Environmental Benefits of Recycling Scrap Metal
More people than ever realize the importance of recycling and how recycling can conserve natural resources and reduce waste. Scrap metal recycling is an essential cog in the global manufacturing process, as well. It’s a large industry that is expected to be worth over $76 billion by 2025.
You have probably heard about the benefits of recycling paper, plastics, and bottles, but scrap metal recycling is also extremely beneficial to the environment. What are some metals that are often involved in scrap metal recycling? This would include copper, steel, brass, and iron. These scrapping metal materials are often thrown away when they could be recycled.
There are also two different types of scrapping metal: ferrous metals and non-ferrous metal. Nonferrous metal does not contain any iron. Some examples are zinc, lead, aluminum, and copper. Ferrous metals include carbon steel, stainless steel, alloy steel, and cast iron.
Besides offering environmental benefits, recycling scrap metal can also lead to new jobs and can boost economic activity. Many individuals might choose to recycle scrap metal for extra income, for example. Either way, let’s examine some of the environmental benefits of scrap metal recycling.
Reducing Emissions
One of the most significant environmental benefits of scrap metal recycling is that it reduces greenhouse gas emissions. The production of new metal leads to more significant gas house emissions, which negatively affects climate change. These emissions can also cause air pollution levels that lead to respiratory problems for residents where the metal is being produced.
Scrap metal recycling could reduce greenhouse gas emissions by as much as 300 to 500 million tons. It also generates less mining waste and the process uses less water. The energy that is saved can then be used for other purposes, such as refining the metal.
Conserving Resources
Of course, recycling scrap metal also means that more natural resources are conserved than ever before. If scrap metal is recycled, it means that it can be reused almost indefinitely. There is a limited amount of metal ore on the planet, and recycling scrap metal means that less has to be utilized.
This is important when considering the fact that the world’s population continues to grow. Companies and individuals that recycle scrap metal can conserve the natural resources available, which means that fewer resources will be used to produce new metal.
Slowing Landfill Growth
One of the reasons that recycling aluminum scrap and other metals are important is that it will slow landfill growth. Recycling scrap metal, otherwise known as “secondary raw materials”, means that less of them are headed to landfills. This is relevant because scrapping metal takes a significant amount of time to biodegrade.
Landfill space is limited, and scrap metal recycling can ensure that landfill growth slows to some extent. In the United States, there is a growing concern regarding whether the 2000 U.S. landfills will reach capacity soon. If we continue to recycle aluminum scrap, as well as other metals, it means that less metal will be biodegrading in landfills.
