Splicetoday

Pop Culture
Aug 12, 2008, 10:02AM

The Next Gold Rush

As the price of commodities continues to rise, some are looking towards an untapped resource full of valuable plastics and metals: landfills. Dump mining has already been going on in the U.S. and is under consideration in Europe. So get out the pickax and sieve, because it's time to get dirty.

Trash.jpg?ixlib=rails 2.1

American natural resources.

The value of second-hand plastic has risen so rapidly that mining operations to dig it out of rubbish dumps are forecast to begin within the decade.

Waste suitable for recycling is already being dug out of landfill sites in the United States and it is thought that commodity prices are on the verge of making it a profitable option in Britain.

Landfill sites from the 1980s onwards would be the first to be considered for mining because there are good records of what is in them, including the location of hazardous materials such as asbestos, and because before then plastic was discarded in much lower quantities.

The forecast comes after The Times reported yesterday that the prices of recycled materials, including plastic, paper and metal cans, had increased greatly over the past six years. What was once considered to be mere rubbish is now providing recycling companies with a valuable source of income, but many local authorities have missed out on the green bonanza because they are locked into disposal contracts that run for between 20 and 30 years.

Discussion

Register or Login to leave a comment