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(Washington, DC) – The Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI), the Voice of the Recycling Industry™, celebrates America Recycles Day on Sunday by applauding all individuals who make a strong effort to recycle as part of daily life, and encouraging all to learn more about recycling and the industry. America Recycles Day, a national initiative of Keep America Beautiful, takes place every November 15 in an effort to promote and celebrate recycling in the U.S. Each year it provides Americans with an important reminder not only of the need to recycle, but also the positive impact the recycling industry has on the environment, energy savings, and the economy.

“America Recycles Day 2015 comes at a time when many in the media are questioning the value of recycling,” said Robin Wiener, president of ISRI. “While some of the sector is indeed facing challenges, the overall industry is strong and vibrant. Recycling is an evolving industry, constantly developing new markets around the globe, and making advancements to allow more items into the recycling stream. The public is more educated and engaged on the importance of recycling, and through activities such as America Recycles Day the level of understand of recycling will continue to grow. Recycling has a bright future, and therefore so does our planet.”

ISRI and the recycling industry stand ready to serve as a catalyst to not only promote recycling at all levels, but also to work with and encourage manufacturers to design products with recycling in mind.”

Recycling is the first link in the manufacturing supply chain. Just last year, the U.S. recycling industry transformed more than 135 million metric tons of obsolete materials into useful raw materials to manufacture into new products.

While more than 70 percent of scrap recyclables processed in the U.S. are consumed at home, global demand for scrap also provides a useful outlet for our nation’s excess scrap supply. Since 2004, net exports of U.S. scrap have made a positive contribution to our balance of trade amounting to more than $185 billion. According to figures from the U.S. Census Bureau and U.S. International Trade Commission, the United States exported nearly 40 million metric tons of scrap commodities valued at almost $21 billion in 2014.

Recycling facilities provide jobs all across the country. In fact, the U.S. scrap recycling industry provides 471,587 adults with good jobs in the United States and generates over $105.81 billion annually in economic activity.

Not only does recycling conserve our limited natural resources, it also reduces greenhouse gas emissions by significantly saving the amount of energy needed to manufacture the products that we buy, build, and use every day. The energy saved by recycling may then be used for other purposes, such as heating our homes and powering our automobiles.