While Southeast Eco 360 encourages the public to recycle glass, they do not recommend putting it in your blue recycling bags.
Communications Agent Marc André Chiasson explains the problem is glass in those bags gets crushed in the garbage truck after being picked up.
“Because those trucks are compactors, so they compact everything so that they can put more bags in it before they bring it to the site,” says Chiasson. “And once it becomes crushed, that’s when it’s not recyclable anymore.”
He says in large enough quantities, the crushed glass can contaminate the entire bag of recycling.
“The main problem is that even if you only put one piece of glass in there, if your whole street only puts one piece of glasss, it can contaminate blue bags of the entire street,” explains Chiasson.
Chiasson adds despite workers being outfitted with protective equipment, broken glass can still be a hazard.
He also says while there is a market for whole glass, there’s very little demand for crushed glass, in addition to the fact Southeast Eco 360 does not have the equipment needed to separate recycling from crushed glass.
Chiasson recommends using their Mobile Eco Depot or bottle depots to recycle glass safely, and responsibly.
