Glass Recycling
We collect around 230 tonnes of glass each month from the
kerbside and recycling banks.
We ask that glass bottles and jars are rinsed as this helps keep
your recycling box clean and reduces the level of contamination
that needs dealing with during the recycling process. You can
rinse your bottles and jars at the end of the washing-up.
After collection the glass is taken to depots in Kendal and
Barrow for bulking, before being taken to the re-processing
plant.
The glass can then be crushed to form a material called cullet,
which is then mixed with sand, soda ash and limestone in a batch
house prior to going to a furnace to produce new glass.
A typical furnace will produce around 300 tonnes of glass a day,
and will operate 24 hours a day for approximately 10 years. Glass
is very easy to recycle and the materials can be recycled
continuously. There are variety of ways that recycled glass can be
used, not just to make new bottles and jars. It can be used in road
surfacing for example, or as a component in the manufacture of
kitchen worktops and garden ornaments.
More information about glass
recycling