Everyday when I walk past the dishes in my school lunchroom, I notice the big trash bin of food scraps from all of the students. Imagine how many bags of trash we generate from that single hour of the day called “lunch.”  I remember my uncle’s wedding and how my cousin noticed that there wasn’t a single recycling bin in the vicinity. She decided to take matters into her own hands by making signs on some of the bins so they could be considered  recycling bins. She hoped that people would see it and throw plastic in it. Now, because of that day, when I walk past the bin of trash I wonder where it goes or if it goes to a landfill. Could the contents go somewhere else for a better use? What choices can I make to care for our environment? Everyday we throw away something that could have probably been reused. Recycling needs to be thought of more and enforced. What do we get rid of that could be used in a better way? There are many different things in this regard to consider: food waste, water, plastic, microplastics, and paper. These are a few things we encounter daily-- items that we need to pay attention to and be aware of the consequences of what we do as we go throughout our lives.

Not all people think of the food waste as a part of recycling. In my opinion, schools  should definitely start reducing their food waste. There are a few different ways that we could take on reducing the amount of food waste that ends up going to landfills. Two of the most common options are composting and giving it to farms to be used to feed livestock. Not all foods are compostable, and we can’t give all food waste to livestock animals, yet the amount that we could take out of our garbage cans could have a major affect. According to “Creative Solutions to Ending School Food Waste” provided by the United States of America of Agriculture Food and Nutrition Services from February 2018, Americans waste enough food to fill a 90,000 seat football stadium per day. There are many ways to decrease that amount by simple changes in our daily routines. It is not that hard to start a little compost bin or pile. Plus, once the materials have broken down it can be used to add nutrients to soil. We don’t always think of the things that we eat or drink as recyclables. Everyday we stumble across new issues because of our lack of thinking about food and water as recyclables.

We also need to notice our water usage. Some places have no clean water, and although it isn’t always related to our recycling procedures, there are many incidences where it is directly related to our lack of recycling. People are now starting to realize this and taking on new precautions. Some people who don’t have clean water are finding ways to use what they have to solve these issues. Why are they the only ones solving these problems? According to the CNN News article, “The Kentucky County Where the Water Smells Like Diesel,” by Nadia Kounang, posted March 30, 2018, billions of gallons of water are lost everyday because of leaks. Some people in this county are even finding ways to get clean water such as tapping into fresh springs. Meanwhile in the majority of U.S. homes and businesses many people are not caring or thinking about the amount of water they are letting slip through their fingers. In an article from the Washington Post, “The Incredibly Stupid Way that Americans Waste 1 Trillion Gallons of Water Each Year,” posted March 17, 2015, Chris Mooney discusses the problem of leaks causing us to lose large amounts of water. Gallons of water can be lost daily due to a dripping faucet or leaky toilet seal. Fixing these problems could help keep those gallons of water from going down the drain. We can’t fix everything, but we must try. We can even take smaller, but still extremely effective, steps to save water as in making sure that the faucets are all the way off when exiting the bathroom and not letting  the water run the entire time while we're brushing our teeth. Water is vital for life, but it isn't only our necessities that we are using in a bad way and not disposing improperly.

We use plastic objects in our everyday life, but we don’t always use them in the most beneficial way. An article, “A Whooping 91% of Plastic Isn’t Recycled” by Laura Parker, published July 19, 2017, talks about how plastic takes 400 years to degrade and that 8 million metric tons end up in one of the oceans every year. They compare this number to “... five grocery bags of plastic trash for every foot of coastline around the globe.” There are ways that we can diminish our use of plastics everyday. One of the top things is not getting a new plastic bag everytime we go to the store. We should always try to bring reusable bags. It will cut down on the amount of plastic we use.

Another thing that we don’t always notice is the waste of plastic water bottles. According to Recycling Across America, about 2.5 million water bottles are being trashed per hour. How many of them are actually being placed in a recycling bin, though? We need to make sure that we are recycling every water bottle that we use! We can also stop anyone who is throwing recyclable items in the trash and tell them where it belongs. Don’t be afraid to stand up for the planet. Also consider how to reduce the number of disposable water bottles by using reusable cups or water bottles. These can easily be refilled while making sure we aren’t placing more garbage in the ocean or in landfills. Many public buildings even have water dispensers for refilling these containers. My brother and I both have our own reusable water bottle that we bring to school everyday. This is one way that we can reduce the waste that we are personally generating. With some thought a person realizes that there are many items that we can reuse. Everyday there is new information about recycling and reducing the waste in our world. 

Stories about microplastics, essentially tiny pieces of plastic, and the significant problems they cause are appearing in the news all the time. This is because of our lack of recycling. According to “Freshwater’s Macro Microplastic Problem” by Courtney Humphries, posted on May 11, 2017, microplastics are not only a problem in our oceans. They are appearing in places like the Great Lakes, where they are being found in different animals such as fish and birds, and even in our soil. How is this a problem? When we are eating food, especially seafood, it could have tiny pieces of plastic in it. We should be trying to stop this. I don’t think any of us wants to eat plastic. We need to put more effort into such important matters that concern our health.

In our daily lives, paper shows up a lot in ways: writing a list, teachers handing out worksheets, even making paper airplanes. We could almost say it's essential in our lives. Yet it’s still an object that could end up harming our environment. Is it really that hard to put a piece of paper in the blue bin, and not the other one? Sometimes it’s easier putting it in the wrong bin. This is pure laziness and neglect when we do it on purpose and a recycling bin is only a few steps farther away. I hope that all schools are getting better at least with this one main material. I am lucky to have a recycling bin in almost every classroom at my school and teachers that care about recycling. Most of the teachers also collect leftover notebooks and materials when we clean out our lockers at the end of the year. It scares me to think about the amounts that my teachers are saving from a garbage can. Students could also choose to recycle these things by saving it for next year. Some schools are also turning to computers and other electronics, which in turn is cutting down on the amount of paper we use. We should also consider our use of paper bags. I am not trying to scare us from using paper bags, but we can find ways to reuse them after they find their way into our homes. My family uses paper bags for wrapping paper for presents; we can even decorate them with artwork. Another way students can repurpose paper bags is to make them into book covers. Some schools require students to use book covers to protect textbooks.  Using a paper bag is the perfect thing. There are so many better ways to dispose of things or reuse them. We just have to find them.

There are so many different things that relate to recycling: food waste, water, plastic, microplastics, and paper. Recycling needs to be considered and applied consistently in people's daily lives. Everyday we have options to recycle. The real decision is whether we choose to recycle and stand up for our environment or fail our human community as we create a toxic wasteland of trash. When we are presented with an opportunity to recycle, we should always take it. Every time we choose to recycle we are greatly helping our environment. When we choose not to recycle, we are guilty of environmental destruction. It is very important that we discuss recycling and repurposing so that others are also becoming aware of how they can help. We should also realize how important it is to use our materials in better ways and make decisions to reduce waste. I will always remember the day that my cousin went around making recycling signs, in hope that less people would throw things in the trash. That day had a major impact on me, teaching me the importance of recycling and how each of us have an opportunity to change the world one plastic cup at a time.