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The Advantages of Recycling Aluminum

During times of great concern about dwindling resources and preserving the environment, aluminum is one material that offers several advantages. Aluminum can be recycled easily and inexpensively, and the process helps preserve space and energy. Recycling aluminum also offers certain financial benefits.

  1. Durability and Practicality

    • Aluminum is a durable metal that can be recycled repeatedly. As a result, time, money and resources are saved by decreasing the need to create new aluminum products. The technology for recycling aluminum cans has advanced to the point where it only takes 60 days for a can to be recycled, refilled and placed on a store shelf.

    Abundance

    • Aluminum's ability to be recycled means that there is no concern about running out of aluminum, which is not the case with other resources. This is important because of aluminum's widespread use. In addition to the billions of aluminum cans recycled each year, recycled aluminum is also used in everyday products like siding, window frames, car parts, cooking utensils and lawn furniture.

    Financial Benefits

    • Aluminum cans have high economic value. According to Earth911.com, the aluminum industry annually pays out more than $800 million for empty cans. Much of this money is used to benefit charitable or nonprofit organizations. Cans collected from residential areas can help to pay for needed services in a community.

    Saving Space

    • The recycling of aluminum means that discarded aluminum products stay in circulation and are not stored in landfills, which saves space. Recycling one ton of aluminum cans saves 10 cubic yards of landfill space. This is especially important where landfill space is at a premium and the planet's population grows.

    Saving Energy

    • Recycling aluminum also results in energy savings. It requires less energy to recycle aluminum than it does to extract it from its bauxite ore source. No extra energy is needed to remove labels because they are melted down with the aluminum. According to Wastecare.com, recycling just one aluminum can saves the equivalent of keeping a television set running for three hours.

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