Be honest: Do you recycle? If you live with a man, you’re more likely to answer “yes”. That’s because mixed-sex couples recycle more than singles, according to a recent UK survey conducted by the University of Essex.
Surveyors polled 2,000 singles and 3,000 couples on their housekeeping habits, like whether they separate recyclables. The results? Nearly 80 percent of mixed-sex couples recycle, but fewer singles can say the same: Just 69 percent of women who live solo are recyclers, and only 58 percent of bachelors do it too.
“Couples may recycle more than singles because they share the burden,” says study leader Hazel Pettifor, Ph.D. candidate at the Institute for Social and Economic Research at the University of Essex. Of course, it’s easier to separate recycles or take them to a recycling center than it is to complete both tasks on your own. But just as modern women don’t need men to take the trash out, you don’t need a beau to put recyclable waste in the green or blue bin.
When you toss your bottles and cans and shopping bags in the garbage, you increase the amount of waste sent to landfills, and the pollution that ensues. To sustain the environment for your kids and theirs, buy four bins and begin to separate the easy stuff: glass, paper, and plastic. Then, find out about local pick up or drop off options in your area with this tool.
Then follow these easy guidelines:
GLASS:
After a quick rinse, your empty wine and beer bottles and jars are ready to be recycled. Don’t worry about labels (they’ll burn off in the recycling process), but remove metal caps and neck rings: they can damage the furnace during the recycling process, according to Earth911.
PAPER:
Magazines, newspapers, cardboard, cartons, junk mail, and paper bags are all recyclable. Use a square bin with wheels instead of a round one to keep paper recycles neat and easy to transport to your curb or car.
PLASTIC:
Flip over a plastic bottle to find the little triangle with the number in the middle, and find out whether it’s recyclable. Your municipality has the last word on what goes curbside, but typically, it’s plastics number 1 (found in bottles that hold detergent, beverages, and salad dressing) and number 2 (cleaning product bottles, grocery bags, and yogurt cups). Put the plastic for pick up in one bin, and numbers 3 through 7 in another: they’re rarely picked up, but you can find a place to deposit them here.
More from WH:
10 Dirtiest Ways to Be Green
De-Clutter Your Life: Find Out Where and What to Recycle
Reduce Reuse Recycle: Your Plastic Water Bottles
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