: Items that can’t be recycled, such as greasy pizza boxes, should go in the rubbish bin.
- Clean and dry your items: Rinse out food containers before placing them in the recycling bin. Leftover food or liquids can ruin the recycling process.
- Be careful: Don’t throw things in your recycling bin just because you hope they can be recycled. This can lead to contamination and make recycling harder.
Why it’s important to sort recyclables correctly
Sorting recyclables the right way has many benefits. For example:
- When materials are properly sorted, recycling centres can process them faster, which saves time and money.
- Sorting correctly reduces the amount of waste that ends up in landfills and so cuts down on pollution and keeps our environment healthier.
