Aluminum Beverage Cans,Environmental impacts are both positive and negative Some of those factors we can explore by considering things like energy utilization, input consumption as well as overall recycling efficiency and more.
Bauxite is the primary source of raw material, for what - constitutes aluminum beverage cans. This is an energy-intensive process that uses about 14,000 kilowatt hours to produce one ton of aluminum. This use of energy represents greenhouse gas emissions going into the atmosphere, affecting climate change. Aluminum production is responsible for 1% of total global greenhouse gas emissions.
While the energy penalty is substantial, aluminum cans do have an upshot in recycling. The Aluminum Association states that recycling aluminum saves over 90% of the energy needed to extract it from raw materials. Such a big energy saving translates to lower carbon emissions, an important environmental advantage of recyclable aluminum cans.
The impact of aluminum beverage cans on the environment is also a waste management consideration. Container Recycling Institute reported the U.S. recycling rate for aluminium cans was 50.4% in 2020 While this rate is high, it represents a lot of aluminum that ends up in landfills (and takes as long 500 years to decompose). Increasing recycling rates can significantly reduce this long-term environmental impact.
Recycling is key to cutting down on the environmental damage - otherwise industry titans such as Ball Corporation note that cans can take 30 years or more to decompose naturally. According to Ball Corporation CEO John A. Hayes, "As a company committed to improving the sustainability of our packaging, we ensure that innovations like these are designed for recyclability from their inception." The continued focus on sustainability points to the industry's push for greener recycling habits.
The life cycle of an aluminum beverage can provides examples of both the challenges and opportunities for environmental sustainability modeled by our social-natural framework. This presents environmental concerns with the high energy costs of the initial production phase. Aluminum is infinitely recyclable without quality loss, which represents a significant environmental benefit. For example, a recycled aluminum can makes it back into the manufacturing cycle within 60 days and therefore supports the circular economy.
Aluminum beverage cans are also lightweight, which decreases transportation emissions. Not only is this a much lighter load to transport than if it were being hauled in glass bottles, meaning less fuel used and lower carbon emissions_^(2)_^. The point of all this is to drive home how efficient aluminum cans are in the supply chain.
The environmental impact of aluminum beverage cans is heavily influenced by consumer actions. People reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions by taking part in recycling programs. One of the easiest steps to take is reusing those aluminum cans -according to The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), recycling one can save enough energy for three hours of TV watching.
More details can be found on aluminum beverage cans.