Saving of £40k a year if clear glass is reused
Friday 13th May 2011, 2:29PM BST.
Clear glass collected in Guernsey is currently sent to Essex for recycling.
UP TO £40,000 a year could be saved if Public Services decided to scrap sending clear glass for recycling in the UK.
At the Waste Disposal Authority meeting yesterday, members discussed whether the department should continue to export the glass or crush it for use locally and the environmental impact of both processes.
At the moment, coloured glass is crushed and used as aggregate, but clear glass, which represents around a third of the total collected, is sent to Essex for recycling.
WDA member Deputy Gloria Dudley-Owen said that if the island could deal with it and there was a cost saving, the department should do it. But deputy PSD minister Scott Ogier said the department did not know which was more sustainable.
Members decided to spend around £2,000 on a rate analysis survey.
- Read the full story in the Guernsey Press. See below for subscription details. Individual editions are also available.
- To read Guernsey Press stories in full click here for subscription details. Individual editions are now available online.
Island Life
All about Guernsey
Ambassador of the Year 2011
History & Heritage
Visitor Information
Guernsey's government
Campaigns
Voice For Victims
Voice for Victims is a campaign aimed at promoting the rights of those affected by child sexual abuse.
This is Guernsey
Guernsey Press
Useful Links
Yet more rubbish from the States – spending £2000 on some unneeded analysis. I could tell you what to do with it for half of that price.
Report abuse
Mr G
Here’s one for free …
Crush all the glass,coloured and clear, down to the size of a biscuit and smaller.Spread it several inches thick over the stony beach next to Mont Chouet ( I’ve never seen anyone on that beach )
Erect a few warning signs and await the rough tidal action to smooth off the edges over a couple of years, et voila we have an almost free new tourist attraction .. a glass beach .. which would eventually become as well known as Shell Beach
If it all works to plan there must be other suitable beaches to dump this unwanted glass for many years to come at little cost
Damn. I wish I had charged for this idea now !
Report abuse
It would be prudent to use it in concrete foundations. The airport runway, & every other future project, would ensure decent amounts are appreciated to offset ever increasing material costs.
Architects & quantity surveyors should be asked if they can help out with recommendations.
It is a useful resource that will be available for a considerable amount of time. We just need to learn how to make the best from it.
It provides a solution. It should not be seen as a problem. Our lack of knowledge is.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glass_recycling#Secondary_uses_for_recycled_glass
Report abuse
What sort of idiots would set up a recycling scheme in the first place which costs £40k a year? I am flabbegasted! Surely if somebody wants to recycle anything from Guernsey, at the very least, our policy should be “you want it, you pay for collecting it.” If we can’t sell it of course all the glass and anything else that is feasible should be used for hard core. Perhaps chuck in a few of the dimwits who seem determined to bankrupt Guernsey too!
Report abuse
Recycling doesn’t pay moneterally, the only thing that turns a profit and is more efficient to recycle is aluminium.
Report abuse
Josh,
With knowledge like that, I assume you are on PSD.
Report abuse
Steve.
I am a massive fan of efficiency, I care how my tax money is being spent, and I like good value for money, and I feel like if im going to do something like recycle, I’m all for it, as long as i can say it’s cheaper to use recycled materials to produce new materials, or it’s significantly better for the environment, and I feel the burden on infrastructure and returns is too poor for everything except aluminium. I think the stalemate that is guernsey waste management and it’s failures are resultant of a compromise between efficiency and environmentalism, one which pleases no one.
Report abuse