Micro Business Opportunities for Recycled Materials

• Document Text
• Glass Manufacturing ResourcesJanuary 18, 2000
• Metal Manufacturing ResourcesJanuary 18, 2000
• Paper Manufacturing ResourcesJanuary 18, 2000
• Additional Small Scale Environmentally Sustainable Business OpportunitiesJanuary 18, 2000
  • Fine Lumber Products
  • Compost
  • Biodiesel Fuel
  • Soap
  • Texitles
  • Fly Ash - Concrete
  • Scrap Tires
  • Reuse and Local Exchange Programs
  • Repair Shops
  • Reupholstery and Furniture Repair

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Environmentally Sustainable Economic Development

An Integrated Approach

The purpose of this report is to provide some preliminary information on opportunities for the high value utilization of recovered materials. This concept, and its implementation, can combine the key issues of environmental sustainability, economic vitality, and the need for in-region market development in a mutually beneficial way.

Across the country, environmentalists and economic developers have been at loggerheads with each other over many crucial issues: spotted owls versus timber harvesting; paper pulping versus water quality and public health; wetland habitats versus development and expansion; biodiversity, ozone depletion, global warming, etc. These groups can no longer afford the luxury of that win-lose stance and need to devise additional ways to work together to creatively solve problems and resolve conflicts. A healthy environment and a vital economy are mutually inclusive factors. One of the strongest threats to the environment is a depressed economy. Conversely, a degraded environment is a serious deterrent to economic vitality, adversely impacting such issues as worker productivity, absenteeism, product rejects, expansion and new business recruiting, and more. It is the intent of this report to demonstrate the benefits and feasibility of environmental and economic concerns working together in one small ways to address the challenges that are facing many areas throughout this country.

The Feasibility of "Traditional" Recycling

In response to public demand, legislative mandates, and higher landfill costs, recycling opportunities have become more prevalent throughout the country. One result of this is that an ever increasing number of localities are facing the challenge of offsetting the low and negative "value" of collecting, processing and transporting those materials. Wildly fluctuating market prices for recovered materials, contamination issues, distance to markets, and lack of and changing markets are some of the factors which compound the difficulty of the situation. In these times of ever tighter budgets and funding options, justifying the feasibility of collecting materials, shipping them somewhere else, to be processed into some product by someone else, and then potentially bought back by you is increasingly difficult.

Rural America has traditionally shipped the bulk of its natural resources out at low value, frequently missing the opportunity to create value added products which would increase local employment and potentially income. Timber and agricultural products have regularly been shipped out of the regions where they are produced, in bulk unprocessed form. Recovered materials are following the same pattern. Glass, metal, paper, plastic, etc. are collected and shipped many miles or several states away in bulk unprocessed, or only slightly processed form..

Additionally, many early recycled content product development ideas focused on products and processes, which would use as much material as possible in their production, regardless of the sale price of the product. This is completely counter to good business sense which focuses on product development using the least amount of "raw" materials to produce the most or the highest value products.

Economic Opportunities

This report highlights three high value-added business opportunities which can utilize locally recovered materials as feedstocks: hand blown and pressed glass; cast and hand forged metal; and handmade sheet and cast paper. The information includes samples of the types of products which can be produced, cost of equipment for a range of production levels, and resource information for further exploration of the concepts.

This basic concept views recovered materials as a resource to the community, which can be evaluated for their most effective and efficient use. These micro business opportunities for recovered materials can provide opportunities for: cost effective recycling, small business development, tourism, economic diversity, education, and apprenticeship.

These concepts can be applied in both rural and urban environments. Anywhere, in fact, that there is a need for additional employment opportunities for people and an unutilized or under utilized waste product.

Small-Scale Glass Manufacturing Resource List

Small-Scale Metal Manufacturing Resource List

Small-Scale Paper Manufacturing Resource List

Additional Small Scale Environmentally Sustainable Business Opportunities

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