I know that paper is recycled over and over again till it can't be anymore. Would the same thing happen to plastic?
no! Plastic cannot be broken down and it stays in a land fill for many years!
Some plastic can be recycled. There is till a lot of controversy over what can and can't. Look at the bottom or somewhere on the plastic items you have either food, drink or other packaging and you will see a recyling sign with a number or number and letters on them. Make a note of them and see where there are facilities close to you so you can recyle them. Unfortunately the recycling process for plastic is much slower than other materials and the processing of it is not always eco friendly as a lot of it gets transported to China or other countries to be processed. We will just have to wait a little longer for things to develop with plastic recycling but don't let that stop you doing what you can with what's recyclable.
There are many different types of plastic. Some are more readily and efficiently recycled than others. But the process is inefficient and you do not get the same grade of plastic out of the recycling process that went into making the original plastic item. The recycled plastic, for the most part, is useful as filler in a durable item like plastic chairs. Paper undergoes similar degradation in the recycling process. Nice, smooth paper generally requires long plant fibers, either from wood, linen or flax. Paper is recycled into less particular uses, as the fibers can be broken apart, but get shorter, resulting in lower strength. Metals are readily and efficiently recycled with no downgrade. Recycling aluminum and steel is much more efficient than processing new ores into metal. And the resulting product has exactly the same properties as new metals. Reducing consumption and waste is always more efficient and greener than recycling.
No plastic is actually down cycled, meaning it can't be made into anything similar to what it was originally, and each time plastics are made or remade it is a highly toxic process. That is why almost everything plastic is made in China, they don't have an EPA.
no, plastic is melted and paper isn't
