Reusing saves even more energy than recycling, since no energy is required when we simply use things again without changing them. Recycling is important because fewer raw materials are used and natural resources are saved. Because the recycling process uses old materials to make new products, fewer raw materials are needed. Recycling also saves natural resources because it saves some of the coal, natural gas, wood, or water that would have been used to manufacture new products. Reusing old products instead of buying new ones also saves resources, because no raw materials are needed to create the new products they would have bought.
Recycling reduces air and water pollution because the recycling process requires less energy.
This reduces the amount of air pollution produced by power plants and the amount of water pollution produced by chemicals used in the manufacturing process. Reusing reduces air and water pollution even more, because no energy is required to reuse items, and reusing items does not involve the manufacturing process.