Several steps toward recovery
Voluntary regulation
Cars are already among the most recyclable and recycled of consumer products, although experience in developing countries—where ancient vehicles are sometimes kept running seemingly forever—suggests that more is technically possible. In practice, this effort is not cost effective in developed countries, where cars are scrapped once they are beyond "economical" repair.
 A Saturn team member prepares a polymer plastic body panel for assembly. Flawed panels are grouped into small pieces and remolded as useful Saturn car parts. |
Some countries such as Sweden and the Netherlands have had ELV systems in place for some time; Sweden since the 1970s and the Netherlands since the early 1990s. Approximately nine million ELVs are discarded each year in Europe, with about 25% going to landfills. Many automakers and suppliers have already initiated voluntary programs. The European PVC industry, for one, has voluntarily agreed to increase the amount of ELV recycling and to end the use of cadmium as a stabilizer, offering to improve the eco-efficiency of its production processes and improve waste management. The industry is hoping that the agreement, now signed by four PVC trade associations, will make the European Council back down from placing any restrictions on the production and disposal of PVC in its upcoming PVC policy paper.
Many OEMs have taken a proactive approach to recyclability, addressing "a greener world" and co-creating "recycling societies" in corporate environmental action plans. "Saturn's environmental vision is woven right into the company's philosophy that dedicates Saturn 'to meet the needs of our neighbors' by protecting the environment and conserving natural resources," said Cynthia Trudell, Chairman and President of Saturn Corp. According to Trudell, Saturn is concerned with how its cars affect the environment throughout the car's lifetime—from design, to manufacture, to use by owners, to final disposal.
Ultimately, Saturn's goal is to make new parts and products out of each one of its cars when they reach the end of their life cycle. In June 1999, Saturn, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the University of Tennessee's Center for Clean Products and Clean Technologies entered into a partnership called "Design for the Environment," which promotes cleaner production practices and pollution reduction throughout the life cycle of Saturn vehicles. The partnership focuses on recyclability of supplier parts used in Saturn vehicles and builds upon the gains made by a previous and ongoing partnership, which focuses on the recyclability of vehicle parts produced by Saturn itself.
"The strong relationship between Saturn and its suppliers presents unique opportunities for making substantial environmental gains," said Bill Miller, Manager of Environmental Affairs for Saturn. "These partnerships hold real promise for adding substantial knowledge of cost-effective methods for reducing the overall environmental footprint associated with making cars." Another primary benefit is that relatively small gains in environmental performance achieved at one company can be magnified when applied over the 400-company Saturn supply chain.
 Under the CARE Car project, DaimlerChrysler and 26 suppliers developed two vehicles that optimize the use of recycled materials. Ideas developed in the two project vehicles, both Dodge Stratus models, will be assessed for wider use throughout DaimlerChrysler. |
"In the not too distant future, environmental consideration, like ISO 14001 (the environmental management standard), will be required to do business just like the ISO 9000 quality standard is today," said Dan McDonald, Vice President of Purchasing, Saturn Corp. A key to recycling is the ability to separate materials and prepare them for reprocessing. For example, car seats are often made by embedding the springs into the foam padding. Saturn keeps foam and springs separate, making components easy to separate for recycling at the end of the car's life cycle.
Reprocessing and recycling have been designed into the manufacturing process. More than 35% of each vehicle Saturn produces is made from recycled materials, including recycled steel from the space frame, aluminum in the engine and wheels, and reprocessed polymers for body panels. In the last five years, Saturn claims to have recycled more than 227,000 t (250,000 ton) of waste. Because of the difficulty with disposing of the painted plastic body panels and fascias, Saturn regrinds and reuses plastic, eliminating the cost of raw materials as well as the cost of disposal.
Teaming up with General Motors Research and a group of suppliers, Saturn also developed breakthrough technology for painted polymer recycling. Virtually all of Saturn's painted and unpainted polymer scrap is reground and remolded to create new products. Some of the scrap polymer is recycled into faux marble countertops. Other scrap is made into wheel-well liners and rocker panels.
The same technology is used with damaged parts returned by Saturn retailers. In 1994, Saturn introduced a program to all of its North American retailers allowing them to return damaged bumper fascias for recycling. Saturn's transportation partner, Ryder, picks up the parts at the retailer during normal runs. This effort is one of the first commercial examples of closed-loop auto-parts recycling in North America, claims Saturn.
