Keep Sugar Land Beautiful

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Rebuy. We've all heard the words – Now what do they mean?

To REDUCE means to create less waste: Try to purchase items with the least amount of packaging or items that have little or no waste.

When you are cleaning out your home, garage, office, or closets please donate gently used items that may be REUSED by someone else. Some examples include clothing, household items, children's toys, and eyeglasses.

To RECYCLE is the process of collecting and sorting a product and using all or part of it to make another product. The U.S. EPA estimates that 75% of our waste is recyclable. Recycling keeps valuable material out of landfills and makes new products out of recycled ones which reduces the amount of energy needed in production. Recycling prevents hazardous materials and chemicals (lead, mercury, and many others) from ending up in landfills which can contaminate soil and leach into our drinking water. The internationally recognized symbol for recycling is three arrows moving in a triangle. Each arrow represents a different part of the recycling process (collection, re-manufacture, & resale). This symbol means a product may be recycled – it doesn’t mean the product was made from recycled material.

To REBUY (or buy recycled) means you need to look for and buy items made from recycled material. It is a very important step in the recycling process and closes the loop. Many manufacturers now include the percentage of recycled material contained in their products, on the item tag or the packaging. Look for the highest percentage of post consumer waste.