In today’s age, when we see the term “recycled” or “recycling”, we automatically assume it is good for the environment. Due to the recent focus on sustainability and saving the environment, there has been a big push for change and encouragement for people to do things in their everyday life that will decrease their footprint on the planet. People often think they are making an impact and doing something good by using recycled materials or recycling a piece of plastic. Realistically, a lot of plastic that people attempt to recycle actually ends up in a landfill or some other sump. Very few kinds of plastic can actually be reused and made into something else. Trying to recycle these other types of plastic can actually cause more harm than help because it contaminates all the recycling it is with and could cause the whole batch to be throw out. Also, using items or material “made from recycled plastic” is an improvement because it is not creating new plastic, but it is still contributing to the overload of plastic on this planet that will eventually end up in a landfill or somewhere else on the planet. When comparing the “three R’s” of sustainability reduce, reuse, and recycle, recycling is actually the last or worst option. The best option is reduce, which is just decreasing the amount of plastic and waste we produce in general. If we can’t do that, the next best option is reusing the stuff we have and finding another use for it. Recycling is the final option, which is still okay, but often times it is not even very effective and does not make a huge impact. Despite the surge in environmental awareness and the call for change happening around us, many fail to find things that actually improve or impact the environment positively.