[NONFERROUS]

AN UNCANNY PROBLEM

The aluminum industry continues to be dismayed that the recycling rate for aluminum used beverage containers (UBCs) is falling in the U.S. and would be happy to see more scrap companies get involved with the commodity.

Last year in the U.S., $700 million worth of aluminum UBCs were not recycled, said Tom Stengel, vice president - marketing and operations, Anheuser-Busch Recycling Corp., St. Louis. Stengel was one of three speakers who addressed attendees during a session titled "UBC Recycling: A Market Opportunity" at the Paper Recycling Conference & Trade Show in Chicago in late June.

Stengel added that of that $700 million, some $208 million would have been profit headed to the bottom line of the recycling companies procuring those UBCs.

Despite the lure of potential profits, both Stengel and fellow speaker Brenda Pulley, vice president - corporate and government affairs, Alcan Aluminum Corp., Cleveland, acknowledged that the UBC recycling rate is falling and that methods must be found to increase the rate.

"Yes, we make primary aluminum . . . but UBCs are a great supply metal for us," said Pulley. The company’s Berea, Ky., facility is the largest melting facility for UBCs in North America. (See "The Fiery UBC Furnace," Dec. 2001 Recycling Today.)

Joel Litman, president of Texas Recycling/Surplus Inc., Dallas, spoke as one paper recycler who also handles UBCs. "Whatever you’re doing now, the foundation is already in place to handle UBCs," Litman said.

While acknowledging that the pop and beer cans can be "a little messy," Litman also noted that dealing with them can be profitable. "UBCs have become a steady part of our operation," said the Texas recycler.

If recycling companies can help set up programs at workplaces, recreational areas and special events, such actions could help bring the UBC rate back to the 65 percent rate it was at in the mid-1990s.

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August 2003
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