How Much & How Many
Posted On: Sep 18, 2018
If you didn't already know, a lot of materials can only be recycled into the same product a certain number of times before they are "downcycled" into another material. I find this super interesting, so we're going to look at a few materials that we commonly recycle and how many times those products can be recycled into the same material!
Paper
Paper is made of fibers that shorten each time they are recycled. Paper products can be recycled anywhere from 4-8 times before those fibers are too short to be turned into paper again. After the fibers are too short, they are typically turned into things like newspaper or egg containers!
Aluminum
A really great thing about aluminum is that there is no limit to how many times it can be recycled!! That's a huge reason why it's so important to make sure that all of the cans we use are recycled!
Glass
Glass products are another material that can be recycled over and over again!! Make sure to toss them (gently) into the recycling bin instead of the trash so that we can save a large amount of energy not having to create more!
Plastic
Plastic products like your milk jugs and tupperware containers can only be recycled once or twice before they break down. After that limit is passed, that material is used for manufacturing other materials such as clothing!
