Glass Recycling

Where can I recycle my clear glass?


There are several bins outside Honest Weight Food Co-op (100 Watervliet Ave, Albany, NY 12206) to the right of the main entrance, available 24/7 for drop off!

Why is Zero Waste Capital District recycling glass?

Zero Waste Capital District has decided to organize a dedicated glass recycling program because most glass in single stream recycling ends up in the landfill. Occasionally, glass originally intended for recycling is crushed and made into roads / landfill cover, but it is not truly recycled into other products.

The glass we collect at Honest Weight is taken by TOMRA Company and brought to a facility that creates other glass containers, as well as fiberglass and road cover.

How can I contribute?


The program that Zero Waste Capital District feeds into handles 35 tons of glass daily. For this program to succeed, we're counting on participants to make sure that glass enters the recycling stream free of other (plastic, metal, food) contaminants.

Here's a list of do's and don'ts for our glass recycling program:

DO

  • Clear glass

  • Non-deposit soda & beer bottles

  • Pickle, mayonnaise, salsa, etc. jars

  • Paper labels are okay

  • Rinse your bottles!


DON'T

  • Colored glass

  • We do not accept other types of glass such as: mirrors, windows, vases, cookware, drinking and/or wine glasses (other types of glass have differing melting points)

  • Please do not include lids, and remove plastic/metal rings around the neck of the bottle

  • Please remove any plastic labels


For more information about this recycling program and how glass recycling in the U.S. works, read "But Wait a Minute... Don't We Already Recycle Glass?" by Justin Hardecker.