Potential for eco-industrial development based on the reuse and recycling of non-hazardous industrial waste in the United States

Non-hazardous industrial waste (NHIW) includes those high-volume industrial residuals like coal ash, iron and steel slag, and paper mill sludge that have been demonstrated to be effective substitutes for energy- and... [ view full abstract ]

Non-hazardous industrial waste (NHIW) includes those high-volume industrial residuals like coal ash, iron and steel slag, and paper mill sludge that have been demonstrated to be effective substitutes for energy- and resource-intensive raw materials elsewhere in the economy. Using a novel triangulation and estimation method, we have assembled the first comprehensive account of NHIW quantities and composition in the United States in more than three decades. This accounting process, which relies on a variety of unique data sources including historical studies, international and state-level data, and industrial materials balances, yielded a total of roughly 250 million metric tons for the year 2013, a figure that stands in stark contrast with the oft-repeated “official” figure of 7.6 billion metric tons.

These results, disaggregated by industry sector and waste material, combined with an ever-growing catalog of demonstrated and proposed waste substitution and valorization pathways, enables for the first time an evaluation of the potential for large-scale reuse and recycling of NHIW to contribute to eco-industrial development in the United States. Here we present our approach to calculating the coupled environmental and economic implications of such a move towards a more circular economy. We also compare the preliminary results of this analysis to other related industrial resource efficiency and sustainability interventions to help contextualize the environmental and economic value of NHIW reuse at different spatial scales.