Civil Agencies Should Save Millions By Recovering Silver From Photographic Wastes - 1981
1981 — GAO urges federal agencies to recover silver from photographic waste to save millions. Adopt DOD’s program, clarify GSA rules, audit labs, and fix controls. Silver recovery conserves resources, cuts pollution, and lowers procurement costs.
Summary:
The July 31, 1981 GAO report (PLRD-81-48) finds that many U.S. civil agencies were dumping silver-laden photographic wastes instead of recovering the metal, forfeiting large savings and risking environmental harm. Recovery is straightforward and highly cost-effective: the Veterans Administration recovered $13.7M of silver in 1980 at ~$185K cost (≈$74 returned per $1 spent). DOD, meanwhile, raised recovered photographic silver from ~200,000 oz (1976) to ~300,000 oz (1980), with market value gains outpacing costs.
GAO attributes weak civil-agency performance to poor incentives (sale proceeds typically returned to Treasury), limited management emphasis, low staff awareness, and uneven GSA support/authority. In a 44-lab sample, only 12 recovered effectively; 19 did not recover at all—dumping an estimated ~6,500 oz/year. Internal controls were often lax: missing inventories, unsecured equipment, slow shipments, and improper offsetting of proceeds against service contracts.
GAO recommends GSA clarify regulations to make recovery mandatory in all government photo labs; agency heads should educate managers, require periodic internal audits, and—where cost-effective—join DOD’s Precious Metals Recovery Program, which offers surveys, training, equipment, turn-in points, and the ability to use reclaimed silver as Government-furnished material. DOD should take steps to accommodate additional civil agencies. Expected benefits: conserve a valuable resource, reduce imports, prevent pollution, and save millions.