Iron and steel recycling in the United States in 1998

Consumption of iron and steel scrap and the health of the scrap industry depend directly on the health of the steelmaking industry. The United States, as well as most of the world, is expected to consume increasing amounts of scrap as a steadily increasing population demands more steel products. World resources of scrap should be sufficient for the foreseeable future. An estimated 75 million metric tons (Mt) of scrap was generated during 1998 in the United States, and 35 Mt of old scrap and 18 Mt of new scrap was consumed. The recycling efficiency was calculated to be 52%, and the recycling rate was found to be 41%. (See appendix for definitions.)