Everything (or almost everything) that we consider garbage can be used as a resource: banana peel, packet of cookies, beer cans, toilet paper roll and the list can go on… But before continuing with the explanation on how to analyze our rubbish I ask you: Can you avoid some waste? Are you sure you can’t reuse that before you take it out of your house?
Although recycling is a thousand times better than mixing the garbage, it is a half solution. Before recycling it is recommended to reduce consumption and reuse resources as much as possible. When that is no longer an option, there is recycling that gives a new opportunity to products that we can no longer take advantage of at home.
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Agustina Besada She is a sustainability professional specialized in circular economy and resource management, with a focus on the life cycle of materials. She crossed the Atlantic Ocean on a sailboat, twice, to see the reality of plastics in the oceans and to study international solutions. She joined the National Geographic Explorer community and co-founded Unplastify, a social enterprise whose mission is to change our relationship with plastic. She also worked as the director of a recycling and sustainable culture center in Brooklyn, United States.
“For the last 8 years, I have been working on the revaluation of material discards and on recovery systems that maximize the social, environmental and economic impact,” he says in his biography and shared his experience with recycling.
“Recycling is very important and doing it at source is simple, but it is not enough. It is much better and easier to avoid generating waste, especially replace single-use plastics. That is the most efficient,” says Besada, stressing the importance of the 3 Rs: reduce, reuse and, finally, recycle.
Recycling demands other resources to complete its cycle: we consume, we take it to a recycling point, it is transferred to a plant, it is stored and it is treated until we have a new product. In this process involved transfers, storage spaces but it is also a great job opportunity for many people and there are great savings in resources compared to any other production process.
When we recycle we are reducing the amount of trash that will go to an incinerator, landfill or, worse still, end up in forests and oceans. But in addition to all these benefits, manufacturing from recycled materials implies a energy savings between 75% and 95%depending on the material, the amount of raw material we need is reduced (and the expense involved in its production) and there is a saving in resources necessary for production such as electricity and water.
As a result of recycling, greenhouse gas emissions decrease and air quality improves. Do you realize the amount of benefits we get from separating our waste? But, how is it done?, who is in charge?, in what conditions must the materials be?
If you are in the City of Buenos Aires, Click here to find the Green Point closest to your home. Check the reception hours and what other things you can take (love bottles, batteries, electronics, used oil, organic, etc).
Find out how the waste collection system works in your city or look for a cooperative that works with recyclables (there are everywhere). Ask what materials they work with and start separating them: plastics, cans, glass containers, paper and cardboard. It is important that the materials are empty, clean and dry. In this way we prevent fungus from forming, being filled with bugs and the materials having to be discarded from the recycling process.
Special waste such as batteries, electronic devices or used oil can also be taken to some recycling points but ask before taking it. It is important that this waste is not thrown into the common trash because it is highly polluting.
When we remove recyclables and special waste from the garbage can, organic waste remains, such as coffee grounds, grass, fruit peels, or eggs. Organics can return to the earth. That is to say that we can compost them either in a compost bin in our homes, bury them in the garden or keep them in the fridge until we can take them to a community compost bin.
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In terms of recycling, Argentina is located in the middle compared to other countries: “There are more advanced countries, where there is a culture of lower consumption, and there are places that are much worse off. In our country there is more collective awareness. If we take the City of Buenos Aires as a reference, we can see that there is a good sustainability policy and that it is growing little by little. You have to get familiar with the municipality where we live and see how they work recycling,” says Besada.
“It must be taken into account that in European countries, for example, there are extended producer responsibility laws: they make producers financially responsible for recovering and recycling their waste, which makes the process more efficient. Within Latin America, Argentina is on the right track and a large part of this effort is from the cooperatives“, explains the expert in circular economy and resource management.
“Each one has a role to play and contribute so that waste does not contaminate”, considers the co-founder of Unplastify and highlights the importance of education on these issues: “Education is always required to generate big cultural changes. Not everyone recycles or is aware of the waste they generate and many are not interested. That is why it is essential to be aware of the importance of our actions, to know how to avoid waste and how to recycle what we generate”.
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One thing to highlight about the pandemic and having been in our homes longer is that we were able to see the amount of garbage we generate: “A lot of people told me that after the pandemic they became aware of the amount of waste they generate. Before they didn’t notice it because they threw things at work, on the street, at the university and now everything has accumulated in their homes,” said Besada.
When consulting the sustainability expert about sources of information, she recommended “not overwhelm us”: “We must try to find sources that give us confidence, such as an organization that works on waste issues, an influencer that we like and that does it seriously and responsibly, the National Geographic notes platform,” he mentioned as some examples . The important thing is to learn to be more responsible and aware that everything we consumethat what we do has an impact on the planet and reducing that footprint is possible if we are informed, but without being overwhelmed.
Get informed, get involved and take action. We have to be more responsible with our way of consuming and our way of treating our waste. Once you incorporate it into your routine, you will do it automatically and, little by little, you can start adopting new sustainable habits. Start recycling today!
