Vehicles, essential to society, are continually increasing in use. However, throughout their life cycle vehicles impact the environment in several ways: energy and resource consumption, waste generation during manufacturing and use, and disposal at the end of their useful lives. About 75 percent of end-of-life vehicles (ELV), mainly metals, are recyclable in the European Union. The rest (~25 %) of the vehicle is considered waste and generally goes to landfills. Environmental legislation of the European Union requires the reduction of this waste to a maximum of 5 percent by 2015. Shredding steps include dismantling small parts for recycling, hulk shredding, and ferrous and non-ferrous metal separation. The separated materials will likely go to automakers for use in the production of the same components from which they are issued. Energy can be recovered from combustible parts of ELV by using them instead of fossil fuels in industrial operations, such as cement plants. The remaining part of the vehicles, ELV waste, will go to a landfill under strict waste control. This will be material for which there is not justification for recovery. In an increasingly global economy, the goals of the E.U. directives are becoming a sensitive issue for worldwide vehicle production. The regulatory approach to automobile recycling in Japan is compared with the E.U. directive in Table II. It is clear that most of the selected items (i.e., schedule, car manufacturer's obligations, costs) are similar. In both cases, the car manufacturer has an essential role in the infrastructure system of waste prevention, collection, and treatment of ELV.
End-of-life vehicle recycling in the European Union
Schrottfahrzeug-Recycling in der Europäischen Union
JOM - The Journal of the Minerals, Metals and Materials Society ; 55 , 8 ; 15-19
2003
5 Seiten, 5 Bilder, 2 Tabellen, 8 Quellen
Article (Journal)
English
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