Recycling For Life and Sustainability

Hello my friends, family, and fellow humanists, welcome back to another edition of The Quiet Mouse Strikes Back!! I am your blog host Quiet Mouse and today I want to talk about recycling.
First lets define and describe what exactly it IS and what it MEANS to recycle.

Recycling is processing used materials (waste) into new products to prevent waste of potentially useful materials, reduce the consumption of fresh raw materials, reduce energy usage, reduce air pollution (from incineration) and water pollution (from landfilling) by reducing the need for "conventional" waste disposal, and lower greenhouse gas emissions as compared to virgin production.^[1][2] Recycling is a key component of modern waste reduction and is the third component of the "Reduce, Reuse, Recycle" waste hierarchy.

Recyclable materials include many kinds of glass, paper, metal, plastic, textiles, and electronics. Although similar in effect, the composting or other reuse of biodegradable waste – such as food or garden waste – is not typically considered recycling.^[2] Materials to be recycled are either brought to a collection center or picked up from the curbside, then sorted, cleaned, and reprocessed into new materials bound for manufacturing.

Here is where I see a lot of the problem for recycling... not ENOUGH people a) have access to recycle in their communities b) not enough people KNOW what items are capable of being recycled c) Not enough businesses and corporations are leading the way with recycling programs

Now I am going to talk about each one of these points that I have brought up mentioned above.

A) Communities are NOT getting enough involvement in the recycling process. There ARE many residential neighborhoods that offer programs to come and get your cans and bottles, paper, etc... BUT... that is NOT good ENOUGH! This is especially true for those who live in the more URBAN settings of large cities where MORE people live in apartments. Apartment dwellers do NOT have the SAME access to the benefits of recycling as their peers who live in houses. This NEEDS to change immediately my friends!! There IS a way to save the time for humanity on this planet, but it requires ALL OF US working TOGETHER for a common goal: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle!!

B) Not enough people KNOW what items are capable of being recycled. Not only is there a lack of knowledge being dissiminated to the public population about the growing need and concern for the environment, but rather people are generally encouraged NOT TO CARE. This is tragic and is turning this beautiful planet into a cesspool of filth and waste. As I wrote in my last blog about littering, this is UNACCEPTABLE and needs to be STOPPED IMMEDIATELY!! People have the RIGHT to be educated and this needs to start in our schools NOW! We need to teach our children as well as adults how to take care of the planet and live in accordance with the laws of NATURE. People need to KNOW what, how, and where to go to recycle their wasted products and materials.

C) Not enough businesses and corporations are leading the way with recycling programs. Period. I don't know about any of MY readers here, but I personally would be more likely to spend MY money at an institution that openly practiced recycling and composting of food waste. Burgerville, for example up here in the Northern Oregon and Washington state area has 3 separate bins in their restaurants: 1 for regular plastic and trash, 1 for compostable food waste, and another for recyclable materials such as paper from the cups, tray liners, etc. If, for example, McDonald's (despite their shitty food quality) were to employ a comprehensive change in policy to INCLUDE recycling ALONE in ALL of their restaurants, just THINK of the IMMEDIATE IMPACT that could have on the global output of trash. Same goes with Subway, BK, Chipotle, Jack in the Box and any number of other fast food companies. One could go even further with that and suggest that if other non-food retailers employed the SAME strategy of how much paper, plastic, aluminum and other recyclable materials could be saved in the United States ALONE, not to mention if we could actually make this a GLOBAL initiative. 

Okay, I can hear the whispering now...

"But QM, how can we get these companies to CHANGE the way they do business?"

Good question. I will tell you. EVERY store, no matter how big or how small has a manager and an owner. If you WANT and I mean TRULY WANT for things to CHANGE... then I would suggest starting TODAY to actually use your big boy and big girl WORDS and TALK to the people in charge. Customer feedback is CRUCIAL to ANY business strategy and if ENOUGH people complain, boycott, and/or DEMAND the change... well, these companies WILL change, but ONLY if they are pressured BY THE CONSUMER TO DO SO! Even Wal-Mart in all their MIGHT and POWER is forced to BEND to the will of the consumer. Enough people DEMANDED organic food choices and guess what they got? They got what they asked for. The same CAN and NEEDS to happen with recycling. I mean geez... think about if Wal-Mart and Target and other large "Big Box Mart" type stores ALL started recycling all that cardboard, paper, and plastic... WOWZERS!! What a change that would be nearly overnight. 

I CANNOT stress the importance of recycling enough folks. I too was once a wasteful person and have been shown the error of my former ways. My kids mom showed me the powerful effects of recycling and now I am a believer. EVERYTHING seems foreign at first when we are not used to it. It is like learning a new language or a new routine. At first it may indeed be difficult, but with a little practice WE ALL CAN DO IT!! YES WE CAN!!

The MOST important part of this initiative is that we DON'T NEED the government's approval or monetary help. WE  CAN DO THIS OURSELVES!! Another thing is that RECYCLING can be a lucrative business these days. MANY states offer CASH money for recycling of cans and bottles known as a CRV. It's that extra 5 cents that is added to the cost of the sodas and whatnot you purchase. Hey, I know it's just 5 cents, but 20 bottles or cans equals a dollar. A dollar might not go as far today as it has in the days of our youth, but that's STILL a dollar MORE than you previously had before and guess what?? You just saved that from becoming trash at the landfill that is poisoning our underground water supply and killing numerous amounts of animals, wildlife, and nature. 

So I am asking you today to STAND UP for MOTHER NATURE. STAND UP for RECYCLING and SUSTAINABILITY. This is NOT just the job of yet another corporation intent on PROFIT MARGINS, no no no... THIS IS EVERYONE'S RESPONSIBILITY. Do what you have to do in a non-violent way to get this much needed change across!! Picket, boycott, TALK about it with those in charge. I think that with enough support and enough people talking about it, as I said, the change could be so sudden and almost overnight things CAN get better. Let's ALL start NOW!!!!

This has been the Quiet Mouse.

Peace. Love. Respect. Reduce. Reuse. Recycle.