Dear Eartha, I heard that I can now put glass bottles and jars in my curbside recycling bin. Is that right?

Yes, you heard right! As of May 1st, glass is welcome back in the curbside recycling game, and all you have to do is toss it in your single stream bin like the eco-champion you already are. Whether you’re a resident or a visitor in Summit County, you can put your glass bottles and jars in with your other co-mingled recyclables. This recycling service is made possible thanks to Summit County’s Strong Future Initiative. Thanks to Strong Future funding, Summit County Government is expanding recycling programs to reach the community’s goal of recycling and composting 40 percent of our waste by 2035. 

Don’t have curbside recycling where you live or work? Do you enjoy self-sorting or the satisfying “clang” when you throw your glass in the big metal container at a local recycling center?  No worries, you can still use one of the convenient drop sites if that is your preference.

Why Glass?

Glass is one of recycling’s great overachievers. Recycled glass can be melted down and made into new glass products over and over again, with zero degradation. Your pasta sauce jar could theoretically outlive you, bouncing from jar to bottle to jar again through the centuries like some kind of immortal condiment vessel.

Why Now?

Thanks to Strong Future funding and new infrastructure at the Summit County Resource Allocation Park — better known as the SCRAP, glass can now travel happily alongside your other recyclables without contaminating them. A new Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) allows the SCRAP team to transfer single-stream recycling (including glass) to a facility in Denver, where the materials are eventually turned into new products. You may also notice that clear and colored glass no longer need to be sorted at our local drop sites, making glass recycling easier than ever.

Glass in Curbside = Less Glass in Landfill

A 2019 Summit County Waste Composition Study showed that over 5% of all landfilled waste was glass containers that could have been recycled. Summit County’s one and only landfill serves approximately 30,000 residents, as well as all of the tourists who visit our beautiful mountain community. Everything we throw into the trashcan ends up in the SCRAP landfill.  So, anything we can keep out by recycling helps to extend the life of the landfill.

Updated Signage and Labels

Since this change in glass recycling is so new, it may take a while for all signage and labels to get updated with correct recycling guidelines. You can be proactive by reaching out to High Country Conservation Center at info@highcountryconservation.org to request updated signs, labels and printed recycling guidelines for your home, business or HOA.

Cheers to glass recycling made easy! Grab your glass — then recycle it — for a cleaner, greener Summit County.

 Ask Eartha Steward is written by the staff at High Country Conservation Center, a nonprofit dedicated to waste reduction and resource conservation. Submit your questions to Eartha at info@highcountryconservation.org.