Waste has a huge impact on the environment in a negative manner that harms society by an increase in pollution. Recycling is the answer to reduce the pollution created by the emission of harmful chemicals and greenhouse gases that are released from rubbish in landfill sites. Recycling takes less energy than the process of creating products from raw materials that cause rainforests to be affected. All of this helps in conserving the natural resources for the future.
Types of Recyclable Plastics
Plastic recycling, in particular, takes precedence and should be taken seriously. Plastics make a huge amount of overall waste and should be recycled to reduce landfill and conserve the environment. The need of the hour is to produce plastics from recycled materials this can approximately save 88% energy. Recycling one plastic bottle can power a computer for 25 minutes.
Plastic recycling, in particular, takes precedence and should be taken seriously. Plastics make a huge amount of overall waste and should be recycled to reduce landfill and conserve the environment. The need of the hour is to produce plastics from recycled materials this can approximately save 88% energy. Recycling one plastic bottle can power a computer for 25 minutes.
The Crisis
Australian recycling system is currently in crisis. The recycling process at home are properly recycled into waste and recyclable materials and so is the process of waste collection but the issue starts at the stage of processing the waste to create new products from it. Previously the waste segregated for recycling were sold to China, but since the excess of recyclables sold to China from all over the world. China has put import restriction on the recycled products since July of 2017 that has excluded 99% of the recyclables.
Plastic recycling steps
The first step to recycling plastic is collecting the plastic that are segregated at home or curb sides. The recycled materials are then taken to the recycling facility where the sorting is done based on different types of plastics. The plastics are then washed in before further processing is done, this helps to remove any impurities and remove any labels or adhesives. The next step is resizing that includes shredding and granulating into minute particles, this helps increase the surface areas that helps to process or reshape the plastics. Next step comprises of identification and separation of plastics, the small particles are tested here to know their quality and class. The final step is compounding the small particles into creating new products, this is done by smashing and melting into plastic pellets. The pellets can then be used in the production of other plastic products. The entire process of recycling would help in further production of products that produced using the recycled material and therefore, be more recyclable in nature.
The concern for us all
This is a huge cause of concern for Australia because the recyclable materials previously sold to China now need to be reused in Australia itself. Australia’s existing waste management infrastructure does not have the capacity to process all recyclable types of waste. Overall, 4.5m tonnes of packaging waste were produced last year, and 2.5m tonnes were recycled. Of the 320 000 tonnes of plastics collected for reprocessing, 145 700 tonnes (46 per cent) was repossessed in Australia and 174 300 tonnes (54 per cent) was exported for reprocessing. The UN predicts that under current consumption rates and waste management practices, approximately 12 billion tons of plastic waste will be dumped into landfills and leaked into the environment by 2050. The recycling system in Australia is at the peak of change with being rejected from China and now from Indonesia for the management of recycled waste. Australia has to recycle and reuse its waste and process it in the house since there are no other solution left. This according to many is a boon for the country since Australia will be able to create a circular economy when it has excelled in overcoming this issue.
Clearly, Australia needs to upgrade its technology. Encouragements and economic help from recycling companies will help to develop a viable domestic recycling industry at this time.
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