Additional Precious Metals Can Be Recovered

The federal government is a large user of items containing gold and silver. In fiscal year (FY) 1976, federal agencies recovered $20.2 million in gold and silver from materials used in day-to-day operations. Additional gold and silver estimated at $15.6 million could have been recovered. Demonstration projects have shown that the Department of Defense (DOD) can identify, segregate, and sort gold and silver items in electronic scrap and reclaim them economically. DOD is the largest recoverer of gold. Silver is used more extensively than gold; photographic and x-ray film contains silver, and film is used by all agencies.