Today’s TopicGlass & Aluminum

Recycled Pollution

• Aluminum cans and glass can be recycled indefinitely

• Recycling glass generates 20% less air pollution and 50% less water pollution

• Recycling aluminum reduces pollution by 95%

Source: Earth911.com

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Source: A Recycling Revolution Source: Earth911.com

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A Valued Resource• The aluminum can is

the most valuable recycled container and is 100% recyclable

• The aluminum industry pays over 800 million dollars for empty aluminum cans each year

Source: Earth911.com

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How Metal Gets Recycled

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZGJdjwD-OCc

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Recycling Aluminum Saves Energy

• Recycling one aluminum can saves enough energy to run a TV for three hours

• Recycled aluminum save 95% energy vs. virgin aluminumSource: Earth911.com © Monkey Business Images | Dreamstime.com

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Recycling Glass Saves Energy

•Recycling one glass container saves enough energy to light a 100-watt bulb for 4 hours

•Recycled glass saves 50% energy vs. virgin glass

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© Allison14 | Dreamstime.comSource: Earth911.com

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How Glass Gets Recycled

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VzlZwCP4HiY

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Did You Know?

• An aluminum can that is thrown away will still be a can 500 years from now!

• We use over 80 billion aluminum soda cans every year!

• Glass will never decompose. Glass today will be glass in millions of years.

Source: A Recycling Revolution

Source: Wiki.anwers.com

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Recycled Glass

Recycled glass is used to make new glass containers but it can also be used in kitchen tiles, counter tops, wall insulation and roads.

Source: United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

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Challenge Questions

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1. Think of 5 ways you could reuse a pickle jar (hint: store popcorn kernels)2. What would you do if you were at a baseball game and had a glass bottle

or aluminum can and you could not find a recycle bin? What would you do with them?

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