Dealing with candy wrappers - Recycling is a viable option today

Recycling is the buzzword today in the context of environmental protection. Recycling is essential as it helps reuse sustainable materials in all walks of life and reduces the load of harmful materials mixing with the earth that damages the environment.

 Even simple candy wrappers can be incredibly damaging if they are not recycled. All those individually wrapped treats might be great to taste, but the wrappers can take up a lot of space in the landfill. Moreover, only some wrapper materials might be suitable for sending to landfills as they can pollute the environment. Therefore, a more sensible way of dealing with discarded wrappers of candy is to think about ways of recycling them.

In this article, we will discuss the available opportunities for recycling wrappers so that you can do your bit for Mother Earth to save it from further destruction. Enough damage has happened already, but it is never too late to take some positive actions to relieve the earth from the spoils we mindlessly dump on it in the name of a landfill. Let us now look at the options available for recycling wrappers.

Recycling by local bodies is free

The problem with wrappers used for candy is the material, composite in nature, being an amalgam of foil and plastic. Since it is impossible to separate wrapper elements easily, the chances of recycling them seem pretty bleak. However, things are changing, as evident from the latest practices in some regions in Canada. For example, the residents of British Columbia can now throw wrappers in recycling bins or bags that the local bodies collect and send for recycling. The target of the local bodies is to collect all types of packaging and send them for recycling. Check with the authorities in your area if such a facility exists so you can use it.

Paid recycling

Suppose you are not lucky enough to live in a place that offers free recycling opportunities like the one mentioned above. In that case, you can still discharge your responsibility to protect the environment by using some paid schemes for recycling wrappers and packaging. A company in the US, Tricycle, has developed a scheme of selling cardboard boxes to people to fill with used wrappers and then sending them back to the company that arranges for recycling them. The cardboard box costs between $86 and $231, according to the size. The company uses special equipment to separate the wrapper materials, recover the plastic components, and sell them as pellets for re-use. The plastic is suitable for industrial use, like fabricating park benches and playground equipment.

With opportunities for recycling likely to increase, the onus of recycling wrappers largely depends on the attitude and willingness of users who must come forward to drive the initiative further. The sweet candy will taste sweeter when you realize its potential to help you do something good for the environment, which is the need of the hour.