Recycling Rate for Aluminum Cans
in Sweden and the U.S.
(1984-2004)
Recycling rates in the US are low and getting lower. The US, by far the world's biggest consumer of aluminum cans, lags behind other industrialized nations in the percentage of these cans that we recycle. This is despite the fact that the number of cans sold is fairly constant. Companies like Alcoa have to import aluminum and scrap from other countries to make up the gap.
Because recycling aluminum saves so much energy, this is a huge opportunity for American consumers to reduce their carbon footprint.
It's a great opportunity for aluminum companies too. If we could recover and recycle 75% of the aluminum cans being currently tossed into landfills—600,000 metric tons of aluminum—we could save 1286 megawatts of generated electricity. That's the amount produced by two coal fired power plants, and consumed by two aluminum plants. Replacing this production with recycling would keep 11.8 million metric tons of carbon dioxide from being generated and released into the atmosphere.
Chart Source: CRI
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We believe the US can raise its aluminum can recycling rate to 75% by 2015.
Alcoa has announced a goal to help the US raise its US recycling rate for aluminum beverage cans to 75% by 2015. This would put our country above the current global average and rank it among the top recycling countries.
We can get there by working with industry partners and with the public to address the issues that are currently holding us back:
- The public needs to understand the problem and the opportunity
- Recycling needs to become more convenient and more rewarding for consumers
- The supply chain needs to become more efficient and more profitable for commercial recyclers
Alcoa is committed to working with all partners involved to make this vision a reality. The health of the US aluminum industry—and of the planet—depends on it.
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