Americans race for recycling

The Glass Packaging Institute’s (GPI) Recycle Glass Week was the environmental sponsor for the 29th annual Race Across America, the three thousand mile ultra-endurance cycling race from Oceanside, California, to Annapolis, Maryland.

At Recycle Glass Week-sponsored event time stations in five cities – Oceanside, California; Durango, Colorado; Bloomington, Indiana; Oxford, Ohio; and Annapolis, Maryland –approximately 4,000 people came out to show their support for the time station events, recycled glass, plastic, and aluminum beverage containers, and learned about the environmental benefits of recycling glass bottles and jars.

“Through glass container recycling awareness events consumers are becoming more aware of the huge environmental and energy saving benefits of recycling glass bottles and jars,” said Joseph Cattaneo, president of the Glass Packaging Institute. “Such awareness and collection events will ultimately help to meet the goal of using 50 percent recycled glass in the creation of new containers by 2013.”

GPI worked with community recycling coordinators in the five Recycle Glass Week-sponsored event time station locations to collect glass containers and provide local recycling awareness. Doubling the United States glass container recycling rate (28 percent in 2008) would allow manufacturers to use 50 percent recycled glass to make new glass containers, saving enough energy to power 21,978 homes for one year and removing 181,550 tons of waste from landfills every month.

GPI’s second annual Recycle Glass Week is planned for September 12 through 18, 2010. During the week, GPI and its member companies will hold nationwide activities and events to build awareness and boost glass bottle recycling. GPI will announce the 2010 Clear Choice Awards winners, and recognize Friends of Glass, those organizations or persons that recycle glass or promote the recycling of glass as a way to better the environment.