The Recycling Industry
Recycling is not new; it has been around for thousands of years. From the beginning commercial success has driven recycling. Currently about 45% of the world’s 1.3 billion tonnes annual production of steel comes from scrap. Over 40% of the world’s copper production and about one third of the world’s aluminum is also produced from recycled material.
Canadian recyclers process between 16 and 18 million tonnes of scarp metal each year. Similar economic success can be stated for the fibre products that come from the forestry sector and plastics and chemicals that come from the oil industries.
Recycling used materials and products is a win-win situation for Canadian business and the environment. It is sustainable development. It reduces environmental problems, contributes to green house gases (GHG) reduction, reduces energy requirements, and maximizes the use of finite natural resources. Furthermore it has been shown to creates 10 times the employment and revenue, when compare to the waste industry.
Fifteen years ago the Department of Natural Resources reported that some 1000 metal recycling companies in Canada employed 20,000 directly and another 60,000 indirectly. Today those figures are thought to have doubled. In addition, there are comparable numbers for paper fibre recyclers and even more companies and employment for plastic, oils and solvent, rubber and glass recyclers.
CARI is working hard on behalf of its members and the whole industry to educate Canadians about the economic benefits and the realities of recycling.
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