Here in Michigan, we experience rough roads on a daily basis because of the high amounts of snow we get. It weighs down on the pavement which requires them to be fixed over and over every year. It is often a huge inconvenience to the many people that drive every single day.
Not only does this affect us humans, it also affects the planet! Asphalt is a mixture of 95% small stones and 5% bitumen. Bitumen is a black, sticky substance made out of petroleum which is removed from crude oil after being extracted from the earth. There are many methods of extraction, the most common being hydraulic fracturing, or fracking. Since many oil deposits are located under impermeable layers of shale, drilling down to it is not enough to get it out so they resort to fracking. To do this, they fracture, or break, the rock in order to get the crude oil out for human use. Once the rock is broken, it can never be fully restored to its original state. It is permanently damaged. There is, however, a company in the UK, called MacRebur, that is making things out of 100% waste materials. These products are used to replace part of the bitumen used in asphalt. For every ton of asphalt, there are 3kg-10kg (about 6lbs-22lbs) of plastic waste in the asphalt. Not only does this new way of plastic recycling help to save the land from being damaged, it also reduces the amount of bitumen that leaches into bodies of water and the amount of plastic that ends up in oceans and landfills. This is a very inexpensive way to make and repair the roads we drive on every single day. Because temperatures are constantly rising and falling during Michigan's winter, roads are damaged but using MacRebur's method of re-purposing plastic for roads, we could save a giant chunk of government money all while saving the planet. Feel free to take a look at the informational video below! Resources: http://www4.total.fr/AMO/south_africa/PDF/BitumenByProducts.pdf http://www.essentialchemicalindustry.org/processes/extracting-oil-and-natural-gas-fracking.html http://www.macrebur.com/ https://www.atlanticmaintenancegroup.com/blog/how-does-cold-weather-affect-asphalt/
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Recycling is a big deal in this society, but sometimes it just isn't big enough. Everyday, more and more recyclable items are dumped into landfills and oceans all across the planet. Many people just simply don't know the importance of recycling and some are lazy or think they won't make much of a difference. However, everything you recycle makes an impact. Every item you throw in the recycle bin is one less item ending up in landfills.
Recycling is easier than you think. You can start by purchasing items that come in recyclable packaging or recycled material packaging. It isn't expensive to get a recycle bin in your house, just contact your waste service to see what they can do for you! You can also search for recycle centers near you which allow you to drop off your recyclables on your own time! You can start a compost pile in your own yard. Waste, such as leftover food and compostable plates, degrade into compost and can be used as fertilizer for your garden. You can also reuse items such as single use plastic bags and you can reduce your waste by using reusable bags. After learning HOW to recycle, do you know WHAT to recycle? Aluminum cans, paper, cardboard, glass, and plastic are among many things you can throw in your recycle bin. Just make sure they have the recycle logo and you're good to go. Items like batteries, light bulbs, and electronics are recyclable but they have special centers that collect and recycle them for you. Now that you know how to reduce your waste, what will you do? *Originally published 08/29/2018*
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