New Zealand and the rest of the world, has a big problem with rubbish. If we put all our rubbish in dumps, soon we will run out of room. Some of the things we dump take thousands and thousands of years to break down, and some never do. How long do you think these tyres will last?

Look at the photo below. It was taken in Hong Kong. Full of rubbish: boxes, paper, plastic bags, dirty water and other things. The air is filled with smoke. A place like this can be found everywhere in Hong Kong. It is because people are not concerned about the environment. They throw rubbish everywhere they like, even there is a bin nearby. If people do this, the water is too dirty to drink or swim in, and the plants are killed, and people get sick from the dirt and germs.

We need to think about what we could do with things we throw away, and find ways of using them instead of just dumping them. Recycling means to use something again in a different way.

FOLLOWUP   1. Collect up all the rubbish thrown away in your class for one day. That means every bit of paper, or pencil sharpenings, or lunch rubbish. 2. Sort the rubbish out into categories (things that go together). 3. Can you find some ways you could re-use or recycle some of this rubbish? .