Harmful Effects of Not Recycling Aluminum

Aluminum is an abundant, refined metal in America and other industrialized countries, where it is used for packaging, cooking, car parts and building materials. The amount of preexisting aluminum available, along with the ease and speed with which it can be recycled, is enough to significantly reduce the physical waste, energy consumption and environmental damage associated with the production of new aluminum. Still, millions of pounds of aluminum are wastefully discarded and destroyed every year.

Bulk Waste

• It takes aluminum about 400 years to break down naturally, and discarded aluminum makes up a significant portion of the trash in landfills. Some landfills incinerate aluminum, which not only necessitates more mining, but also releases toxins into the atmosphere. The amount of aluminum discarded instead of recycled is enough to rebuild the entire American commercial air fleet every three months.

Increased Energy Consumption

• It takes 95 percent less energy to recycle aluminum than it does to mine and refine bauxite ore for new aluminum. Aluminum suffers no measurable deterioration during the recycling process, which means it can be recycled indefinitely at a considerably lower economic and environmental cost than creating new aluminum. According to the Clean Air Council, the energy needed to replace a single discarded aluminum can is equivalent to having thrown that can away half full of gasolene.

Destruction of Natural Resources

• A pound of recycled aluminum is equivalent to 4 pounds of raw bauxite ore. Bauxite mining is a dirty process that defaces and pollutes surrounding ecosystems. The negative environmental impacts of bauxite mining are completely avoidable through utilization of existing aluminum supplies. Because aluminum does not deteriorate or degrade during recycling, relatively low amounts of waste are produced during the process. About 75 percent of raw bauxite ore becomes waste during the making of new aluminum, adding to the environmental impact of mining new ore. Recycling also produces 95 percent less air pollution and 97 percent less water pollution than mining new ore.