Hitting the Bottle

Originally posted to MySpace, May 18, 2009

 


After spending the past 18 years in Germany, I recently returned home to my native Amarillo. I am readjusting to life here and have been pleased to notice some things which became second nature to me overseas. One is the practice of taking your own bags to the grocery store to put your items in. The other is drop-off points for recyclable materials. One thing I miss, however, is a means of recycling glass containers such as beer and wine bottles. I was surprised to learn that Amarillo used to have a program for returning glass but that it was canceled in 2002. Perhaps this is a result of our reliance on lightweight, easily disposable containers made of plastic and aluminum.

In Germany, beverages come mostly in cartons or bottles. The bottles of glass or plastic are recyclable, and a mandatory deposit imposed in 2004 encourages consumers to return them for recycling. That year, Germany recycled over 2.1 million tons of glass. Those bottles that do not come with a deposit are taken to recycling bins typically located on grocery store parking lots. All that is required of the consumer is to separate the bottles by color: clear (e.g., non-beverage bottles and jars), green (wine bottles), or brown (beer bottles). Other countries and a few states in this nation have similar container deposit laws. Will such action be necessary before Amarillo learns to recycle its glass?

Considering the possible uses for empty glass bottles (first and foremost refilling them), I fail to understand why there should be a lack of demand. According to Wikipedia, the possibilities range from use as an aggregate in concrete to golf bunker sand.

In addition to being practical, glass recycling is environmentally friendly. Recycling supposedly uses less energy than making glass from scratch. Recycling a ton of used glass into new items saves over 300 kilograms of carbon dioxide.

With the population of Amarillo approaching the 200,000 mark, there ought to be plenty of consumers to justify a recycling plant in the immediate area, thereby shortening the distance waste glass would need to be transported. Surely, there must be some enterprising businessman out there who recognizes the potential behind a glass recycling facility in the Panhandle.

Maybe paying people for their used glass would be sufficient incentive. After all, individuals can still collect aluminum cans and earn a few bucks by taking them to be recycled. Why can’t we do the same for glass bottles? Residents of Germany have had recycling imposed on them. That wouldn’t be a very American solution. 

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