Can we talk about plastic pollution for a minute? I know, I know you’ve heard about it before , you know it is bad for the environment and you probably do your part by either recycling or avoiding single- use plastics. I however know that gathering and giving more information that will help us in the fight climate change and become more sustainable is very important. With that being said earlier this year I came across a news story saying the Greenpeace USA organization declared plastic recycling as a failed concept because only 5% of plastic waste was recycled last year. This is not good because recycling is viewed as a very important activity when it comes to protecting our environment and the fact that its failing is a problem and if we’re going to have any chance at fighting the climate crisis we need to review our recycling habits. In this article my mission is to educate as many people as possible about why recycling is falling short of expectation and give new tips on how we can recycle more and reduce the high level of plastic pollution in our environment.

Ideas on how to make recycling more effective

In order for recycling to stop being a failed concept we ought to do a deep dive and do a comprehensive review and look for ways to promote convenient ways so that as many people as possible can be able to recycle their plastics. We need new tips and ideas that will help us do exactly that. This tips include:

1. More financial investment

In order for recycling to have a bigger positive impact on the environment we need to increase the amount of financial support it gets. We need for our government administrations to start procuring more recycling items e.g. different trash cans for different trash items and take them to as many areas as possible in towns, residential areas and villages so the people there who many not be recycling their trash can start because they the items that encourage them to do so. This type of trash cans as per now are predominately found only on the main streets of major cities only, we need to take them closer to the people. We also need to continue bringing up more and more recycling centers around different sections of the country so as to make it possible to increase the amount of trash being recycled. This means the budget set aside for recycling purposes is important and needs to be increased so that we can be able to diversify recycling and make a more meaningful impact in fight on climate change.

2. Tackle the challenges facing the recycling process

When it comes to recycling the challenges it faces tend to fly under the radar and don’t get addressed appropriately and this is a major reason why it’s a failing concept as Greenpeace USA says. When we start dealing with the issues that affect our recycling process we immediately start making it more effective concept. This challenges include:

a.) There is lack of full implementation of laws that are meant to help it make it easy for people to recycle their plastics. Government administrations rarely make sure that environment laws are being followed and that perpetrators are punished also they don’t shed lime light on environmental laws and policies and how they help In environment conservation as they do for other laws for crimes like corruption, trading etc.

b.)There is high levels of misinformation or misleading information from companies telling the consumers that the products they sell are recyclable when in fact there are not e.g. a domino’s pizza box with a recycle me sticker when you cannot recycle a greasy pizza box.

c.)Little or no crackdown on companies, industries, or factories that practice green washing. Green washing in a nutshell is when a company falsely advertises how environmentally friendly their product actually is. This at times directly affects how recyclable the product in question really is. This therefore means that if more green washing is happening our recycling percentages will continue to decrease because more and more people will be buying unrecyclable products which end up being thrown out as trash and go on to pollute the environment.

d.) We have high levels of human over consumption and other bad habits. Recycling Is still not that much effective because many of us still embark in practices like buying single-use plastic which we release into the environment in high numbers. Over consumption is also a constant problem as we still buy more things than we actually need and later on throw them as trash. This two factors and more are big problems and need the good will of us as individuals that at times is unfortunately lacking.

3. Promote recycling through a different point of view

At times I think we need to move the mindset about recycling from being as a boring chore or task thus being viewed as many as a burden by some people, we need to show people that recycling can be a fun project. We can do this by coming up with recycling fun days’ time after time on our calendars where people come together do fun activities and inspire each other to become more environment conscious. Here they get to share ideas about recycling in a fun themed space. This will not only attract more people because of the fun activities but also enhance education because people get learn things they didn’t know before through the sharing of information and ideas. This events can take place at theme parks and carnivals.

4. Enhance space for nurturing ideas for better mechanisms and items for recycling.

Another big problem that we have when it comes to tackling the climate crisis is the lack of help that people who have innovative ideas and more convenient mechanisms get. A lot of people have thought of ways or inventions that would be a big boost making our recycling process more effective but they unfortunately lack things like access to the correct materials, funds or even expertise. We therefore need to create more and more occasions or settings that have the aim of bringing this kind of people to one place and listen to what they have come up with and offer them the necessary tools that help make their ideas a reality. They should also use this time to reward the people who have made positive impacts in the recycling field so as to inspire them to keep going. This will help us tap into the creative minds of as many people as possible and most importantly help us in recycling more because we would have new versions and mechanisms that would keep coming up that will help us do that.

NOT BELOW (N/B)

Just so you know the situation before last year weren’t great either because the stats show that every year the world produces about 438 million tonnes of plastic and about 79% of this ends up in landfills and nature. This tells us how important a full study on the challenges facing recycling is and how crucial tackling them will help reduce plastic pollution and protect our natural resources. We have already started witnessing the effects of lack of poor recycling methods in some areas around the world e.g. the Congo.

IN CONCLUSION

“The greatest threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will save it” Robert swan an author said this quote and he couldn’t have hit the nail on the head any better, we need to be the kind of people who understand that it’s our responsibility and no one else’s to take care of our environment and fight the climate crisis. It is upon us to make sure we are putting ourselves in the best position possible to fight climate change and recycling as you know is an important way of doing that. This is why to me this article is one of the most important ones I have ever written so far because I feel it sheds light on an issue not many people are aware of, having said that I implore you as a reader to not only spread this message to the people around you but also do your part and recycle as much as you can it goes a long way. As usual thanks for reading and l sincerely hope that you have gotten something useful from this article.

#recycling

#climate change

#climate crisis

#save the earth