Because the plastic industry is so prominent in the United States, it is more important than ever to find unique recycling purposes. According to the National Association for PET Container Resources (NAPCOR), 5,764 million pounds of PET bottles and jars were available for recycling in 2013. About 85% of those bottles are used for food and beverages, or 4,899 million pounds. While this is a good start to increase recycling initiatives, it will take much more than that to increase recyclability among plastic products. Consider implementing these unique recycling methods into your daily routine.
Make recycling a part of your weekly grocery shopping trip
Many homeowners have the intention of recycling, but then never seem to get around to it. Instead of putting off recycling each week, make it a part of your weekly grocery shopping trip. You are forced to run to the grocery store every week, as your household items begin to run out. If you get into the habit of bringing your recycling materials with you, you will never forget to recycle. This same process works with placing your recycling out with the garbage pickup each week.
Purchase products that are already recycled
In addition to recycling your own plastic products, it is also useful to purchase previously recycled products. When you are shopping for your household items, look for the little recycled symbol on your products. The fact that the item was recycled does not change the quality or purpose of the product at all. It simply means that the company values environmental responsibility. When you purchase these items, you are supporting the company and their customized plastic bottles.
Find household uses for plastic products
You can also recycle plastic materials for household uses. Plastic is extremely durable and strong. Use your customized plastic bottles for storage or decoration. Do you need a pencil holder? Cut off the bottom of a large plastic cylinder. Do you need a place to store your keys and phones when at home? Use customized plastic bottles to create a catch all. With a little paint and design, you can even spruce it up and match your current home decorations. Plastic is also very customizable, meaning that you don?t have to keep the same blow mold design that you purchased the product in.
Reuse your plastic bags
Many retailers are attempting to reduce the amount of plastic waste by selling reusable grocery bags. The problem, however, is that many people forget to bring these reusable bags with them. Additionally, they cost money and the traditional family requires numerous bags for a single grocery shopping trip. Plastic is simply more durable and works better as grocery transportation. You can still use your preferred plastics, just attempt to reuse them with each trip. After you have put away all of your grocery items, place the plastic bags in a secure location in your vehicle. They will always be with you, even for that last minute, spur of the moment grocery shopping trip.
You will also find that reusing plastic bags for grocery shopping trips is useful. Plastics are stronger than any other type of bagging system. In fact, just 2 pounds of plastic can deliver 1,300 ounces, roughly 10 gallons, of a beverage such as juice, soda, or water. You would need approximately 3 pounds of aluminum to bring home the same amount of product, 8 pounds of steel, or over 40 pounds of glass. This level of strength is what makes customized plastic bottles so common among manufacturers.
Plastics are easily the most commonly used product in the United States. Americans use about 2.5 million plastic bottles every hour. This does not include plastic bottles, customized plastic bottles, or even gallon plastic jugs. Recycling of plastics is important for a healthy environment and these unique tips will help you increase the amount of plastics recycling that you do on a daily basis.