8. Why I like Oregon's separated-glass recycling policy

Old glass > new bottles in 1972

Oregon enacted the nation's first unrepealed bottle bill to deal with the problem of highway litter from throwaway carbonated and malt beverage containers in 1971.  Consumers pay a 5-cent deposit per can or bottle at purchase and received 5-cents back per bottle if redeemed at a store.  Consumers can also put them out in their recycle bins.  Most Oregonians are directed to put their glass in a separate bin for a number of reasons. Among them are: 

• Worker safety--glass shards injure workers.
• Damage to expensive machinery--glass shards score metal, cut rubber conveyors and cause maintenance problems.
• Commingling glass with other recyclables causes contamination from food.
• Separating glass results in a cleaner product that won't be rejected by glass plants.
• The price paid for glass by glass plants is too low to justify the extra costs of trying to separate glass from commingled recycling.
• Transportation costs are high relative to its commodity value.

The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality estimates that about 20% of glass does end up in commingled bins.  Old glass can be reused in many applications and should be recycled.  Other states can learn from Oregon's sensible example by collecting glass in separate bins.   

Notes:
Photo: Nara
"Oregon DEQ: Land Quality - Solid Waste - Oregon Bottle Bill." State of Oregon: Department of Environmental Quality. Web. 30 Jan. 2011. <http://www.deq.state.or.us/lq/sw/bottlebill/>

"Glass Recyling Through Curbside and Container Deposit Legislation." State of Oregon: Department of Environmental Quality. Oregon Department of Environmental Policy. Web. 30 Jan. 2011. <http://www.deq.state.or.us/lq/pubs/docs/sw/GlassRecyclingThruCurbside.pdf>.

Publication date: June 20 2008


Monty, Lynn. "Vermont's Bottle Bill, Once First in the Nation, Now Facing Serious Effort at Repeal | The Burlington Free Press | Burlington, Vermont." Burlingtonfreepress.com | The Burlington Free Press | Burlington News, Community, Entertainment, Yellow Pages and Classifieds. Serving Burlington, Vermont. 30 Jan. 2011. Web. 30 Jan. 2011. <http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/article/20110130/LIVING09/101300310/Vermont-s-bottle-bill-once-first-in-the-nation-now-facing-serious-effort-at-repeal>