Aluminum is a natural resource that is hard to extract and process. Mining aluminum uses enormous amounts of electricity, and the entire process of refining it pollutes the water, land, and air. Recycling aluminum, therefore, gives the environment many benefits. In addition, aluminum is easy to recycle.
Benefits of recycling aluminum
Aluminum is crucial in producing airplanes, doors, windows, outdoor furniture, vehicles, boats, and cans. It is a very useful metal, but people who are not environmentally aware tend to throw them in the trash, eventually ending in landfills. However, the material is highly recyclable, so it does not belong to landfills because the entire world would benefit more from recycling aluminum.
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It slows down the depletion of resources
Aluminum is an abundant element, representing about eight percent of the natural resources worldwide. But compared to other resources, the supply of aluminum is limited since you cannot produce it synthetically. Therefore, once you deplete the natural reserve, the only material available would come from recycling.
Moreover, it is easier to recycle aluminum than mine and process it. Industries can reuse aluminum multiple times without degrading its usefulness or quality. For the record, 75 percent of the aluminum produced years ago is still in use. You would be surprised to know that about 90 percent of the aluminum used in buildings and car parts is from recycled aluminum. You can help the environment and earn extra cash by collecting and bringing your aluminum materials to anĀ aluminum can recycling Kansas City facility.
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Reduces pollution and active mines
Two essential benefits of recycling are preventing water and air pollution and reducing active mines. Aluminum comes from bauxite, which is available on the earth’s top layer. These strip mines expose the layers of the Earth, and the miners leave mine tailings that contain particulates and hazardous wastes that pollute the air and water.
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Helps save electricity
Extracting raw aluminum from bauxite requires tremendous electricity because aluminum is stable. Thus, it needs more energy or extreme heat to separate aluminum from bauxite. On the other hand, recycling aluminum requires only five percent of the energy used in smelting.
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Reduces greenhouse gas emissions
Aluminum smelting plants use coal or natural gas to generate electricity, producing carbon dioxide (CO2) and perfluorocarbon, which is 9,200 times more harmful than CO2. Moreover, the fuel economy of these plants is poor, as they waste more than half of the energy they produce, which ends up as atmospheric gases and solid wastes.
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It brings down the cost of aluminum products
The quality of aluminum does not degrade through continuous recycling. Thus, it lowers the cost of aluminum products, which manufacturers use for containers, and as a component in various products such as ships, trains, toothpaste, antacids, chemicals, light bulbs, appliances, cleaning products, and more.
Aluminum is a valuable resource, and recycling it keeps the supply steady. Given the high cost of producing new aluminum, recycling is a viable solution to keep the price down and, at the same time, protect the environment.