The President of Bureau of International Recycling (BIR), Ranjit Baxi, has said the benefits of recycling are immense.
Baxi, who spoke last Sunday, in London, the United Kingdom, during the first-ever “Global Recycling Day”, noted that the recycling industry provides two million jobs; saves 70 million tons of carbon emissions annually; reduces waste; promotes health and hygiene, and is projected to add $400 billion to the global gross domestic product by 2025.
According to the BIR President, because recycling plays such a crucial role in the preservation of the planet, this necessitated the coming together of stakeholders on Global Recycling Day to showcase the work already being done and to discuss what else can be done.
The aim of the Global Recycling Day, which coincides with the BIR’s 70th anniversary, is to unite people across the world, highlight the need to conserve the six primary resources (water, air, coal, oil, natural gas and minerals) and celebrate what is described as “the Seventh Resource” – the materials man recycle every day.
“The goal for Global Recycling Day is to show the world that there is a Seventh Resource, as economically viable as, and more sustainable than, the six key primary resources: air, water, oil, natural gas, minerals and coal. Recycling is a global issue, the environment is a global issue and this day celebrates that and pushes us all – wherever we live – to do more. March 18, 2018, marks the 70th anniversary of BIR, making 2018 a landmark year to create a day that recognises the vital role recycling and the industry plays in protecting the planet,” Baxi said.