RECYCLING?

Today, paper is a common material, but in the past, it was rare and highly valued. It was invented in 105 by Ts'ai Lun, a Chinese nobleman. His "recipe" didn't seem complicated - he mixed mulberry bark, hemp and water, then pressed the mixture into a special machine and let it dry in the sun.

It is said that with the invention of paper, which later was considered the base of communication, China became one of the first countries in the world to develop the art and literature. Ever since then, the Chinese have made paper from recycled materials. Let's find out together how to do this today, following the diagram to the right.

Unlike other recycled materials, paper cannot be recycled indefinitely. After several reuse, the fibers become too weak and short and can no longer be used. Therefore, the new fibers are usually mixed with recycled fibers when new paper products are being made. Thus, the cardboard boxes are usually a mixture of equal amounts of recycled fibers and new fibers.

We can reduce the amount of paper we use daily ensuring that when we write we use both sides of a sheet, that we don't start a new sheet without finishing the previous one, that we don't tear sheets just to play and to throw them on the ground.

WHY SHOULD WE RECYCLE PAPER?

• Save energy. A papermaking factory uses 40% less energy if it uses recycled paper instead of new fiber.
• Less environmental pollution. Recycled paper uses less chemicals and bleach than new paper.
• Protect the forest. If paper is recycled, fewer trees will be cut down and used.

Paper and other paper products are made of cellulose that is extracted from the wood of trees. This is transformed into a paste which is drained, pressed and then dried.

Newspapers, magazines, cardboard boxes, notebooks and many other products we use daily can be recycled to obtain new products.

To properly recycle these products, we must ensure that we collect separately.

From the collection centers, the paper, the cardboard boxes, and the cardboard packages for liquid foods are packed and pressed, then sent to paper mills where they are about to be recycled. Here everything is sorted by categories: newspapers, magazines, cardboard boxes etc., and then chopped and mixed with water until a pulp is obtained.

Food cardboard packagings are placed into a container of water where they are stirred for about 15-30 minutes to separate the pulp from other materials. Pulp is washed and dried, the result is recycled paper.

The paper thus obtained is used to manufacture other paper products: bags, newspapers, magazines, envelopes, notebooks, egg cartons and even toilet paper.

The main activity, recycling reusable industrial waste, is done by a considerable environmental remediation, through collection, temporary storage, preparation and delivery of a whole range of metallic and non-metallic recyclable waste.