Case Study: Reducing Mercury in the Recycling Stream One pressing problem in the use of scrap from vehicles is the presence of mercury. Automakers use mercury in various applications. Until recently, the most prevalent use was in hood and trunk convenience light switches and anti-lock breaking systems (ABS) in domestic automobiles. In 2003, automakers phased out the use of mercury-containing switches in new vehicles. However, few automotive dismantlers removed these switches from the retired vehicles they received before the vehicles were flattened or shredded, so mercury was being carried into the recycling stream. To address this problem, several states have passed laws or created voluntary programs prompting the recovery of mercury switches from end-of-life vehicles. EPA, steelmakers, automakers, recyclers, states and other stakeholders are now trying to address the problem nationally in order to recover mercury switches and reduce associated emissions from steelmaking in the short-term and to reduce the use of toxic materials in new products in the future.