Final answer:
The question asks for the number of bottles collected by a 6th grade class; however, the exact number cannot be calculated due to incomplete information. Recycling is crucial for reducing environmental contamination and considering the long degradation period of plastic bottles, taking action like starting school recycling programs can make a difference.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question concerns how many bottles the 6th grade class collected for recycling if the total number of items collected was 176, and the rest were cans. Unfortunately, the given information is incomplete as it does not specify the exact number of cans or the proportion of cans to bottles. Therefore, without additional information, we cannot calculate the exact number of bottles collected.
Recycling is a key component in reducing environmental contamination, as it offers a relatively inexpensive solution to managing waste materials like plastics and glass. It is alarming to consider that a single plastic bottle takes 450 years to decompose in a landfill, and yet, according to the U.S. government, at least 50 million plastic bottles are thrown away each day in the United States. Starting a recycling program at school or within the community can have a significant impact on reducing this environmental burden.