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The global recycling industry is booming, reports the Bureau of International Recycling, which says the industry as a whole, including metal, plastics, rubber, and paper, has an annual turnover of more than $160 billion. The industry processes more than 500 million tons of scrap annually, of which 400 tons is metal, and employs more than 1.5 million people worldwide. In 2006, the recycling industry in the United States was worth $65 billion, and ISRI says the United States annually recycles more than 90 million tons of ferrous and nonferrous metals. In 2006, scrap was the second-largest U.S. export to China in monetary terms, behind only electronic components. The high level of demand for scrap metal is being driven by several factors, including a strong market for metal and a growing concern for the global environment. As areas such as China, India, and the Far East continue to rapidly develop, demand for iron, steel, copper, aluminum, and special alloy metals will remain high. Scrap metal is particularly valuable because the energy required to reprocess scrap is significantly lower than that required to process virgin ore. The energy savings from recycling are even greater for aluminum and copper. Recovering precious metals from discarded equipment can also generate significant revenues. The Defense Department's Precious Metals Recovery Program saved the government $250 million from 1975 to 2005.
Url : http://www.commodityonline.com/news/topstory/newsdetails.php?id=5515
Source: scrap.org
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