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Lead’s green agenda

November 20, 2009 - 00:00 GMT

Recycling is an essential component of lead use, but such operations are not always environmentally sound in all countries. A collaborative programme has successfully transformed the situation in Central America, and similar projects are under way around the world, reports Steve Karpel.

Lead recycling contributes more than half of the total global production of refined lead – the highest fraction of any of the major metals. Last year, for example, total refined lead output was put at 8.679m tonnes, while contained lead output from mining was 3.913m tonnes, reports the Lisbon-based International Lead and Zinc Study Group (ILZSG). A specific figure for world secondary refined lead production for last year is given as 4.736m tonnes by WBMS of the UK (see table). This was a 10% increase from the previous year. For the first half of 2009, there was a 2.1% fall year-on-year to 2.394m tonnes, with the sharper drop in most regions being counterbalanced by a substantial 21.4% rise in China. A similar pattern is reported by ILZSG, which notes a 7.3% year-on-year fall to 1.646m tonnes in western world secondary lead production in the first half, while that in China...

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