Environmental and Economic Impact
- Total Recycled Copper (2022): Approximately 830,000 metric tons of copper scrap were recycled in the U.S., accounting for 32% of the nation’s total copper supply. 
- Sources of Scrap:
- Pre-consumer (manufacturing waste): ~670,000 metric tons (81%)
- Post-consumer (end-of-life products): ~160,000 metric tons (19%) 
- The U.S. exported about 50% of its copper scrap in 2022, largely due to limited domestic capacity for processing complex scrap grades.
- Recycling copper uses up to 85% less energy than producing new copper from ore, significantly reducing greenhouse gas emissions. 
- Copper is 100% recyclable without any loss in performance, and about 80% of all copper ever mined is still in use today. 
- Urban Mining Potential: North America has an estimated 86 million metric tons of copper in use across infrastructure, buildings, and products, which will become available for recycling as these assets reach the end of their life cycles.
