In this photo taken Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2009, a pall of smoke rises from a major blaze at a chemical factory that recycles used chemicals and oil, in Bellville, South Africa. South Africa has strict laws to protect the environment, and joins other countries in the ongoing global warming debate, although the effect of fires like this one are largely uncalculated.

Multi-hole recycle bins dot the convention hall at the Greenbuild International Conference and Expo convention Wednesday, Nov. 11, 2009, in Phoenix. About 1,000 companies are showing off products and scoping out their competitors this week as 26,000 convention-goers are scheduled to attend the conference organized and paid for by the U.S. Green Building Council.

A Palestinian man puts his hand on new blocks made of recycled cement at a factory east of Gaza City, Sunday, Nov. 8, 2009. Due to the Israeli blockade, cement is scare in Gaza and shipments that come from Egypt through the tunnels are very expensive. As a result, many cement factories take rubble from destroyed houses and pulverize it in order to make new cement blocks.

A Palestinian man walks past new blocks made of recycled cement at a factory east of Gaza City, Sunday, Nov. 8, 2009. Due to the Israeli blockade, cement is scare in Gaza and shipments that come from Egypt through the tunnels are very expensive. As a result, many cement factories take rubble from destroyed houses and pulverize it in order to make new cement blocks.

A towering fountain of water gushes onto a Los Angeles street from a ruptured water main Monday, Nov. 2, 2009. The city's Department of Water and Power said the 54-inch water main sent thousands of gallons of recycled water pouring onto Van Nuys Boulevard in mid-morning.

FILE - In this March 17, 2008 file photo, a truck loaded with recycled cardboard arrives at The Weyerhaeuser Co. Hueneme Paper Mill plant in Oxnard, Calif. The company said Friday, Oct. 30, 2009, it broke even in the third quarter, partly on after-tax proceeds of $98 million from the sale of 143,000 acres of Oregon timberland.

FILE - In this Oct. 22, 2007 file photo, Waste Management workers pickup trash in a Spring, Texas neighborhood. Waste Management Inc., the nation's largest trash hauler, on Thursday, Oct. 29, 2009 said that third-quarter profit sank, despite rising prices for recycled commodities and cost-cutting.

In this Oct. 27, 2009 photo, a contractor worker installs a sprinkler system that uses recycled water at the newly built SheaHomes townhouses at the Victoria Gardens development in Rancho Cucamonga, Calif. The economy grew at a 3.5 percent pace in the third quarter, the best showing in two years, fueled by government-supported spending on cars and homes.

FILE - In this Aug. 6, 2009 photo, a crane lifts a flattened car to a shredder at Gershow Recycling Corp. in Medford, N.Y. Cash for Clunkers may be history for car shoppers, but the program's largesse lives on in recycling yards around the country. A torrent of traded-in clunkers have arrived at auto recyclers in the past two months and are still waiting to be drained of fluids, stripped of valuable parts and eventually flattened.