As per the definition of United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recycling is defined as a process of collecting and processing materials that would otherwise be thrown away as trash and turning them into new products. There are various types of wastes generated by a community. Here we are comparing the recycling rates of plastics (one of the major news item) vs other materials and try to understand ‘Are we really bad in recycling plastics?’
Benefits of recycling:
- Conservation of natural resources
- Protection of ecosystems and wildlife
- Reduction in demand for raw materials
- Saving of energy
- Reduction of carbon emission
- Provides a source of employment
As per the statistical data it can be seen that we are very good in recycling waste plastics as compared to other waste materials and we are continuously improving.
Some statistics:
- Per capita plastic waste generation: 12 kg in 2021
- India ranks 94th in per capita single-use plastic waste production: 4 kg/capita in 2021
- India ranks 2nd in producing the most plastic waste: 26.33 million tons in 2016
- No. of plastic waste recyclers nationwide: ~30,000
- Ranked 12th among the countries with mismanaged plastics and is expected to be 5th by the year 2025
- The plastics recycling market in India is estimated to grow at a rate of 6.5% to attain a market size of US $53.72 billion by the end of 2023
Dear Readers, you liked the above infographic – Are we really bad in recycling plastics?. Please let me know your viewpoints in the Comments section below.
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REFERENCES
- https://greensutra.in/glass-recycling-process/
- https://www.financialexpress.com/opinion/wealth-from-waste/43315/
- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0921344915300082
- https://vrecycle.in/products_services/buying-your-recyclables/rates/
- https://www.epa.gov/recycle/recycling-basics
- https://www.britannica.com/science/recycling/Ferrous-metals
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Recycling
- https://friendsoftheearth.uk/sustainable-living/7-benefits-recycling
- https://www.indiatoday.in/science/story/plastic-waste-india-reliance-mukesh-ambani-1804331-2021-05-19
- https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/plastic-pollution-by-country
- https://waste-management-world.com/recycling/recycling-in-india-a-market-in-transition/
- https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s13762-022-04079-x#:~:text=Although%20India%20is%20a%20highly,2021).
- https://indiacsr.in/plastics-recycling-market-to-reach-53-72-bn-by-end-2023/
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