Does Recycling Work?

[@TheFatCatMovies]

I love these talks between Hank and Craig :)

[@PogieJoe]

You guys land some truly amazing interviews! Always brilliant! :D

[@Alex-Lay]

That's a nice nugget of information from Hank at the end. :)

[@mariakyriacou4031]

Omg! Jake Chundow song!

[@BobHutton]

As much as I may respect Hank Green, I want a little more than his assertion that recycling works. It would also have been nice to have links to the "studies" that Patty Moore referred to. Rather than, again, simply asserting the claims about them. Constantly referring to negative claims about recycling as "myths" indicates that you are not approaching this with an open mind. Here is another "myth" to consider. Often the main thing recycling seems to achieve is simply placating people's consciences. It does not matter that they produce a lot of waste, as long as it all ends up in the recycle bin. So they feel no pressure to actually reduce the amount of waste they produce.

[@frigginboom]

Recycled food, good for the environment and good for you.

[@OneUpdateataTime]

I have never heard any of these myths. This video brought up problems I didn't know existed and then reassured me they don't actually exist anyway.... so that's good. I still learned things though which is also good.

[@MoonShoesPatty]

Haha, look in the bottom right when they're skyping with Patty Moore. :D

[@willardmcmorris9702]

I see it!, but what is it?

[@MoonShoesPatty]

It's the video from their end of the Skype call. I guess you can't take that off the screen?

[@BeastOfTraal]

What about reusable glass bottle, like we used to do 30+ years ago vs recyclable glass bottles

[@BillyBathurst]

The whole "Melt it down" thing is what makes me think it's not so great for the air we breath.

[@facebren]

Open letter to whoever reads this, Paper is so easy to re-use. Seriously. If it's only printed or written on one side, use the other. Even if it IS used on both sides, there is usually a lot of blank space, at least the margins. Cut it and use it for grocery or to-do lists, or however you use paper. Even if there is writing on it, you can usually write over it. Paint over it. Recycle the paper only until you've exhausted it. This goes especially to those who use notebooks for school or whatever. Instead of recycling the whole thing at the end of the year, take out the pages you used and reuse the notebook. If there aren't enough sheets of paper for that, use the paper individually. Maybe cut off the edges, punch some holes, and use in a binder. For my last year of high-school I didn't have to buy a single notebook. Right now I'm using scrap pieces of paper to practise writing with my left hand. I used to use them for expenses (staples do wonders). Thank you. :)

[@annonymousmaniaciii]

4:27 Sunday - Jake Chudnow

[@mrboredj]

They create a lot of aluminium in South Africa (or did, not sure if they still do) because they had really cheap electricity. The net effect though, was they would make aluminium from ore, send it overseas, where a company would turn it into cans or car parts (or whatever) and sell a bit of it back to consumers in SA again. Madness.

[@gin3868]

They have met, LET THE BROSHIP COMMENCE

[@willardmcmorris9702]

Michael, when you ask, "can you make money on recycling" I think can you make money on KZbin? You seem so happy doing so many KZbin types! and I ask you can I make money doing KZbin??? Thanks for another YT gems. x

[@Chefianf]

I have heard that the majority or at least a large portion of recyclable products get sorted, compressed and sent over to China and other countries with less stringent laws on air and water pollution as well as cheaper labor. These countries then in turn sell back the reclaimed product back to the U.S as new products similar to the example Hank gave. How founded or unfounded is this?

[@BelJonas]

Thank you for that, but what about paper?

[@alfstolenable]

So what of the recycling trucks that pick up the rubbish how much pollution does that generate? And then the factories that recycle how much power does that use? What about the chemicals they use to bleach paper or seperate plastic material how much waste does it make and where does it go?

[@sarahblub5371]

My mother is big on recycling which I've always admired, but she wastes water like no other which drives me crazy.

[@brandont1306]

I swear Hank Green knows everything about everything

[@MsRakkatakka]

Craig, why are you hiding from Patty Moore? :D

[@sortaAWSOMEish]

Myths? should have gotten Gary and Me to take care of this one....

[@JErmel]

In my area they will not pick up any sort of Styrofoam to recycle it, even though it has the recycle symbol right on it! I find it strange since I live in a bigger city, but in some of the smaller communities around here they will accept it. We called the city and asked them why they we can't put Styrofoam in our recycling bin and they said it costs too much to recycle it. :/

[@wearblackclothes]

sometimes when no1 is looking i play a song by katy perry and all that remains at the same time and dance. nice video

[@anywiebs]

interesting!

[@nishanks93]

Why is this unlisted?? I know it is part of a playlist that you want people to watch the entirety of, but would more people find at least a part of it if it were searchable? Sorry, the rant is because this is good stuff (heehee) and more people should be able to find it.

[@willstokes123]

I always wonder where youtubers live. Hank lives in Montana. Is that where Wheezywaiter lives? Does Michael oranda live in Chicago to film the brain scoop? If so how does he cover for hank on scishow? Do they just fly round the country all the time??

[@TheMaty619]

Craig lives in Chicago.

[@Christopher_175]

Michael lives in Montana. Emily mentioned it (on her tumblr I think) that he travels to Chicago once a week to do the brain scoop

[@willstokes123]

This new KZbin message system is pretty cool. Genuinely didn't expect to get an answer. Thanks!

[@mothman.industries]

Today I learned that I either see Craig as he sees himself in the mirror, or Craig doesn't know left from right.

[@KiddsockTV]

Recycling is good

[@ericvilas]

One question: I heard the argument that recycling paper isn't all that efficient in places where replenishable tree farms supply most of the paper. Which would make some sense, sort of...

[@xxSharpSide]

Replenish-able tree farms are beneficial but it's better on the environment to keep paper out of landfills and to recycle it either into new paper products or turning it into compost. I'm going to guess that it's economically smarter to recycle than produce new even in the instance of those tree farms.

[@OliverMohrIsLess]

As much as I like this show, this episode felt EXTREMELY preachy. Why didn't you talk to some people who are against recycling to hear their points? Penn & Teller had a series called BS!, and they had an episode on recycling that I recommend for the other side of this coin. There are good points in both cases (for and against recycling).

[@loganturner424]

cubes of recycling... WALL-E?!

[@bathedinridicule]

There's only 7 comments on this? What??

[@Fall_Spectacular]

Penn & Teller had me convinced for a while that recycling was bullshit (to put it in their words, um, er Penn's words).

[@steve8t2]

How to make money from recycling: 1. Buy used paper from the US, import it to China 2. Turn it into cardboard 3. ??? 4. Profit - from selling cardboard back to the US Which is fine except where ??? = using ridiculously cheap Chinese labour.

[@loganturner424]

PIXAR THEORY!!!!

[@K2hansle]

4:14 Tin cans are made from aluminum?!? (Just kidding!)

[@MotherGrits]

another myth -- possibly not -- many plastics won't be taken with the rest of my recycled trash. how do you know which plastics can go in the recycle bin if not otherwise instructed?

[@sydmc2525]

My rule of thumb: if you don't know, put it in anyways!!! If they phase it out, then so what? If they take it, then yay!

[@mcreynoldsamy]

Go to your collector's website and check what they take. For example, my family uses Groot and they take plastics 1-5 in my town. When I lived in Carbondale, the Southern Illinois Recycling Center took only plastics 1 & 2. Go to your collector's website and they will have a list of everything they take.

[@MotherGrits]

thank you for the help, girls!

[@spodrat]

No chyna?!

[@aaronshuler4483]

I have to call ABSOLUTE BS on what that lady said. She said, "It's more expensive to landfill than to recycle." Well, she was telling the truth by saying that, but she is directly contradicting her other BS statements that it's it's economical to recycle things like post-consumer paper waste and glass. What she is saying is that it COSTS LESS TO RECYCLE. So, it COSTS to recycle vs. using virgin materials. Virgin production of glass is harder than using post-consumer recycled glass, but THAT glass costs more. At this point in time, it is GENERALLY economical to recycle copper, brass, aluminum, and steel. Beyond that, it COSTS money to recycle. This woman is double-talking a mile a minute.

[@GZCon]

Couldn't have put it better myself

[@natpbs]

I don't understan what the contraddiction is. ?

[@aaronshuler4483]

It's difficult to break down the many errors and contradictions in what she says. I will not do it for you, but I will restate the major flaw in her statements. She said that recycling was cheaper than landfilling. That is true. She also said that recycling was profitable. No. The reason that she says that is that she and 'her kind' have legislated recycling and fine people for not sorting. In reality, the raw costs in fuel and burden of sorting does not support paper and most plastics recycling at the residential level. It's CHEAPER because they have hidden the costs in laws that punish people for not recycling. It's a bureaucracy and nothing less. The mountain of laws, rules, and regulations are significantly more costly than composting, burning, or the RAW costs of landfilling. Glass is, by far, the least profitable. Smashing glass and using it for fill is SIGNIFICANTLY cheaper than trucking it back somewhere to 'recycle' it.

[@jamesellis863]

Americans why won't you understand?! It's Al-um-in-i-um. THERE IS A SECOND "I" IN THAT WORD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@remues5]

Her hair is so annoying. I dont get why dont they just recycle our trash. Why do we have to do it for free and they make money from it.