How Does Recycling Paper & Plastic Help the Air?
In 2008, the U.S. generated 250 million tons of trash and recycled about 55 percent of the paper and 7 percent of the plastics. These efforts resulted in significant reductions in air pollutants and greenhouse gas emissions.
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Reduced Energy Use
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Recycling reduces air pollutants that contribute to smog by reducing the amount of energy used to produce new products, since fossil-fuel generation is a cause of air pollution. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), paper and plastic recycling saved approximately 700 trillion British thermal units (Btu) of energy in 2008, equivalent to about 5.5 billion gallons of gasoline.
Greenhouse Gas Emissions
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The EPA estimates that in 2008, recycling paper and plastics reduced emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2), the primary greenhouse gas, by approximately 98 million metric tons, which is equivalent to the greenhouse gas emissions from about 18 million cars.
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Carbon Sequestration
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Trees remove carbon from the atmosphere, and when forests are cut down to produce paper, the carbon is released, increasing greenhouse gas emissions. Paper recycling reduces the need to produce paper from trees, thus significantly reducing this impact.
Methane Gas
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Recycling reduces the amount of materials sent to landfills. Landfills release methane gas, a significant contributor to climate change.
Incineration
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Recycling reduces the need to incinerate trash, which produces air pollutants.
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References
- Photo Credit Image by Flickr.com, courtesy of Nicole Makauskas
