Last month we talked about the results of a Harris poll discussing what people believe, and what their perceptions are, about recycling.
Here are the important facts:
- Scrap recycling reduces greenhouse gas emissions by requiring much less energy to manufacture products from recyclables than from virgin material and by land fill avoidance.
- The U.S. scrap industry is a sophisticated, capital intensive industry that employs close to 150,000 Americans.
- In 2015 alone, more than 130 million tons of recyclables worth over $80 billion were manufactured into specific commodities by the U.S. scrap industry.
- Though we have no written evidence from the cavemen about recycling, there are artifacts found around the world that would lead us to believe that they were recyclers.
Debunking the myths:
Although the issues of curbside items being commingled with waste may have been true at one time, huge investments in recycling and sorting plants have been made across the globe to eliminate this issue.
Products made from recycled material have become the first link in the manufacturing supply chain.
Recycling has been integral to the U.S. economy, global trade, and resource sustainability for over 200 years.
Saving energy and conserving resources is the biggest myth. While 5% thought this to be a myth, this is the greatest contribution of recycling.
Recycled steel, aluminum and copper save 56%, 92%, and 90% respectively over raw material.
Recycling 1 ton of steel conserves 2500 pounds of iron ore, 1400 pounds of coal, and 120 pounds of limestone. Recycling 1 ton of aluminum conserves more than 4 tons of bauxite ore.
Truth be told, recycling makes the world better in so many ways.
A recent poll conducted by Harris Polling for the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries found that many adult Americans don’t believe statements about recycling to be true. In the poll, participants were given 4 factual statements and 4 myths about recycling.
Recycling reduces greenhouse gas emissions – 49% believed this to be true.
The U.S. recycling industry is highly technical and sophisticated – 28% believed this to be true.
There is enough recyclable material in the U.S. to meet the needs of manufacturers – 27% believed this to be true.
The history of recycling dates back to the days of the cavemen – only 19% believed this to be true.
Recyclable material put in residential curbside bins is mixed with garbage in a land fill – 11% believed this to be true.
A product made from recycled material is of lesser quality than those made from a new raw material – 8% believed this was FALSE.
There is little or no economic value in recycling – 7% still believe this to be true.
Recycling does not save energy or conserve natural resources – 5% still believe this to be true.
In the end, 73% believed at least one truth while 22% believed at least one myth to be true. Stay tuned for next month’s post where we will supply the facts about the truths and debunk the myths!
2016 is behind us and many in the scrap industry, including those who sell scrap, are happy about that. In 2016 scrap prices started out low but began to rise in April, only to plummet again in September. We have seen a recovery over the last few weeks and many experts expect that recovery to continue over the next few months.
Going into 2017, many in the business world are optimistic about growth in the coming years. Consumer confidence is at a 15 year high, while many anticipate lower taxes and fewer business regulations in 2017. All of these ideas are positive for Cozzi Recycling, its customers, and our employees.
Thank you for your business in 2016 and we look forward to sharing a strong 2017 with you all!
– Frank J. Cozzi, CEO
Cozzi Recycling Welcomes Local Fire Departments
At Cozzi Recycling, we understand the importance of being active members of our community. More importantly, we understand the value of practicing responses to unforeseen circumstances. Recently, we opened the doors of our facility to work with local fire departments and their rescue teams on rescue training. We were happy to welcome 25 service men and women from the Bellwood, Westchester, Northlake, Rosemont, and Norwood Park fire departments. They used our equipment to practice using torches, saws, the Jaws of Life and other tools used in emergency situations.
James C. Adams of the Westchester Fire Department expressed the value of this opportunity: “It was such a great opportunity to be able to practice with these tools and figure them all out now, rather than when there is a real emergency.” Adams looks forward to other opportunities to keep up with training on their emergency rescue equipment.
Using these tools and techniques in real life threatening situations is unfortunately a regular occurrence. Practicing during a real crisis is not an option.
We welcome the opportunity to work with these heroic public service individuals who may someday save one of our lives.
Clichés: Written by Frank Cozzi, Sr.
The first time I heard my father say: “You’re crying with a loaf of bread under your arm,” I had to look under my arms to see what he was talking about. It was a saying from the great depression era when many families couldn’t afford to buy a loaf of bread. Another of his favorites was: “Believe nothing you hear and only half of what you see,” meaning that there are a lot of people out there that are deceptive.
He was also big on bites “Don’t bite off more than you can chew.” And sometimes you just have to “bite the bullet” or sometimes in order to avoid an argument he would advise that you “bite your tongue.”
He would also warn about fire. Often worrying about, “Burning the midnight oil” or “Burning the candle at both ends” and when it comes to customers or friends you’re unhappy with “Don’t burn bridges”. And combining 2 he would say if you’re “firing on all cylinders” you won’t be a “flash in the pan”.
There were a lot of things he said you couldn’t do too. “You can’t judge a book by its cover.” Particularly when you’re buying scrap metal. Or, “You can’t make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear” when you’re selling it. “You can’t have your cake and eat it too.” And when it comes to trying harder, “you can’t get a hit if you don’t swing the bat.” When it comes to people unable to pay a debt he would say: “You can’t squeeze blood out of a turnip.” Speaking of turnips, if you tried to fool him he would remind you that he “didn’t just fall off a turnip truck”.
Needless to say it’s “as clear as mud” that there will be more of these clichés “coming down the pike.”