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I ran across this article about Pittsburgh’s manufacturing sector and how they use recycling. Here’s an interesting fact: ’73 percent of the aluminum ever produced is still in use today.’
Steel is recycled more, by volume, than any other material and both were recycled in Pittsburgh not so much for the environmental benefits, but for the cost benefits. That’s not unusual. It’s cheaper to melt down old products to make new products than it was to go out and mine the raw materials. If you’ve ever been to a junk yard, that’s the beginning of the reuse, recycle industry.
Cars, refrigerators, washing machines and even parts of Three Rivers Stadium have been used to build buildings and bridges across the country.
Did you know that can of pop in an aluminum can be sold and back on the shelf as a new can in 60 days?
There’s also a company that freezes rubber to make it brittle. Then they smash the tires to tiny bits. This material is used for synthetic athletic fields, playground surfaces, mulch, horse arena surfaces, etc. Some of the tires are ground up. Interestingly, the rubber mulch is also good for roads because it makes them quieter, more resilient and safer.
It’s inspiring to see the industries who are recycling and building that into the process. They’re saving money and contributing to the health of our planet. RubbeRecycle’s reaction? Nice work Pittsburgh!
Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/10075/1042930-334.stm?cmpid=business.xml#ixzz0j7F1230R
Tags: Environment, Recycling
