“Recycling What’s In It For Me?” Presented by: Toni M. Henry July 19, 2009 PUBH 6165

What is Waste? U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (2009). Waste: Basic information hazardous waste, non-hazardous waste. Retrieved July 31, 2009, from Waste consists of municipal solid waste, hazardous waste and non hazardous waste. Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) is basically the trash that is collected from our individual homes, MSW should consist of only non- hazardous materials (EPA, 2009) Hazardous waste is that is unhealthy for humans and the environment, in addition hazardous waste is considered “ignitable, reactive, corrosive or toxic” (EPA, 2009). Non-hazardous waste consist of household and industry garbage it is not considered dangerous to human health or the environment (EPA, 2009).

Waste Austin, J., Hatfield, D.B., Grindle, A.C., & Bailey, J.S. (1993). Increasing recycling in office environments: The effects of specific, informative cues. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 26(2), Medley, K.E., Zhou, Y., & Condon, D. (2006). Shared learning: feminist student research on household reuse behavior. The Journal of Geography,105, 209 – 215. Solid waste is a major environmental problem worldwide (Medley, Zhou & Condon, 2006). In 2003 the United States produced 236 millions pounds of waste (Medley, Zhou, & Condon, 2006). In addition it is estimated that each American produces one ton of waste individually (Austin, Hatfield, Grindle & Bailey, 1993).

What Is A Landfill?

What Happens if We Don’t Recycle? Austin, J., Hatfield, D.B., Grindle, A.C., & Bailey, J.S. (1993). Increasing recycling in office environments: The effects of specific, informative cues. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 26(2), If we do not recycle items that can be recycled, those items will end up in a landfill. In fact it is estimated that approximately 80 percent of our waste that ends up in a landfill could be recycled (Austin, Hatfield, Grindle & Bailey, 1993).

What Is Recycling ? Recycling is the processing of previously used items, that would otherwise become waste in a landfill, into a new resource (EPA, 2009). U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (2009). Wastes-resource conservation-reduce, reuse,recycle. Retrieved July 7, 2009, from,

What Can We Recycle? Headwaterrecycle.com.(n.d.). Why recycle? Retrieved July 8, 2009, from, Aluminum Glass Paper Plastic Steel Batteries Food

How Can We Recycle? Knussen, C., & Yule, F. (2008). “I’m not in the habit of recycling”: The role of habitual behavior in the disposal of household waste. Environment and Behavior, 40(5), Recycling does require some effort, but once you are in the habit of doing so the process becomes routine and a part of your daily life. The process of recycling includes sorting, washing, sorting and disposing of the things that you have saved to recycle (Knussen & Yule, 2008).

Composting U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (2008). Basic Information: Composting. Retrieved July, 31, 2009, from Composting is the process of combining organic materials together to form a soil that can be used in gardens and other industry (EPA, 2008).

What Can & Can’t be Composted U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (2008). Basic information: Composting. Retrieved July, 31, 2009, from Organic materials such as grass, leaves, fruits and even lint from a dryer are items that are suitable for composting, however items such as milk, cheese, and pet wastes are not suitable for composting (EPA, 2008).

What Are The Benefits of Recycling? Resourceful Schools(n.d.). Fun facts about recycling. Retrieved July 7, 2009, from There are many benefits of recycling some of the benefits are it saves money, energy and landfill space, in addition to creating jobs and conserving our natural resources (Resourcefulschools.org).

Reasons For Not Recycling Knussen, C., & Yule, F. (2008). “I’m not in the habit of recycling”: The role of habitual behavior in the disposal of household waste. Environment and Behavior, 40(5), Recycle center is not convenient Community does not have a recycling program Don’t believe that it will make a difference

What Can Be Made From Recycled Products? Resourceful Schools(n.d.). Fun facts about recycling. Retrieved July 7, 2009, from Newspapers T-Shirts Boxes Magazines Textbooks Greeting Cards Flooring Coffee Filters

Mount Trashmore Parks and Recreation Mount Trashmore Park. Retrieved July 9, 2009, from Mount Trashmore in Virginia Beach, Virginia is an excellent example of recycling. Mount Trashmore was once a landfill that has been converted into a thriving park which has walking trails, a Mountain Trail, playgrounds, a basketball court, volley ball courts and a skate park. This landfill turned park has over 1 million visitors each year.

So What’s In It For Me? In many states you can collect your own plastic bottles and aluminum products and turn them in for cash. If you begin to do this you can save that money to buy that new game or outfit that your parents are refusing to buy.

Want More Information? National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (2008, September). NIEHS Kids Pages: reduce, reuse, and recycle. Retrieved July 19, 2009, from Recycling facts for kids. (n.d.). Retrieved July 18, 2009, from The Consumer Recycling Guide: Commonly recycled materials (n.d.). Retrieved July 18, 2009, from HowToCompost.org (2006). Retrieved July 31, 2009, from United States Environmental Protection Agency (1994, January). How to start a recycling collection program. Retrieved July 18, 2009, from

Conclusion Recycling is beneficial to our environment because it allows us to get more use out of products. By recycling we create more jobs for people in our communities and we are saving our precious resources for generations to come.

References Austin, J., Hatfield, D.B., Grindle, A.C., & Bailey, J.S. (1993). Increasing recycling in office environments: The effects of specific, Informative cues. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 26(2), Energy Information Administration (2006). Energy Kids Page. Energy and waste: Land filling. Retrieved July 31, 2009, from Headwaterrecycle.com.(n.d.). Why recycle? Retrieved July 8, 2009, from, Knussen, C., & Yule, F. (2008). “I’m not in the habit of recycling” The role of habitual behavior in the disposal of household waste. Environment and Behavior, 40(5), Retrieved July 30, 2009, from Medley, K.E., Zhou, Y., & Condon, D. (2006). Shared learning: Feminist student research on household reuse behavior. The Journal of Geography, 105, 209 – 215. Ojala, M. (2008). Recycling and ambivalence quantitative and qualitative analyses of household recycling among young adults. Environment and Behavior, 40(6), , Retrieved July 30, 2009, from

References Parks and Recreation Mount Trashmore Park.(n.d.). Retrieved July 9, 2009, from Resourceful Schools.(n.d.). Fun facts to know and share. Retrieved July 7, 2009, from U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (2009). Wastes-resource conservation- reduce, reuse, recycle. Retrieved July 7, 2009, from, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (2008). Wastes-non hazardous waste- municipal solid waste. Landfills. Retrieved July 28, 2009, from, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (2008). Wastes-resource conservation- reduce, reuse, recycle: Composting. Retrieved July 31, 2009, from