Can asphalt roof shingles be recycled?
— Kate Prendergast, Warwick, NY Asphalt shingles are the most common type of roofing material used for residential homes today. In fact, the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) estimates that up to 60 percent of dwellings use them. Each year, the re-roofing of homes in the U.S. generates about 11 million tons of waste shingles–at a cost of more than $400 million in disposal fees alone. Meanwhile, more than 60 manufacturing plants generate up to one million tons of new material every year. This enormous glut has led to the relatively new practice of shingle recycling. Asphalt roofing shingles have great recycling potential because they are easy to isolate. Shingles are then ground into small pieces, and can then be reused in a variety of ways. Currently, almost all recycled asphalt shingles are used in paving, because of the costs savings they can yield. But they can also be used for new roofing and for fuel oil, according to the California Integrated Waste Management Board.
