Manufacturing Waste Management Trend
The following graph shows the 10-year trend in TRI chemical waste managed through recycling, energy recovery, treatment, and disposal or other releases by the manufacturing sectors. For more details on quantities released, toggle to the “Releases only” graph.
Note: For comparability, trend graphs include only those chemicals that were reportable to TRI for all years presented.
From 2012 to 2021:
An industry's value added is the market value it adds in production; it is the difference between the price at which it sells its products and the cost of its inputs. Value added for all U.S. industries combined is equal to the nation's gross domestic product.
- Quantities of production-related waste managed by the manufacturing sectors generally increased from 2012 to 2018. Since then, these quantities have fluctuated.
- Releases and treatment of chemical waste decreased, while recycling and combustion for energy recovery increased.
- It is important to consider how the economy influences waste generation at facilities. This figure includes the trend in the manufacturing sectors’ value added (represented by the black line, as reported by the Bureau of Economic Analysis, Value Added by Industry).
- Since 2012, value added by the manufacturing sectors increased by 17% while waste managed increased by 29%, driven by increased recycling. The large increase in recycled chemical waste started in 2014 and was driven by several facilities that each reported recycling one billion pounds or more annually in recent years.
- The increase in waste managed is greater than the increase in value added, which may suggest that manufacturing facilities managed more waste per unit of product in 2021 than in 2012.
From 2020 to 2021:
- Production-related waste managed increased by 594 million pounds (2%), while value added increased by 7%.
- Manufacturing activity increased more than waste managed, which may suggest that manufacturers managed less waste per unit of product in 2021 than in 2020.
- In 2021, only 5% of the manufacturing sectors’ waste generated was released into the environment, while the rest was managed through treatment, energy recovery, and recycling.
The following graph shows the 10-year trend in quantities of TRI chemicals released by facilities in manufacturing sectors.
Note: For comparability, trend graphs include only those chemicals that were reportable to TRI for all years presented.
From 2012 to 2021:
- TRI chemical releases from manufacturing sectors decreased by 6%, primarily due to reductions in releases to air (71 million pounds) and water (20 million pounds).
- Off-site disposal or other releases increased slightly (2%). On-site land disposal remained about the same (<1% decrease).
From 2020 to 2021:
- Releases increased by 92 million pounds (7%), driven by the chemical manufacturing and primary metal manufacturing sectors.
Source Reduction in the Manufacturing Sectors
In 2021, 8% of manufacturing facilities initiated over 3,200 source reduction activities to reduce TRI chemical use and waste creation. The most reported type of source reduction activity was Process and Equipment Modifications. For example:
- A paperboard box manufacturer replaced process components and performed maintenance activities to improve cleaning system efficiency, which reduced the amount of N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone managed as waste. [Click to view facility details in the TRI P2 Search Tool]
- A motor vehicle parts manufacturer introduced technological upgrades, including the use of radio frequency identification (RFID) tracking, to eliminate waste when spray painting parts. [Click to view facility details in the TRI P2 Search Tool].
You can learn more about pollution prevention opportunities in this sector by using the TRI P2 Search Tool. Facilities interested in exploring pollution prevention opportunities at their site can contact their Regional P2 Coordinator to arrange a free on-site P2 assessment.
This page was published in March 2023 and uses the 2021 TRI National Analysis dataset made public in TRI Explorer in October 2022.