80% of that waste is recyclable paper products!
Recycling one aluminum can saves enough energy to run a TV for three hours. An aluminum can that is thrown away will still be a can 500 years from now!
Each of us uses approximately one 100-foot-tall Douglas fir tree in paper and wood products per year.
Each ton (2200 pounds) of recycled paper can save 17 trees, 380 gallons of oil, three cubic yards of landfill space, 400 kilowatts of energy, and 7000 gallons of water!
Rainforests are being cut down at the rate of 100 acres per minute.
The 17 trees saved by recycling one ton of paper can absorb a total of 250 pounds of carbon dioxide out of the air each year.
Plastics take about 400 years to break down in a landfill!
Recycling plastic saves twice as much energy as burning it in an incinerator.
A modern glass bottle would take 4000 years or more to decompose!
Glass never wears out — it can be recycled forever. We save over a ton of resources for every ton of glass recycled — 1,330 pounds of sand, 433 pounds of soda ash, 433 pounds of limestone, and 151 pounds of feldspar.
70% more energy is required to make paper from raw materials compared with recycling paper.
The energy saved from recycling one glass bottle can run a 100-watt light bulb for four hours.