Under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976 (RCRA), 42 U.S.C. 6962, the Environmental Protection Agency issued rules in 40 CFR part 247 allowing the use of certain waste by-products as substitutes for energy-intensive raw materials. These by-products are known as recovered materials. EPA’s rules state that agencies should use construction products containing recovered materials to the maximum extent feasible if technical specifications allow their alternative use. RCRA does not require the use of products containing recovered materials if they will not meet performance requirements or their use would be unsatisfactory for technical reasons.
