Dear Editor,

My name is Tristan Stano and I am a resident of Carbon County. I feel that recycling in the state of Pennsylvania should be made mandatory. Recycling benefits our state by providing jobs and decreasing pollution. Yes, it might be time consuming, but it is for the better for our state and our planet.For example, let’s start with paper and cardboard, which come from trees. The more these items are recycled, the fewer trees we have to cut down. Trees don’t just provide paper, they provide oxygen, shelter for wildlife and let’s not to forget the natural beauty they add to the state. When paper and cardboard that could have been recycled are thrown away, they take up a lot of room in landfills, and instead create more pollution.Even plastic bottles can be recycled by being melted down and made into new products.In addition to plastic and paper, there are also many benefits of mandating recycling of aluminum. The tabs from soda cans can be collected and donated to places like the Ronald McDonald House to pay for children who have cancer. There are also charities that collect can tabs to pay for dialysis patients, because their insurance only pays for so much. No one should have to make the decision of paying for treatments for their loved ones and paying for food. These charities have helped so many people and it would be so great if recycling was mandatory.According to Recycling-Revolution.com, on average it cost $30 a ton to recycle, but it costs $50 to send garbage to a landfill and $65 to $75 to incinerate it. About 1/3 of an average dump is made up of packing material that can be recycled and reused. Making recycling mandatory would also make 1.1 million jobs.If there are so many benefits of recycling, such as saving money, lessening our carbon footprint, creating jobs, and decreasing our need to create more landfills. Why is it that our beautiful state won’t take steps to mandate recycling in all counties?Sincerely,Tristan StanoTroop 209Lehighton