This website shocked me because when you think of using recycled products that makes you feel good...but now it seems it can be bad...
April 27, 2011: "In the first publicly available study of its kind, a type of recycled foam carpet pad commonly sold in the Michigan was demonstrated to contain flame retardant chemicals linked to diseases and disorders." These chemicals are: PentaBDE and OctaBDE. They are banned in 12 states and 170 countries. Along with the samples from Michigan they also found that the ones from Alaska, New York, and Washington contained the toxic substances. From Michigan they tested four samples, two were new and two were recycled. The results were the new padding contained no traces of the hazardous substances, while the recycled ones contained them. Further more, the samples through the study not only contained the substances, they were also over the indicated waste level.
PentaBDE and OctaBDE throughout it's life span is released through dust particles. These chemicals are added to padding as flame retardants. So the materials being recycled to create the carpet padding had contained the substances. They are trying to crack down on companies who put these chemicals on their products, which has worked some. The issue lies in the fact that there is no restriction on the materials we recycle that contain PentaBDE and OctaBDE....
This blog like site gives different information depending on what's going on in the news or what information they can find. In 2002, almost 4.7 billion pounds of carpet were thrown into landfills in the United States. Sadly, only 3.8% of the carpet discarded in 2002 were recycled. The reason why this number is so low can be contributed to different factors. One being there really isn't a finely toned structure behind the collecting and processing of discarded carpet. In hope for a better system of recycling carpet, the National Carpet Recycling Agreement was created. It aims to before 2012: reuse 3-5%, recycle 20-25%, use 3% for alternative fuel source and as an additive in cement, and waste-to-energy 1%.
A question being posed is: "I have a carpet made out of recycled PET bottles in my baby’s room and I started noticing a lot of the fibers on our clothes and even in my mouth! Is it dangerous for me or my baby to be in contact with and possibly ingest these fibers?"
This was posed in July 2011, which is rather recent. The website answered by saying that there is no evidence (yet) proving that polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastics are harmful to us, but that precautions should still be taken. Like don't put it in your mouth, and vacuum often. PET carpet is recycled from plastic soda and water bottles. It's an excellent material in that it requires very little maintenance. It's even concluded that PET carpet is better than the lower grades of fiber found in new carpet. The PET carpet is downcycled when it's reached the end of its span to be used as insulation, car parts, or even furniture stuffing. For every square yard of PET carpet 40 plastics bottles are taken out of our landfills. In turn, PET carpet requires less energy and creates less pollutants.
Here are some products that can be created from recycled carpet: recycled carpet, carpet pad, auto parts, flooring, plastic lumber, roof shingles, erosion control and oil absorbent items, park benches, and high-energy fuel. Over 4 million pounds of carpet of disposed of in landfills. That accounts for about 3.5%.
In 2008, the Carpet and Rug Institute (CRI) published a Sustainability Report. Within it, they wrote about how the carpet industries have changed throughout the years in a better way.
This graph shows the amount of electricity used, and how that decreased in a 2 year span.
This graph displays the different types of energy used to create carpet, and how that has changed through the years.
This graph shows the amount of waste material the carpet industries used in the manufacturing of their carpet.
CRI members have found way to use all parts of old carpet so that less is put within landfills. Excess carpet is sometimes cut down to become rugs. The trimmings, backings, and yarn are sent to recycling places where they transform them into other items like fence posts, carpet padding, furniture and cushion stuffing, used in concrete, road underlayment, and auto parts. Additional materials used in the production of carpet like cardboard, paper, and much more are recycled.
Benefits of Recycling
In flooring materials sold, carpet accounts for about 70% within the developed world. 90% of all that carpet sold is "tufted" carpet or wall to wall carpet. "Tufted" carpet is made from synthetic fibers and is coated with chemicals to protect it. Due to the problem of what to do with old carpet, an industry of recycling carpet emerged and its name is CARE (Carpet America Recovery Effort). CARE is a non-profit organization that wishes to better the environment and our future. The good thing is carpet companies now give information out to customers when they wish to get rid of their out carpet. If only recycling was free, but it's NOT!!! A square yard of carpet weighs about 4 lbs, and it costs about 5 to 25 cents per pound. Certain factors consider how much it costs, and their are: the kind of carpet, how it was installed, and customers location.
Green Your
Here's steps that consumers can follow in order to recycle their old carpet.
1. Old carpet that isn't badly worn old, torn, or stained can be donated to charities like Habitat for Humanity or used carpet outlets. 500,000 pounds of carpet were sold as used carpet in 2006.
2. If the carpet isn't in great condition, then a recycling center is the way to go. CARE is a resource that can help consumers locate the closest recycling center. Sadly, it's not free to recycle your carpet. Private recyclers can charge cost between 5 to 25 cents per pound. Used carpet weighs .5 pounds per square foot, and with about 1,000 square feet it could cost you $25 to $125 to recycle.
3. To save money consumers can take their old carpet and reuse it elsewhere like as rugs, car mats, lining the inside of a truck or van, and many more.
Eco-$mart
888-329-2705
4411 Bee Ridge Rd. #344
Sarasota, FL 34233
Eco-$mart is a company that sells products for your house that are green and helps the environment. It's located in Florida, and even provides their own catalog.
Benefits of Recycling
In flooring materials sold, carpet accounts for about 70% within the developed world. 90% of all that carpet sold is "tufted" carpet or wall to wall carpet. "Tufted" carpet is made from synthetic fibers and is coated with chemicals to protect it. Due to the problem of what to do with old carpet, an industry of recycling carpet emerged and its name is CARE (Carpet America Recovery Effort). CARE is a non-profit organization that wishes to better the environment and our future. The good thing is carpet companies now give information out to customers when they wish to get rid of their out carpet. If only recycling was free, but it's NOT!!! A square yard of carpet weighs about 4 lbs, and it costs about 5 to 25 cents per pound. Certain factors consider how much it costs, and their are: the kind of carpet, how it was installed, and customers location.
Green Your
Here's steps that consumers can follow in order to recycle their old carpet.
1. Old carpet that isn't badly worn old, torn, or stained can be donated to charities like Habitat for Humanity or used carpet outlets. 500,000 pounds of carpet were sold as used carpet in 2006.
2. If the carpet isn't in great condition, then a recycling center is the way to go. CARE is a resource that can help consumers locate the closest recycling center. Sadly, it's not free to recycle your carpet. Private recyclers can charge cost between 5 to 25 cents per pound. Used carpet weighs .5 pounds per square foot, and with about 1,000 square feet it could cost you $25 to $125 to recycle.
3. To save money consumers can take their old carpet and reuse it elsewhere like as rugs, car mats, lining the inside of a truck or van, and many more.
Eco-$mart
888-329-2705
4411 Bee Ridge Rd. #344
Sarasota, FL 34233
Eco-$mart is a company that sells products for your house that are green and helps the environment. It's located in Florida, and even provides their own catalog.
They sell carpet that is made from renewable resources. There are different varieties of the carpet they offer and they are: wool, sea grass, mountain grass carpet, and bio-floor. The Bio-Floor carpet consists of biodegradable materials that are 100% natural and raw. It is made from 100% natural wool and 100% natural pigments and bonding agents.
Eco-$mart also sells 100% Recycled PET Carpet and recycled padding for the carpet.
Great Research, Emily - very detailed and seems you are really learning a lot thus far.
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