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Recycling means to use something again. Newspapers can be used to make new newspapers. Aluminum cans can be used to make new aluminum cans. Glass jars can be used to make new glass jars. Recycling often saves energy and natural resources.
Natural resources are things of value provided by the Earth. Natural resources include land, plants, minerals, and water. By using materials more than once, we conserve natural resources.
Recycling Saves Energy in Production of New Products
It almost always takes less energy to make a product from recycled materials than it does to make it from new materials. Using recycled aluminum scrap to make new aluminum cans, for example, uses 95% less energy than making aluminum cans from bauxite ore, the raw material used to make aluminum.
In the case of paper, recycling saves trees and water. Making a ton of paper from recycled paper saves up to 17 trees and uses 50% less water.