Glass recycling

Surrey households get through a massive 43,000 tonnes of glass jars and bottles every year, all of which can be easily recycled. Making new glass from old jars and bottles uses much less energy than using raw materials alone, and glass is one of the few materials that can be recycled infinitely without loss of quality.

There are now over 280 recycling locations county-wide where residents can take glass to be recycled. These range from local recycling banks to the larger Community Recycling Centres (CRCs). Several authorities also offer kerbside collection of glass. Please contact your local authority to find out details of facilities in your area.

Did you know?

• You can put blue glass in green glass recycling banks

• Every tonne of glass recycled saves space in rapidly filling landfill sites.

• The energy saving from recycling one bottle will power a light bulb for almost an hour OR power a computer for 25 minutes OR power a colour TV for 20 minutes OR even power a washing machine for 10 minutes!

Milk bottles delivered by the milkman should always be returned to the supplier. These are re-filled and re-used many times which is an even more efficient system than using the glass to make new containers.

Glass panes such as those used in windows, Pyrex and drinking glasses cannot be recycled with glass bottles and jars because they have a different composition. These can be disposed of at the Community Recycling Centres.

Find out more about the glass recycling process here.