My dad was just asking me about this stuff on Sunday, so I thought I would share.
Recycling takes a LOT of energy and resources. The best thing that you can do is choose products that don't use a lot of packaging and when you can reuse something before you choose to recycle. By all means, recycling is a better option than throwing it our overflowing landfills, however, reusing or not using at all is always the best option.
There are little things about recycling though that many people DON'T know. Not all plastics can be recycled. Check with your local garbage/recycling center to see what is able to be recycled in your area. We are lucky in Geneva. They recycle numbers 1,2,3 & 5. However, did you know that they won't recycle numbers 1, 2, & 5 if the lid is on?! Make sure you throw the lids away before putting the bottle into your recycling. They just won't take the time or energy to remove the lid to recycle the bottle. It is also EXTREMELY helpful if you can completely rinse everything you recycle. Everything does go thru a cleaning process prior to being recycled, but resources are wasted if there is food still stuck on the plastics. Aluminum foil is extremely easy to recycle! But of course, reuse first.
Grocery bags are horrendous! Paper cuts down trees, and plastics are nasty! Take them back to the store to recycle them. Better yet, as we do in our house, don't use them at all. I have 5 Chicco bags that I keep in the car all the time. I even use them at Target!
Help support companies like Preserve. They use all recycled plastic number 5 to make their products. (Toothbrushes, mixing bowls, cutting boards, razors, etc.)
Please, please, please recycle. But more than that, be conscious again of the products you are buying, how they are packaged, and what you can reuse before recycling! You don't really need to put your apples in a plastic bag at the grocery store.
Happy shopping, and don't forget that you are VOTING every time you shop!
