Alaska Lead Infographic
Lead is a helpful and harmful heavy metal, which is why proper use and disposal is important.
Lead’s unique properties provide for some interesting uses. In the past, lead was used in a wide variety of products, including cosmetics, plumbing pipes, paint, roofs, gutters, cooking pots, solder, statues and even ornaments. Lead is easy to cast and mold into whatever shape was needed. And the solder held up for years in those old windows. Then science caught up, and lead use has been scaled back to limited products due to the discovery that it is toxic. Today, it is mostly used in lead acid batteries, like the ones found in conventional automobiles, ammunition, radiation shielding, solder and casting. The U.S. has gone to great lengths with its lead-acid battery recycling programs, and in 2019, we recycled 99% of all used lead-acid batteries.
Lead is one of the primary metals found and mined in Alaska, with over 100,000 tons mined annually worth over $1 million.
As of 2018, Alaska had 2% of the world’s lead reserves. (DGGS)
