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Informing the Public and Educating Students on Plastic Recycling
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This review compiles and analyzes available education materials on plastic recycling from professional associations, foundations, universities, and private companies. Researchers found a significant lack of university-level courses dedicated to plastic recycling, despite the growing need for trained professionals in this area. The study argues that broader public and professional education on recycling could substantially reduce the amount of plastic waste entering the environment.
Approximately 300 million tons of plastic waste is generated per year. The major portion of this plastic waste is landfilled, while part of it leaks into the environment. When plastic waste enters the terrestrial or aqueous environment, it can have negative impacts on ecosystems, human health, and wildlife. Increasing the amount of plastic waste that is recycled will correspondingly reduce the amount of plastic waste that enters the environment. By educating the public and industry on plastic recycling, current recycling programs can be used more efficiently, and new programs can be created. Education material on plastic recycling is available through professional and industry associations, foundations with an environmental focus, university courses, and short courses offered with private companies. This review assembles and analyzes the current education material on plastic recycling that is available from these providers. The material compiled here can be used to gain insight into specific plastic recycling-related topics, to identify areas of recycling education that can be improved, and as a resource to help build university level courses. There is currently a dearth of plastic recycling courses offered at the university level. Educating more students on plastic recycling will equip them with the knowledge and skills to make informed decisions as consumers, and to implement plastic recycling systems at the professional level.
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Research digests by email
When a large batch of papers lands in the Atlas, we read through it and send a short write-up of what stood out.