Everything You Need to Know about Waste Disposal and Recycling

There are a few things that have to be recycled, including car batteries, propane tanks, aerosol cans, and oil-based containers. There are also specific times of the year when particular items should always be recycled, including batteries. The lesson here is to be careful about precisely what goes into your curbside trash can; you don’t want to contaminate the rest of your trash with an item that must be thrown into the recycling bin.

Mandatory Recycling

Many programs aren’t that tough, but mandatory recycling requirements are much more complicated in some regions of the country. In some places, you have to sort your recyclables by color and texture. You can go even further by separating their glass from their paper from their metal. The only problem with the system is figuring out what goes in which bin.

Even if you don’t live in a mandatory recycling area, it is always better to recycle as much as possible. Use a paper shredder to reduce the amount of paper you throw away. Recycling paper, plastic, and aluminum helps conserve resources and energy.

The Danger Of Heavy Metals

Many products for home or personal use are made with lead, mercury, or other heavy metals. These heavy metals are not easily broken down by natural cycles and contaminate the soil and water table. Paper, plastic, and glass all take hundreds of years to break down — instead of tossing these items into the garbage bin, please recycle them!

Everything Else

Your waste and recycling bins are the only places in the home where you can actually see how much and what kind of waste is produced. Look at your trash and recycling bins and ask: “What is in my bins?” Most containers in the home are hidden when full, so we forget about them. Look in your bins. What bulk items, such as paper towel rolls, toilet paper rolls, and packaging, can be recycled? When is your next collection day? Make a plan to reduce the amount of waste before it accumulates.

Composting provides an earth-friendly way to handle food waste. If you enjoy gardening or just have a yard, consider composting. With this simple composter, you’ll be able to create nutrient-rich compost for your ornamental garden, feeding your lawn, trees, and bushes.

Waste disposal is a modern problem that will only become worse with time. We started looking for alternatives once we learned that we could not continue to bury our trash in landfills without damaging our environment and depleting our natural resources. Composting and recycling are two fantastic ways to keep waste out of landfills and turn it into valuable resources.