Metal Recycling Fact Sheet
Facts from a Well-Respected Metal Recycling Company
North Star Metal Recycling is a small part of a vast chain. However, we are proud to be involved in a process that limits the waste of our planet’s precious resources. Recovering metals for reuse is a practice dating back thousands of years, although it’s becoming increasingly important in the present day. Recycling various scrap metals offers too many significant environmental and economic benefits to ignore. As members of the Recycling Council of British Columbia (RCBC) and the Canadian Association of Recycling Industries (CARI), we feel it is our duty to educate residents of Vancouver, BC about the many benefits of metal recycling. Read on to see how what we do today can impact our future.
What Are the Environmental Benefits of Recycling Metal?
Less energy is used to recycle scrap metal than to mine and manufacture new metals from virgin ore. Not only is energy conservation an important benefit, but metal recycling also helps us reduce our environmental impact by conserving our natural resources. Many metals can be reused indefinitely, so recycling them can help us create a more sustainable future. Manufacturing new metals results in greenhouse gas emissions, which can be harmful to the environment. If we all pitched in and practiced metal recycling, these greenhouse gas emissions could be severely reduced. According to a 2012 study conducted by the National Institutes of Health, recycling scrap metal generates approximately 97% less mining waste and uses 40% less water. Aside from these environmental benefits, metal recycling offers significant economic benefits for Canadians as well. Approximately 40,000 people are directly employed in the metal recycling industry, with another 120,000 people indirectly.
Get the Facts About Global Metal Recycling Services
Here are some interesting things to think about when it comes to global metal recycling initiatives:
- Steel is the most recycled metal in North America because it can be put directly back into the same things. Scrap steel can be found in everything from automobiles to appliances. Producing steel from recycled material compared with virgin material saves 75% of the energy needed.
- Recycling aluminum requires only 5% of the energy it takes to make new aluminum – and produces only 5% of the CO2 emissions. Nearly half of North America’s aluminum supply comes from recycled aluminum.
- North Americans throw away enough aluminum every three months to rebuild the UK’s entire commercial air fleet.
- Metals take decades to decompose in our landfills. On average, steel food containers take about five decades to decompose, while aluminum takes well over 200 years. In comparison, it can take less than two months for an aluminum can to be recycled and repurposed.
- When recycling metals, don’t forget to include metal lids and caps. Every little bit helps!
- The 36 billion aluminum cans landfilled last year had a scrap value of more than $600 million. Someday, we will be mining our landfills for the resources we have buried.
Why Choose Our Vancouver-Based Metal Recycling Company?
North Star Metal Recycling offers metal recycling services in Vancouver, BC to help prevent the overfilling of local landfills with hazardous materials. Our metal recycling company has streamlined the process to ensure more residential and commercial customers utilize our services. Our team and well-maintained equipment are available to help you unload materials quickly and efficiently. We use a precise digital scale to calculate the price-per-pound right in front of you, considering current fair market values as our guide. Once we have collected, sorted, and processed the recycled materials, we melt them down into repurposed products for other customers to purchase, such as sheet metal, steel and cast-iron pipes, steel chains, fencing units, and so much more. Our inventory rotates often!
Request a Recycling Quote in Vancouver & Surrounding Areas
At North Star Metal Recycling, we offer top dollar for metal recycling services in Vancouver, BC and many surrounding areas, including Burnaby, Coquitlam, Richmond, Squamish, and Whistler. Our metal recycling company accepts aluminum, brass, copper, steel, and stainless steel, as well as batteries, electrical wires, demolition and industrial scrap metal, appliances, electric motors, vehicle rims, and radiators. We do not accept vehicles, bicycles, televisions, computers, and appliances or cooling units containing Freon gas. Contact us today for more details or to request a free quote on your items.