ABSTRACT
Recycling will be part of sustainable materials management, which takes into account the entire lifecycle of material resources flowing through the economy, from extraction or harvest of materials and food to production and transport of goods, provision of services, reuse of materials, and, if necessary, disposal. Recycling is also criticized as an elitist activity that eases the consciences of people who consume much more than necessary. A lot of the issues could be cleared up if we approached recycling from the right direction – by making resources more expensive so that recycling operations can make money by selling their products rather than paying for recycling from tax dollars. Recycling rates are further complicated by the fact that some materials are mainly recycled as part of an alloy. The environmental and health consequences in the countries that import scrap for recycling are more significant.
