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Aluminum Facts

  • About 65 % of America's aluminum is currently recycled. Aluminum Recycling picture

  • Every minute an average of 123,097 aluminum cans are recycled.

     

  • On average, Americans recycle 2 out of every 3 aluminum cans they use.

     

  • The average aluminum can contains more than 50% post-consumer recycled aluminum.

     

  • In 1997 the aluminum industry paid approximately $1.03 billion to recyclers.

     

  • An aluminum can recycled today will be back on the grocery shelf in about 90 days!

     

  • Twenty years ago, it took 19 aluminum cans to make one pound, but today's aluminum cans are lighter and it now takes 29 cans to make a pound! That means less aluminum is wasted, saving energy and other environmental resources!

     

  • Tossing away an aluminum can wastes as much energy as pouring out half of that can's volume of gasoline.

     

  • Making aluminum cans from recycled aluminum takes 95% less energy than making cans from virgin ore.

     

  • 20 recycled aluminum cans can be manufactured with the energy needed to produce one can from virgin ore.

     

  • Recycling one aluminum can saves enough energy to keep a 100-watt bulb burning for almost four hours or run your television for three hours.

     

  • Making beverage cans from recycled aluminum cuts air pollution by about 95%.

     

  • More than one million tons of aluminum containers and packaging (soda cans, TV dinner trays, aluminum foil) are thrown away each year.

     

  • Americans throw away enough aluminum every three months to rebuild our entire commercial air fleet.

     

  • Last year, approximately 36 billion aluminum cans were landfilled. The cans that were thrown away had an estimated scrap value of more than $600 million.

     

  • It is estimated that over the past twenty years, we've trashed more than 11 million tons of aluminum beverage cans worth over $12 billion on today's market.

     

  • Aluminum products other than cans can be recycled. Other recyclable aluminum products include: siding, gutters, storm window frames, lawn furniture, foil, and aluminum packaging.