THE
DATA
Approximately 15.2 billion glass containers are used in the UK each year.
Below is the
percentage split of what happens to our glass after disposal:
28% Close Loop Recycling (CLR)
Continuously recycled and reintegrated into the same product or a similar product
without significant degradation or loss of quality
40% Downcycled
Recycled in to products of lower value or quality compared to the orignal glass
1.7 tonnes of landfill = 4.8 billion bottles and jars. That’s
equivalent
to...
Circulating the circumference of the world 18 times
Going to the moon and back
13,4000London buses
12,000aeroplanes
CO2 Equivalent to Flying a Boeing 737 filled with passengers non-stop
for nearly 9 years!
Equivalent water usage to filling up over 4,000 Olympic swimming pools!
Manufacturing new glass continues to deplete our natural resources (sand, limestone & soda
ash), disrupting the ecosystem. As glass is infinitely recyclable, we should strive to end
this problem!
These statistics only account for materials ending up in landfill. However, when
downcycled,
glass is lost to the construction of buildings and roads - never to be reused again. The
impact of this process isn’t straightforward, but represents another illogical approach to
dealing with an infinitely recyclable material.
