CAP Glass

The Life of a Bottle

A bottle is created for its initial purpose; let’s say a bottle of soda. It’s enjoyed by the consumer and then one of two things happen. It is tossed in the trash and ends up in a landfill or it’s sent to a recycling center.

If the latter occurs, the bottle is broken down into small pieces which are called cullet. The cullet is mixed with sand, soda ash and limestone and heated, which turns the substance into a liquid. That liquid is then poured into molds and new products are created.

Above bullets cited from: http://www.gpi.org/recycling/glass-recycling-facts

An estimated 80% of all glass containers recovered for recycling are remelted in furnaces, and used in the manufacture of new glass containers. (Source, Strategic Materials, Inc.)

Recycling 1,000 tons of glass creates slightly over 8 jobs. (Source: 2011 Container Recycling Institute)

So the life of a bottle can be quite a long one if the right steps are taken, and the impact on our planet is extraordinary.