Recycling saves energy and raw materials, and reduces pollution.
When we throw away garbage, it usually ends up in a landfill. Landfill space is getting increasingly scarce, and every time we throw something away we throw with it the energy, the money, the raw materials, and the water it took to make it. The average American throws away 4 pounds of garbage per day. In 1990, it is estimated that Americans will throw away over 1 million tons of aluminum cans and foil, more than 11 million tons of glass bottles and jars, over 4 and a half million tons of office paper and nearly 10 million tons of newspaper. Almost all of this material could be recycled.