Through the Looking Glass

 

Glass is made from a high-quality sand called silica that is mined, melted and molded into any number of products. What many people may not know is that there is a worldwide shortage of silica. Yet many of the glass bottles we use are discarded after just one use. Recycling glass products can save both natural resources and financial resources. However, glass recycling programs that turn bottles back into new bottles are limited in the Northeast.

NRRA offers two glass recycling programs that enable participating municipalities to recycle their glass bottles and jars. The first is through a program that recycles glass into fiberglass insulation. The second program involves crushing glass into processed glass aggregate (PGA), which can be used in road and infrastructure projects in the place of gravel and sand.

This interactive story map will help you learn how over 100 municipalities in New Hampshire, Vermont, and Massachusetts are recycling glass for their over 500,000 residents in partnership with NRRA. Explore the maps to see which municipalities participate and where the nearest glass recycling site is to your community.  A new video in the story map explains how glass is crushed into processed glass aggregate and provides examples of how the product can be used locally by municipal public works departments and contractors.  

It may take a few seconds for the maps to load.  Trust us, it's worth the wait!

View full-screen map

 


NRRA is an equal opportunity provider and employer. This material is based upon work supported under a grant by the Rural Utilities Service, United States Department of Agriculture. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the Rural Utilities Service.