Recycling has historically played an important role for environmental and economic reasons. As proof, it was once common practice to melt down metal objects, such as swords and pots, to produce new objects. We can give a similar example from World War II. Due to raw material shortages and economic hardships numerous campaigns were run to promote recycling. When we recycle one ton of used paper waste, we save 16 fully grown pine trees and 85 square meters of forest from destruction.
When we recycle one ton of plastic packaging waste, we save 14,000 kWh of energy.
When we recycle one ton of glass waste, we save approximately 100 liters of gasoline.
When we recycle one ton of metal waste, we save 1,300 kg of raw materials.
Recyclable aluminum uses 35 percent less energy than it takes to produce aluminum from scratch.
Using recycled paper in paper production reduces air pollution by 74–94 percent, water pollution by 35 percent, and water use by 45 percent.