Glass is one of the most eco-friendly materials around, as it can be recycled infinite times. But not all glass is recyclable and it is necessary to understand which glass can be thrown into the appropriate bin and what goes in the dry waste. Cleaning of the containers to be thrown away must also be done before they are disposed of, in order to limit contamination.
Il glass it is a noble material as regards separate waste collection, as it can be recycled infinitely without losing quality and purity. But not all glass waste is the same, which means we will have to sort it correctly before throwing it in the green bin. Or you run the risk of altering the recycling process in a dedicated plant.
It should be added that, before throwing away the glass, it is also necessary to make sure that it is clean of any food residues, in order to limit organic contamination and bad smells. If we also wanted to do things in the best possible way, eliminating the labels before conferring is another useful step.
But be careful, because the first truly essential step is to understand which materials should be thrown into the glass bin and which should not. Usually there are no doubts about the separate collection of canning containers and bottles. On the contrary, it is not always easy to understand if other glass waste, such as broken glass, follows the same disposal.
For example, can pyrex or window glass be thrown away with the rest of the glass or should they be sorted into another bin, such as the dry waste bin? In this article we will try to make the separate collection of this material as transparent as crystal.
Separate glass collection: what to know
Glass, as mentioned, is one of the most environmentally friendly materials, as it can be endlessly recycled and save. From an estimate by Keep America Beautiful, for every ton of recycled glass, it appears that more than one ton of natural resources can be saved.
In detail, 1,300 pounds of sand, 410 pounds of soda ash, 380 pounds of limestone and 160 pounds of feldspar, not counting energy. In fact, melting old glass requires less energy than producing new glass.
But not all glass is the same and this means that we cannot always throw it in the appropriate green bin, provided by our municipality of residence. The problem arises because some materials are not pure glass, but are affected by additions that would make recycling impossible.
The green bin can accommodate glass bottles and preserving jars, broken glass, perfume bottles or bottles, except for medicines, glasses. On the contrary, mirrors, window glass, saucers and porcelain, pyrex, light bulbs, bulky waste, such as glass sheets, cannot be returned, which must instead be disposed of at recycling centers.
The materials mentioned, which cannot be placed in glass, must instead be thrown into the residual waste: in fact, the black undifferentiated waste bin is the right one. As for medicines, you can take them to the nearest pharmacy to facilitate proper disposal.
How to prepare glass containers for separate waste collection
We have mentioned it and we reiterate it, to encourage correct glass recyclingwe must clean it from food residues or other elements before throwing it away. The ideal is to rinse the containers, so that there is no organic fermentation. Which also means reducing the risk of miasmas and bad odors.
But to be truly virtuous, the bottles and jars of preserves still bearing the labels should be soaked in hot water. In this way, the separation of the paper material is facilitated, to be thrown into the dry residue, given the presence of glue, making the glass purer.
In the case of bulky glass waste, we can instead ask the municipality where we live to be able to collect it safely from our home. Alternatively, we can take them to the nearest ecological island ourselves. The center staff will take care of the correct sorting.
Remember, the glass of broken light bulbs and the light bulbs themselves cannot be placed in the green bin, as they are not recyclable. On the contrary, the former can be thrown into the bin, while for the latter the ecological islands are the best choice. But we can also take them to electrical stores, where you can leave old bulbs and buy new ones.
Sources
Source: www.greenstyle.it
