ecycling is the process of converting trash into something that can be used again. This process is an alternative to disposal. Recycling reduces the amount of trash sent to landfills and incinerators.
Recycling begins when you separate recyclable items from your trash. Newspapers, plastic bottles, glass containers, and aluminum and metal cans are the most commonly recycled household items. But some communities recycle cardboard, advertising mail, phone books, and many other items as well.
Once collected, recyclable items go to a materials-recovery facility. There the items are sorted further (for example, tin cans are separated from aluminum cans) and sold to companies that will reprocess the items into new products or packaging. Collecting recyclables can be costly for communities: it requires special trucks, extra drivers, and investments in materials-recovery facilities. The prices that recyclables sell for may not cover the collection costs.
The price that communities can get for recyclables depends on the demand for the recycled products. Companies have little incentive for making products if no one will buy them.
Many communities believe that the benefits of recycling outweigh the drawbacks and that recycling has an important part to play in the way we manage our trash. Some waste-management experts believe that as much as two-thirds of the trash we generate could be recycled. A number of communities are well on the way to meeting that goal.