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clear blue bottle at left, with an arrow drawn to it from a recycling symbol of three arrows forming a triangle and with the number 1 at center
How Plastic Recycling Works

Sorting and cleaning recycled plastic is surprisingly expensive, making it easier to turn plastic waste into clothing and handbags than it is to fully recycle containers and other forms of plastic.

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Head and shoulder shot of James E. West wearing a tan collared shirt and seated at right and facing to the picture's left, in an office with a window with shades down at right and the top of a shelf or desk visible at left
James E. West

He won a 2010 Benjamin Franklin Medal for co-inventing and development of the first practical electret microphone, which can inexpensively be made small enough to fit into portable devices.

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3 men placing solar panels on a roof. There are many square solar panels already placed on the roof.
Solar-panel recycling concerns

Dedicated recycling facilities need to be operating before 2040 to maximize material recovery and minimize environmental impacts caused by disposal of spent solar panels.

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A water treatment plant with rectangular sections filled with water and equipment lined with passageways.
Water treatment

Most regions use a sequence of physical and chemical processes to remove particulate matter, unwanted chemicals, and microorganisms from water to render it safe for human consumption.

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