The graph shows the proportion of four different material that were recycled from 1982 to 2010 in a particular country.

The line graph illustrates the proportion of four different materials recycled in a particular country between 1982 and 2010. The materials shown are

paper

Use synonyms

and

cardboard

Use synonyms

, glass containers, aluminium cans and plastics.

Overall

Linking Words

,

paper

Use synonyms

and

cardboard

Use synonyms

had the highest recycling rate throughout the period,

although

Linking Words

the figure declined after reaching a peak in 1994. Aluminium cans showed the most rapid growth,

while

Linking Words

plastics remained by far the least recycled material. In 1982, around 65% of

paper

Use synonyms

and

cardboard

Use synonyms

was recycled, compared with 50% of glass containers. The rate for

paper

Use synonyms

and

cardboard

Use synonyms

rose to about 70% in 1986,

then

Linking Words

fell slightly to 65% in 1990, before reaching a peak of 80% in 1994. After that, it declined gradually to approximately 70% in 2010. Glass recycling followed a different pattern. It dropped from 50% in 1982 to 40% in 1990, but

then

Linking Words

increased steadily to 60% by the end of the period. Aluminium cans had a much lower starting point, at only about 5% in 1986, but rose sharply to 45% in 2010. Plastics remained very low, increasing only slightly from around 3% in 1990 to just under 10% in 2010.