General Motors plans landfill-free factories

General Motors plans landfill-free factories
by David Masters
September 10, 2008
Car maker General Motors (GM) plans to make half of its 181 factories around the world ‘landfill-free’ within the next two years, helping to save the company money and improve its green image.
The US-based automobile giant says 43 of its plants are already landfill-free, meaning that no waste from the manufacturing process ends up in landfill.
Around 40 more GM plants are expected to reduce landfill waste to little or nothing by the end of 2010.
GM is cutting back on waste by reusing or recycling over 95% of materials used in the manufacturing process.
This year the company is expected to save 3 million tons of waste from entering landfill, preventing 3.5 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions.
Scrap metals are sold, boxes for parts are now reusable instead of being made from throw-away cardboard, and used work gloves are recycled.
The company now makes $1 billion per year selling recycled scrap metal. An extra $16 million per year is expected to be generated from selling recycled wood, cardboard, plastic and oil.
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Any waste that cannot be recycled or reused will be incinerated to create energy.
GM, the biggest auto maker in the world, is not the first car manufacturer in America to go landfill free.
In 2004, Suburu announced that its Indiana assembly plant was the first in the US to go landfill free. Nothing from the plant’s manufacturing process ends up in landfill.
Since then, fourteen of Toyota’s eighteen North America factories have been converted to 98% landfill free.
Any waste that cannot be recycled or reused will be incinerated to create energy.
GM, the biggest auto maker in the world, is not the first car manufacturer in America to go landfill free.
In 2004, Suburu announced that its Indiana assembly plant was the first in the US to go landfill free. Nothing from the plant’s manufacturing process ends up in landfill.
Since then, fourteen of Toyota’s eighteen North America factories have been converted to 98% landfill free.

It seems that General Motors is showing and leading the industry in what should be the new standard for the future of the planet. It is great to see a big company step up to the plate.