Questions like “Is recycling worth it?” and “How beneficial is recycling for real?” often surface on question and answer search engines such as Quora.
It seems that ‘recycling’ has a diverse fan base. Some see recycling as the answer (like we do), and others have questions.
Recycling something may not be worth it if it doesn't have a substantially lower impact on the environment than discarding it and/or if it costs a fortune.
Let's use an example of a straw to paint the picture. If we want to remain sustainable while avoiding the hassle of recycling the straws, they'll have to be biodegradable, made of bamboo, paper, or even better – pasta. If our straws are going to be plastic (or non-biodegradable), then we could also check the options for reducing the usage of straws at first and reusing the rest if possible, as per the five Rs of the waste hierarchy: refuse, reduce, reuse, repurpose and recycle.
If the price is a constraint, then we'd be able to cut costs by using plastic straws and instead invest more resources in recycling them. Or we could just dump the straws at the curb-side.
But, unlike straws used in margaritas, composites are used in airplanes and wind turbine rotor blades. Dare we use paper in planes?
Read the full feature article in the MAG Online Library here.
