Roofing Materials: Recycled Content, Recyclability & Low Environmental Impact
The list of materials below is based on three things: how much recycled content goes into making them, whether they can be recycled at the end of their life-cycle, and how much environmental impact they have during production and use. Where relevant, they're checked against common green building standards like LEED and third-party certifications. This isn't a complete list but it does provide a starting point when we are considering the impact of our roofing material choices.
Metal Roofing
Recycled content: Steel used in metal roofing contains at least 25% recycled content. Domestically produced flat-rolled aluminum products contain approximately 80–85% recycled content, copper roofing contains roughly 75% recycled material, and zinc averages around 44%
End-of-life recyclability: Steel, aluminum, copper, and zinc used in metal roofing panels are 100% recyclable, contributing to future products' recycled content.
Production impact: New steel made with recycled material uses as little as 26% of the energy required to make steel from raw materials. Steel's annual recycling rate exceeds 70%, with a recovery rate near 90%.
Recycled Content Asphalt Shingles
Recycled content: Some manufacturers incorporate upcycled rubber from tires and post-consumer plastics into their shingle asphalt, diverting significant volumes of waste — including hundreds of millions of tires and billions of plastic bags — from landfills.
Added benefit: Certain shingles include photocatalytic granule technology that converts nitrogen dioxide into water-soluble nitrate salts, actively reducing air pollution at the rooftop level.
Certifications: Leading products in this category carry third-party GreenCircle Certification for both Recycled Product Content and Waste Diversion from Landfill.
Synthetic/Polymer Shingles
Recycled content: Synthetic shingles are made from recycled plastics and polymers — lightweight, weather-resistant, and more affordable than natural alternatives.
End-of-life recyclability: Synthetic roofing materials are often made from recyclable polymers, meaning they can be recycled at the end of their life cycle.
Production impact: Compared to traditional asphalt shingles or metal roofs, synthetic materials have a lower carbon footprint, making them an essential choice for low-carbon construction goals.
TPO Membranes (Thermoplastic Polyolefin)
Recycled content: Some TPO membranes incorporate recycled material during manufacture and are fully recyclable at end of life.
End-of-life: Take-back programs exist that accept EPDM, TPO, and PVC membranes for recycling in eligible regions, with a Certificate of Recycling provided to participating projects
Transparency: SPRI has published updated Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) for TPO and EPDM membranes from several companies — standardized cradle-to-grave impact documents based on ISO 14025 and ISO 14040.
EPDM Membranes (Ethylene Propylene Diene Monomer)
Recycled content: EPDM is derived from synthetic rubber and, increasingly, manufacturers are incorporating post-industrial rubber scrap into production
End-of-life: Waste removal processing companies can convert solid EPDM and TPO-based roofing materials into oil, eliminating landfill deposits and reducing CO₂ emissions — projects using this service may qualify for LEED or other green building credits.
Standards: EPDs available via SPRI from multiple manufacturers.
Clay & Concrete Tiles
Recycled content: Concrete tiles can incorporate fly ash (a recycled industrial byproduct) as a partial cement replacement.
End-of-life: Clay and concrete tiles can be recycled, although the process is more complex than metal.
Production impact: The production of clay and concrete tiles has a relatively low environmental impact, especially when sourced locally.Their lifespan of 50–100 years dramatically reduces lifecycle impacts vs. shorter-lived materials.