The European Union already has
directives requiring car companies to be
responsible for the recovery of a car at the end of its life.
By January of 2015, for all end-of-life
vehicles, the reuse and recovery is to be a minimum of 95% by an average weight
per vehicle and year. The reuse and recycling will be increased to a minimum of
85% by an average weight per vehicle and year. The vehicles produced have to
have low energy consumption, easy dismantling, suitable recycling, and less
toxic metals.
Essentially, the car
manufacturers are leasing the cars because they are getting them back in the
end.
By putting the responsibility of
disposal on the manufacturer, manufacturers are becoming more innovative in
design and material use.
If a company
knows it is gaining material back at the end of the life cycle, it can save
money and design for easier disassembly.
In the United States,
Ford has announced a plan to cut landfill waste by
41%. The five year plan of Ford would take the 22.7 pounds of waste per vehicle
in 2011 and cut it to 13.4 pounds of waste per vehicle by the year 2016.
They had previously cut waste by 40% from the
2007 amount of 37.9 pounds per vehicle down to the 2011 of 22.7 pounds per
vehicle. By keeping with these improvements in design, Ford is significantly
reducing waste to the landfill.
Ford has
also announced that it plans to reduce its energy use in factories by 25
percent.
Ford's Chief Executive Officer,
Alan Mulally, has introduced new hybrids and plug-in models in the past
year.
They are self-proclaimed
"environmental industrialists", supporting sustainability and fuel
efficiency.
(Pictured above is the new model of a fuel efficient Ford Fusion. Personally, I think it looks pretty sleek.) In Flat Rock, Michigan,
Ford's assembly plant is the flagship for many pilot projects.
The paint solids that would normally be sent
to landfills is being sent to nearby utility companies as a source of
fuel.
Metallic particles, abrasives, and
oils left from production of engine and transmission parts is being reduced by
the use of less oil during lubrication.
Such projects have now been introduced in Ford's Chicago and Dearborn
assembly plants.
In 2012, the company
was able to create $225 million by recycling 568,000 tons of scrap metal in the
United States and Canada.
Obviously, there are many steps the auto industry
has taken toward a more sustainable future.
With governments intervening through implementation
of more stringent laws, innovative car designs are producing less waste.
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle.
We see this all over the University of
Florida's campus.
It is reassuring to read that an industry notorious for pollution is following suit. Reuse the metal, the
nuts, and the bolts.
Reduce the fuel needed
to run the cars and machines.
Reduce the
raw materials extracted for new cars.
Recycle electrical parts and scrap metals.
As the second largest automaker in the United
States, Ford is leading the industry toward a more sustainable future.
Hopefully, others will follow their
lead.
Hopefully, the United States
government
follows the European Union's
lead.
It seems like I end every blog
with hope.
Hope for the future. Hope
that it's not too late.
Hope for change.
I read a statistic awhile ago that the average number of automobiles in a U.S. household tends to outnumber the actual number of people in the household. Some people have multiple automobiles. Perhaps a truck for work, a sports car for the weekend, and a larger family vehicle for everyday trips. That's a lot of vehicles. Getting U.S. car companies to take responsibility for their vehicles cradle-to-cradle is going to be a long, tough road but I'm glad to see some steps are initially being taken now by Ford to reduce their amount of waste. While I am completely on board for automobile companies to reuse materials from older vehicles, reduce the amount of materials that go into new vehicles, and recycle whatever materials can't be used - I have issues with all the hybrid and similar vehicles. First, the components and resources that go into making the batteries and parts for a lot of these vehicles are often not very sustainable in the long-run. Second, by continually supporting personal vehicles we are not encouraging people to take forms of mass transit or other alternative modes of transportation. Transportation is a tough subject to tackle since it encompasses so much of our daily lives and the goods we need to survive. Like you, I like to believe there is hope and things will eventually change for the better in all that we do.
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