| There's no doubt about it: if you're a | | | | 219 million barrels of oil, goes into the |
| patriot, you should feel great about | | | | manufacture of plastic. Thus increasing the |
| recycling. | | | | amount of plastic we recycle can make a |
| | | | significant impact on oil use. |
| Think about it. Recycling saves trillions of | | | | |
| kilowatts of energy every year. It conserves | | | | In 1997, the U.S. recycled 13 million cars, |
| our natural resources. It makes our | | | | which conserved 32.5 billion pounds of iron |
| country's air, water and soil cleaner by | | | | ore, 18.2 billion pounds of coal and 1.5 |
| limiting pollution, and it stimulates our | | | | billion pounds of limestone. |
| economy by creating new jobs. | | | | |
| | | | Aluminum can be recycled forever. Over 2/3 |
| Politicians and pundits from both the Left | | | | of all aluminum ever created is still in use. |
| and the Right strongly agree that we should | | | | Most of the 1/3 not still in use is aluminum |
| decrease our dependence on foreign oil. So | | | | cans in landfills. |
| recycling makes you a true patriot who's | | | | |
| doing something to make the people and | | | | Be a Patriot: Limit Pollution |
| economy of our great nation cleaner, | | | | |
| healthier, richer and stronger! | | | | Recycling just half of your annual recyclable |
| | | | household waste saves 2400 pounds of CO2 |
| I can see some folks in my mind's eye (not | | | | being released into the atmosphere. Many |
| you, of course!) with a slight sneer of | | | | scientists contend that human-released CO2 is |
| disbelief on their faces. So allow me to | | | | a leading cause of global warming. |
| share some basic statistics from the | | | | |
| Environmental Protection Agency and other | | | | Recycling household and car batteries keeps |
| reputable sources that back up my argument. | | | | heavy metals such as mercury, lithium and |
| | | | cadmium from being released into our air and |
| Be a Patriot: Save Energy! | | | | water. Heavy metals, when consumed by people |
| | | | and other animals, cause numerous health |
| In 2003, the energy savings from recycling 54 | | | | problems and diseases. |
| billion aluminum cans exceeded the energy | | | | |
| equivalent of 15 million barrels of crude | | | | The EPA estimates that 200 million gallons of |
| oil, or the amount of gas the U.S. uses in | | | | used motor oil are improperly disposed of |
| one day. | | | | each year. Recycling used motor oil keeps it |
| | | | from polluting your ground and fresh water. |
| Another way to look at it: recycling 1 can = | | | | |
| 3 hours of TV, so in 2003 the U.S. saved | | | | Americans dispose of 270 million waste tires |
| enough energy by recycling cans to run 162 | | | | each year. Illegally-dumped and stock-piled |
| billion hours of TV, or about 25 hours of TV | | | | tires are fertile breeding grounds for |
| for every man, woman and child on Earth. | | | | rodents and mosquitoes, and illegally-burned |
| | | | tires release oil and soot into the air and |
| The Center for Ecological Technology found | | | | ground water. |
| that the glass industry uses 50% less energy | | | | |
| to create glass from recycled glass than from | | | | Be a Patriot: Stimulate the Economy |
| raw materials. | | | | |
| | | | Recycling creates a net gain in jobs - 5 to 1 |
| Americans recycled about 40 million tons of | | | | over landfill management. |
| paper products in 2003, creating an energy | | | | |
| savings of 163 trillion (yes, with a "T"!) | | | | Jobs created by recycling cover a wide |
| kilowatt hours of electricity. | | | | variety of skill sets, including basic labor, |
| | | | manufacturing, entrepreneurship, advanced |
| Recycling one pound of plastic soda bottles - | | | | science and engineering. |
| or PET plastic - saves 1200 BTUs of energy (1 | | | | |
| BTU is the amount of energy needed to raise a | | | | Recycling creates new "green" technologies |
| gallon of water by 1 degree Fahrenheit). | | | | designed to take advantage of the reclaimed |
| | | | resources. |
| 2005 saw the U.S. recycle 5 billion pounds of | | | | |
| PET plastic, which equals a savings of 60 | | | | The National Recycling Coalition reports that |
| trillion BTUs of energy. | | | | recycling has created 1.1 million jobs, $236 |
| | | | billion in gross annual sales, and $37 |
| Be a Patriot: Conserve Natural Resources | | | | billion in annual payroll. |
| | | | |
| Americans disposed of 83 million tons of | | | | So there you have it. Patriotic people |
| paper products in 2003. According to the | | | | recycle! I challenge you to come up with |
| EPA, by recycling nearly half of that, we | | | | another activity that every family in the |
| saved 705 million trees and 290 billion | | | | country can so easily do to make such a huge |
| gallons of fresh water. | | | | difference in so many critical areas of the |
| | | | health of our great nation. |
| 4% of U.S. annual oil consumption, or roughly | | | | |