"Unfortunately, much legislation, both EU-and Westminster-driven, is contributing to these difficulties," he said.

Brussels' directives on old vehicles, or landfilled waste among others, state that manufacturers must shoulder the responsibility for disposing of the waste created by their products, while other rules slap taxes on polluters.

CLIMATE TAX IN PLACE

Industries that emit high levels of carbon dioxide, and other fumes thought to contribute to the greenhouse gas effect - thought to lead to global warming - must pay a climate change levy, and the aluminium sector is one of the most energy-intensive.

"When I look at the sea of environmental and employment legislation, and consequent activities which occupy my management today, I feel that lectures about my poor management skills, resulting in low productivity ... are misdirected. I can assure you, these days, making aluminium is the easy bit!" Morrison said.

Under the Kyoto protocol, an international agreement signed in 1997 in Japan, countries are bound to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 5.2 percent of 1990 levels during 2008-2012.

Eighty-four countries have signed the pact and 50 of them have ratified or acceded to it, but Britain has already committed to cutting its emissions by a full 20 percent by 2010, acccording to United Nations data.

But ALFED said that on the flipside, the aluminium industry needed continued guidance from the government on the best means of achieving sustainability and keeping down costs.

"Taking a positive stance, while many of our problems are set by government legislation, whether environmental, social or economic, we look to the government to set an example by specifying the use...of materials that are fully sustainable in their production, end-use and recycling, using materials with a long life expectancy and negligible maintenance costs."