RECYCLE CANS

admin on 24 Ιανουαρίου 2019

ALUMINUM CANS

On average, Americans drink one beverage from an aluminum can every day.But we recycle just over 49% of the cans we use.

Since the cans are 100% recyclable, we could drastically reduce the energy needed to produce brand new cans simply by recycling our empties.

An aluminum can is able to be returned to the shelf, as a new can, as quickly as 60 days after it’s put into your recycling container.

Coast-to-coast, there are about 10,000 locations that buy aluminum, making it easy for Americans to redeem their used beverage cans for cash. In fact, recycling aluminum cans is a $1 billion/year industry in this country.

Recycling one aluminum can saves enough energy to run a television for three hours.

A Day in the Life of a Recycled Can

  1. Customer takes can to a recycling center or puts it into a recycling bin.
  2. The can is transported to a processing facility.
  3. A giant magnet lifts out cans that are made of metals such steel. Since aluminum cans aren’t magnetic, they drop down to a conveyor belt and are gathered.
  4. The aluminum is shredded, washed and turned into aluminum chips.
  5. The chips are melted in a large furnace.
  6. The melted aluminum is poured into molds called “ingots.”
  7. The ingots are taken to a factory where they’re melted into rolls of thin, flat sheets.
  8. From the sheets, manufacturers make new products, including new beverage cans, pie pans, license plate frames, and aluminum foil.
  9. Beverage companies fill the cans and deliver them to grocery stores for customers to purchase.
  10. Customers take used cans to a recycling center and the process starts all over again.

RECYCLE PLASTIC

admin on 24 Ιανουαρίου 2019

MAKE SURE IT’S CLEAN!

Does that plastic lunch container still have yesterday’s pizza in it? Don’t recycle it until it’s clean!

One dirty product, or one with food waste still in it, can contaminate an entire bale, containing thousands of pounds of collected plastics.

This can cause thousands of recyclable items to go to a landfill instead of being recycled.

Cleanliness is essential.

WHAT’S ACCEPTED?

Plastics come in a variety of shapes, colors and chemical formulations – all with different recycling needs. The code number does not mean the plastic can be recycled. It is simply a way to identify the resin, or plastic type.

How can you tell what kinds of plastic to put into your recycling bin? The code number on the bottom of your product is not a reliable indicator of whether something can get recycled. Recycle by shape!

Bottles, jars, and jugs – is the best way to know what is accepted.

LEARN ABOUT RECYCLING PLASTICS

Remember to keep dirty containers out of your recycling bin. One partially empty soda bottle in a bale of plastic can spoil the whole load.

Plastic grocery and produce sacks are commonly placed in recycle bins. These bags can shut down an entire recycling plant and should be kept out of our recycling bin. Plastic bags are often collected in barrels at grocery stores, and usually end up as plastic lumber.

PET plastic is the most common material used for single-use bottled beverages, because it is inexpensive, lightweight, unbreakable and easy to recycle. It takes more than 1.5 million barrels of oil to produce a year’s supply of water bottles. That’s enough oil to fuel 100,000 cars for a year.