Media Invited to See Vehicle Recycling at Argonne

Experts from USCAR's Vehicle Recycling Partnership, Argonne National Laboratory and the American Plastics Council will host a media event on Thursday, Nov. 10, at Argonne (just south of Chicago) in advance of America Recycles Day (Nov. 15, 2005).

The event begins at 9:30 a.m. with registration and a program of speakers including representatives of the three organizations. Following at 11 a.m. will be a tour of the Argonne plastics recycling pilot plant.

With the European Union's end-of-life vehicle regulations soon to take effect in Europe, the U.S. automakers have a story to tell in terms of what is already in place here; what's occurred without government regulation or added consumer taxes; and the leadership role the automakers continue to play.

  Among the facts:

   -- Ninety-five percent of all vehicles in the United States go through a
      market-driven recycling infrastructure that currently recycles over 75
      percent, by weight, of each end-of-life vehicle.

   -- The USCAR Vehicle Recycling Partnership is participating in its third
      Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with the U.S.
      Department of Energy's Argonne National Laboratory and the American
      Plastics Council to develop technologies that optimally recycle the
      remaining 20 to 25 percent of each end-of-life vehicle within the
      current market-driven infrastructure.

   -- The U.S. auto industry's leadership in this area will enable the
      creation of usable recycled plastics for various uses.  USCAR's VRP is
      taking the lead in research to remove substances of concern from the
      shredder residue that results from automotive and non-automotive
      recycling, regardless of its source.

   -- Amid current energy issues, U.S. automakers continue to develop more
      energy efficient vehicles, which include new lightweight composite
      materials.  The USCAR VRP seeks to optimize recycling of all vehicles,
      no matter what the age and content.  While meeting today's needs, the
      VRP is actively working to anticipate and meet the recycling needs of
      components and parts that will be in future and emerging vehicles like
      hybrids and fuel cell vehicles.

For more information, contact Catherine Foster, (630) 252-5580 or cfoster@anl.gov or Evelyn Brown, (630) 252-5510 or eabrown@anl.gov. Argonne is located 25 miles southwest of Chicago's Loop off I-55 at the South Cass Avenue exit.