Northshore Keeps It Clean

In recent year Pittsburgh has been transforming from its steel roots to a green environment. People have become more environmentally conscious and are improving the world with simple things like recycling.

Still, many people do not know what all they can recycle. This is where the Northshore Bin Initiative comes in. It is an initiative started by the Pennsylvania Resources Council to improve the number of things recycled. They have been working with the Alcoa Foundation, Buhl Foundation, and the City Pittsburgh to inform people about all of the things that can be recycled. It is a part of the “Northshore Keeps It Clean” campaign.

Many things can be recycled that people don’t know about and often throw away. This includes things like glass (not broken), metals, plastic bottles, paper and carboard. Informing people about what can and can’t be recycled is the first step towards improvement.

The PRC has been giving away 32-gallon recycling containers to Northshore residents who register to go to one of the events that they host. This is all in efforts to improve the quantity of things recycled.

According to a National Geographic article in 2017, 91% of plastic isn’t recycled. This leads to massive buildups of plastic in the oceans affecting the habitat of many animals. Recycling would greatly help slow down this process improve future life for everyone.

If people learn what can and can’t be recycled it is easier to improve recycling rates in the United States, not just Pittsburgh. A main goal of the PRC is to improve recycling rates in the area. If they continue to push for better living, they could do great things. Informing people about what to recycle is only the first step.

The future of the world as we know it will depend largely on how people treat their garbage. If we continue to throw away things that can be recycled there will be a huge negative impact on the environment.

Chemicals and greenhouse gases are released from landfills which can have a huge impact on the surrounding area. This could lead to polluted water affecting local wildlife and people as well. Not only that, but we are simply running out of room for landfills. We create hills made of garbage to bury our issues. We are essentially sweeping it under the rug. Sooner or later, our environment will not be able to handle the amount of waste we produce.

We need to stop wasting so much and start recycling. Recycling reduces the amount of raw materials we need when creating new things, helping preserve what little materials we have left. Recycled goods could change how our world works and it’s time people took it seriously. It’s time to recycle.

To learn more about the Pennsylvania Resource Council’s initiatives, visit www.prc.org/one-clean-northside

One Comment Add yours

  1. Dr. Katherine Cruger says:

    This is interesting, Roman! I wonder if other neighborhoods have similar initiatives. Why the northshore for this program? Is it a pilot program?

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