Difference Between Reuse and Recycle
The three golden words in the fight to save our planet or, at least to prolong its existence a little more, are: reduce, reuse and recycle. Nobody gets confused with the first one, however, the last two are sometimes even used interchangeably in colloquial speech; which is not correct, since they have different meanings.
If you also have doubts about it or just want a little more information on this topic, keep reading, because then we will explain what the difference is between recycling and reusing.
TO REUSE Difference Between Reuse and Recycle
When it comes to issues related to the environment , the concept “reuse” is used to describe the act of giving a different use to a product to which a certain use was given after having been bought new; although it could also refer to giving the same use to a product again.
Reusing items is said to have a huge impact on the environment, as the accumulation of waste and trash is reduced while people can save money they would otherwise spend on buying new products.
A typical example of reuse that is becoming more and more popular is that of cloth bags for shopping in stores, which would otherwise be put in plastic or paper bags. So in the end the amount of waste is reduced.
Even donating old clothes, shoes, toys… is considered reuse.
RECYCLING
On the other hand, the concept of “recycling” refers to the process of using materials (waste) to create new products; In other words, waste is transformed into raw material for the creation of different products.
Recycling helps to combat the accumulation of large amounts of garbage, in addition, it promotes energy savings and reduces both air and water pollution ; which translates into a lower emission of greenhouse gases.
Not all materials are recycled, but some such as glass, metal, plastic, paper, and clothing are often processed to create new things. The most common case is that of plastic bottles that are melted to create new ones or other types of containers.
Although recycling is frowned upon by most, it still struggles with some drawbacks such as the fact that it is somewhat costly for many companies; since this process has a first stage that consists of cleaning the materials and this adds an extra cost to all the work.
Finally, although in some cases the aforementioned drawback may arise when deciding whether to recycle or not, the truth is that almost all companies claim that it is cheaper to recycle than to buy new raw material.