We all use plastic bottles, there is really no way around it. Plastic has become a big part of everyone lives. Plastic is much more desirable than glass because it is usually lighter and does not break as easily. Plastic comes in many forms; however, the most used form is in plastic bottles. Plastic is one of the many materials that can be recycle, yet, for some reason, many people still have not considered the benefits.

Let us have a look at the benefits of recycling plastic bottles.

There are five areas in which recycling plastic bottles can benefit you, those you love, and the world around you. These five areas include:

1. Oil
2. Greenhouse Gas Emissions
3. Energy
4. Reuse
5. Landfill Space

Conserve our Oil

We all know how precious oil is today, in fact, it is so precious that it has caused the price of gas, foods, and other items to jump dramatically. However, what many people do not realize is that by recycling plastic bottles, we are saving oil. One ton of recycled plastic bottles can save almost four barrels of oil.

Greenhouse Gas Emission Reduction

Recycled items take less processing. This means that the new manufacturing does not require as much energy and does not emit as much pollution, which then means you see a reduction in greenhouse gasses.

Conserving Our Energy

Plastic bottles used in water and soft drink bottles are made of what is called Polyethylene Terephthalate, also known as PET. Just one pound of recycled PET can save as much as twelve-thousand BTU’s in energy. At the same time, as mentioned previously, it takes two-thirds less energy to manufacture from recycled products, as it does to create new.

Reuse Benefits

What many people do not understand about recycling is that what you see now, is not always what it will be later. In many cases, that plastic bottle you are now drinking out of, may be something totally different once it is recycled. For instance, your plastic bottle may become carpeting, it may become someone’s jacket, or it might even become a part of someone’s deck. What you see, is not always what you get when it comes to recycling.

Save Our Landfills

One of the biggest problems today is that our landfills are running out of space. We are needing to create new landfills, which take up more space and puts more trash into our earth. However, you may be thinking how much room can one plastic bottle really take. The point is that if everyone thinks that way, think of how many plastic bottles that is.

It really builds up before you know it; however, just a ton of plastic bottles recycled can free up 7.4 cubic yards in our landfills. That’s a lot of space that is being used unnecessarily, when there are recycling avenues everywhere that you turn.

As you can see, there are many benefits of recycling plastic bottles.