New Life for Old Carpets

The American carpet industry continues to grow. According to the trade publication Carpet & Rug Industry, 1.6 billion square yards (1.3 billion m²) of carpet were shipped in 1996, enough to cover all five New York boroughs more than one and a half times. To produce that carpet, over 2 billion pounds (900 million kg) of nylon fiber were used, 800 million pounds (360 million kg) of polypropylene, and 230 million pounds (105 million kg) of polyester. Roughly 70% of the new carpet purchased goes to replace existing carpet—for commercial settings the figure is closer to 80%. Estimates of the amount of carpet discarded every year range from 3.5 to 4 billion pounds (1.6 to 1.8 billion kg), accounting for 1% of all solid waste by weight, or 2% by volume.

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