Dive Brief:
- After removing the tires and fluids, virtually the entire car can be crushed and pulverized, yielding between 15% to 25% of waste that will be disposed of at a landfill.
- Mercury switches and batteries are removed for recycling and 97% of the lead in batteries can be salvaged.
- Plastics and metals account for the largest amount of materials that can be reclaimed, while metals such as steel and iron are separated with magnets; aluminum and copper are separated by weight.
Dive Insight:
The average automobile lasts around 13 years. In the United States, more than 12 million cars are processed every year. Recyclable components of vehicles include resin, foam, fabric, iron, rubber, glass and wood, wire, metal and paper.
