You and other consumers and corporations manufacture, use and discard millions of tons of metal every year, which goes into everything from small beverage cans to giant vehicles. Approximately 150 million tons of scrap metal was recycled in 2008, according to the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries, which comprises 40 percent of the world’s available metal used for manufacturing.
Unlike plastic and paper which have a limit to how many times they can be recycled, metals such as steel, tin and aluminum can be recycled continuously without loss of quality. And these metals are recycled so quickly, that they can be back on store shelves in as little as 6 to 8 weeks after being discarded.
When it comes to recycling scrap metal, there are numerous benefits for businesses and the environment. The major benefits include greenhouse gas emission reduction, energy conservation, conservation of natural resources, and economic benefits (CARI).
ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFITS
Recycling metal has numerous benefits for the environment. The amount of greenhouse gas emissions are reduced substantially through the practice of recycling metal material. These emissions may influence climate change and may also cause harmful levels of air pollution in cities, resulting in potential respiratory health problems for you and other residents. The Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries reports that recycling metal may cut greenhouse gas emissions by 300 million to 500 million tons. In addition, using scrap metal in lieu of virgin ore generates 97 percent less mining waste and uses 40 percent less water, according to the National Institutes of Health (2012).
ENERGY CONSERVATION
Recycling scrap metal requires significantly less energy than manufacturing new metals from virgin ore. Energy conservation levels vary according to the product type. For example, the National Institutes of Health say recycling aluminum uses 95 percent less energy than deriving it from raw materials, while recycling steel saves 60 percent.
NATURAL RESOURCE CONSERVATION
A limited amount of metal ore is in the planet. As metal can be recycled and reused indefinitely, scrap metal recycling allows us to preserve the finite resources we have on earth.
ECONOMIC BENEFITS
Recycling metal has numerous benefits for the our economy. When compared to the waste industry, the scrap metal recycling industry process produces 10 times the revenue and employment.
Recycling metal creates 36 times more jobs than sending the same amount of metal waste to the incinerator, and six times more than sending the metal to a landfill, according to the National Institutes of Health.
Metal recycling is contributing to the solution of global warning and not the problem. Be kind to the environment and recycle your metal.