Recycling, waste & caring for Earth

1. Which of these materials can be recycled over and over again without losing its strength: an aluminium drink can or a greasy paper napkin?

2. Which of these items belongs in a garden compost bin rather than the plastics bin: banana peels and dry leaves, or a glass bottle?

3. What simple habit saves clean drinking water at home every morning and evening: turning off the tap while brushing your teeth, or leaving the hose running?

4. Why is plastic litter especially harmful when it blows or washes into the ocean: plastic takes hundreds of years to break down and marine animals can mistake it for food or get tangled in it, or plastic dissolves into fresh water?

5. What type of light bulb uses much less electricity and lasts much longer than an old filament bulb: an LED bulb or a wax candle?

6. What are the “Three Rs” that help us care for the environment and cut down on waste: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, or Run, Rest, Repeat?

7. Why should used household batteries and old electronics be taken to a special collection point rather than thrown in ordinary rubbish: they contain metals and chemicals that can leak into soil and water, or they float away?

8. What natural soil conditioner is made when kitchen fruit and vegetable scraps and fallen leaves rot down in a garden bin: compost or plastic?

9. Why do swimmers and snorkellers avoid standing on or touching live coral when visiting a reef: coral polyps are fragile living animals that are easily crushed or damaged, or coral is made of rubber?

10. What do we call a protected area of land or sea set aside by law so wild plants and animals can live safely without being hunted or destroyed: a nature reserve (marine park) or a factory?

11. Why is buying a refillable water bottle better for the planet than buying a new disposable plastic bottle every day: one reusable bottle replaces hundreds of single-use plastic bottles each year, or disposable bottles are heavier?

12. Why is it important to keep beaches and park picnic areas free of litter: litter harms wildlife and washes into waterways and the sea, or litter helps grass grow?