Why Recycling Should Be Your Number One New Years Resolution for 2010

With the New Year only just beginning, many people have made or are making their New Years resolutions for the year ahead, but how many of them will be as important as helping to save the world?

With landfills in the UK increasingly getting more and more full, recycling should be a priority for all of us living in this country, as the more products we can recycle, the less we need the landfills and the more we help to save world from the ever increasing threat of climate change.

Recycling is the process of taking old materials and making them into new, which means the product can theoretically have an unlimited lifespan, or, definitely used more than once or for more than one purpose once used.

Recyclable materials include many kinds of materials, including –

• Glass
• Paper
• Metal
• Plastic
• Textiles
• Clothes
• Electronics

Normally, when you recycle a product it will not be used for the same reason again, it will normally be turned into something different. This is due to the complexities or cost of making the same product again, but when you recycle it for a different use, that is when recycling really comes into its strong front, as this is not only cost effective but also has a massive green impact.

The UK does seem to be quite behind its neighbouring countries when it comes to recycling. According to a DEFRA survey back in 2004, out of 30.5 millions tonnes of waste that was produced in the UK, only 17% was collected for recycling. Some other European countries at the time were comparing to well over 50% of their collected waste being recycled, which is a massive difference.

As the worlds population continues to grow, the focus of importance on recycling become even more important, because we are running out of space with regards to landfills and the impact of reusing materials means there is less strain on the existing stock of raw materials the world currently has.

Many people are often disheartened with recycling because of the amount of time they think it will take. All UK councils now provide some sort of recycling program, meaning you do not have to visit your local tip to recycle anymore, you can do it from the comfort of your own home. If more people in the UK begin to recycle, the impact will be felt for many years to come, as if every generation becomes used to the fact that recycling is the norm, then more and more people will do it.

Home and Office recycling bins are a fantastic way of using recycled products to collect even more recycled products, with some of these bins being used for the commercial and domestic market, but all service the same purpose, to make sure that all of the population in the UK start recycling and help to have a positive impact on the environment, not only in the UK, but for the World.