Plastic recycling is considered to be the most effective solution in decreasing plastic waste in the environment. Plastic waste is considered to be the main cause of water and soil pollution and therefore the recycling process is of great importance. This process, by which breaking down the scrap and waste plastics to recover useful materials, requires less energy to manufacture new plastic than creating original plastic from scratch. New fibres are created after numerous chemical structures and resins in the plastic are melted down.

From plastic bottles to packaging, plastic is a part of our daily lives and used in so many different products. Many of us do not give a second thought about what happens to the plastic we recycle and have no idea about the things made from recycled plastics. Some everyday items made from plastic include: Television remote controllers and video game systems controllers Insulating plastic that covers all appliance wires and connections Bottled water and milk containers etc…

Harmful effects of plastic in the environment: Petroleum is used in production of plastic bags which causes pollution. Some plastic materials are non-biodegradable. Plastic bag litter is unsightly when scattered throughout the environment.

Benefits of recycling plastic to environment: Landfills can be recovered: One of the biggest problems being faced today is the fact that there are fewer places to dump plastic waste (landfills) due to them being almost full. An effective solution for this is to go for recycling. Leads to oil conservation: Compared to making new, original plastic, plastic recycling helps in saving 4 barrels of oil.

The following is an illustration of what happens to recycled plastic milk jugs. The jugs are separated first, from other plastics and then cleaned and ground down. The jugs are then melted down and go through an extruder that moulds them into rectangular shapes. The texture of this recycled plastic when it comes out of the extruder is very much like play dough. This plastic ‘dough’ is then sent through a cooling chamber, with jets of water used to make sure the plastic does not rise like bread dough, before being air-dried and sent through for a second time. This plastic lumber can then be made into many different products.

Though this process has many advantages, it is a complicated process. The sorting of plastics according to colour and type etc can be more tedious and is not as profitable as the materials to start with are worth less. Even though there are these negatives, people should still be encouraged to recycle plastics as the advantages far outweigh them.

If you found this article about plastic recycling useful, you may be interested in Max Marston’s other article about paper recycling found here – http://remade.info/2010/07/16/recycling-isnt-just-for-glass-and-plastic-recycle-paper-too/

Visit http://www.wastecare.co.uk/ for all your waste management needs, including paper, plastic and metal recycling