Recycling 101

One of the most successful schemes of anti-environmentalists is to portray the people who have concerns for the environment as being part of some kind of cult. The idea is that by doing this, it is possible to make everything an environmentalist says seem like some kind of apocalyptic vision. It is even more sophisticated than that, though, because we will often hear of the green movement pouring “propaganda” into the ears of unwitting children. When those kind of charges are flying around you can rest assured that mud will stick.

Benefits of Recycling

Nonetheless, it is not indoctrination to tell your child about the benefits of recycling. After all, these benefits are something that they will profit from later on in life, as they get older. If there is more done to ensure that the world is a cleaner, greener place to live, then there will be less threat to people’s health and lives. Whether or not you believe in global warming as a man-made phenomenon, there are very definite threats in our environment – of which pollution is a major one, and an issue which can be combated by recycling.

Yes you can Go Green

On the other end of the scale, even though older people will no longer be here when the children are in their old age, there is no reason why people who are advanced in years should feel that they have nothing to give to or gain from paying attention to green issues. One inevitably comes to think of leaving a legacy, and helping to bequeath a cleaner earth is just one small part of why an older person should recycle. The financial benefits of recycling are clear to everyone, including the person recycling – and not least of all the reasons, by recycling you can set a good example.

So many people change their cell phone almost as often as the weather changes. The main reason for this is that new phones with new features are being released all the time, and everyone wants to have the newest model, the coolest features and the best look. What few people think about is what they’ll do with the old one – and all too often it goes in the trash. How long do you think it takes for the component parts of a cell phone to break down in the landfills? Forever, that’s how long.

The Cell Phone Recycling Business is a wonderful concept. What they do is help you sell your old cell phone – often no more than a few months old – for a good cash lump sum. They see that it goes to a worthy cause to raise good money, and that it doesn’t go in the trash. The guide that you will receive tells you exactly what kind of harm disposed cell phones can do to the environment, and why you recycling your phone is the best thing for everyone – you, the recipient and the world in general.

There are some astonishing facts. Did you know that only one per cent of the cell phones in existence since 1995 have been recycled? Think how many cell phones are just sitting in landfills, completely failing to biodegrade and releasing chemicals which poison the environment. You can benefit from recycling your old cell phone, and so can millions of others.

The environmental issues which take up a lot of media space in this day and age have become surprisingly controversial in a short space of time. Barely a day goes by without someone claiming that the entire concept of environmental friendliness and green living is simply an excuse to tax us more, make us feel guilty and keep us from enjoying ourselves. This makes it difficult to give out a message of environmental positivity, because it is all too likely that the person listening to the message will reject it and accuse you of being a zealot.

Let’s be clear about this. Recycling household waste when you are finished with it is not the action of a zealot. It is common sense. It saves you money for a start, and in more ways than the immediate. Here are some simple facts:

• When you recycle an item for future use around the house, it’s one more thing you don’t have to buy.

• When you recycle goods by separating your garbage into recyclable and non-recyclable, you drive down the cost to the taxpayer of garbage disposal.

• When you buy products made from recycled material, you are supporting an industry which is more cost-effective than creating those materials from scratch.

Now, as much as people might claim that recycling is something for an obsessive green activist, one can agree that those three facts are true, and positive arguments for recycling. Isn’t that something worth sticking up for? Whenever anyone tells you that recycling makes no difference, let those three facts be your response.

Compost is a fantastic fertilizer for any garden, and it’s cheap and easy to make. Follow these five easy steps to your very own home-grown compost heap:

1. Find a suitable container. Ideally, this will be plastic and with a lid to keep rain out.

2. Fill the container. As a rule of thumb, anything that has ‘lived’ is suitable for a compost heap. Things like egg shells, leftover vegetables, withered plants, twigs, vegetable and fruit peelings all work well to create compost. Amass as many of these items as you can fit in to your container, then fill it to the brim and securely place the lid on top.

3. Place the bin on a hard surface, such as a patio or wooden boards over an area of grass. It is preferable to have the bin sitting on a solid surface rather than grass or soil, though not essential. Also bear in mind that compost heaps do not smell very nice, so try to place it strategically away from any noses (such as neighbors) it may offend.

4. Leave it be! Making compost from your food and household waste is, by and large, hands off. Let it sit and do its work. Add any extra fruit or vegetable peelings you may acquire to the top of the heap as it happens, and maybe once a month use a pitchfork to “turn” the compost over – just had a good rifle through to let new air in.

5. Use it! Compost takes between nine and 12 months to develop, and when its ready it will be a light, fragrant substance which you can spread throughout your garden for extra nutrition.