PowerPoint: Recycling Option 2
Innovations in Glass Recycling
In July 2015, Rumpke received First Place in the Service to
Society category at the Innovation Index Awards in Dayton, Ohio.
The award acknowledged Rumpkes ongoing efforts to keep glass out of
landfills.
Rumpkes glass recycling process makes it possible for families
and businesses throughout the region to recycle glass bottles and
jars of any color.
Since 2004, Rumpke has operated a unique glass recycling plant
in Dayton, Ohio. Glass makes up about 20 percent of the recycling
families generate at home, but it is a challenging material to
recycle. In 2011, Rumpke invested $4 million to improve the glass
recycling process.
Upgrades, such as optical scanning technology, allowed Rumpke to
sort glass colors more efficiently and serve new markets. In 2014,
Rumpke recycled about 40,000 tons of glass, providing raw material
for insulation and glass bottle manufacturers.
In 2014, Rumpke launched a student engineering project with the
University of Dayton Innovation Center. The project will reduce
contamination of the glass plants feedstock by 20 percent, allowing
Rumpke to process more efficiently, and ultimately recycle more
volume.
According to data from a 2005 U.S. Senate report, Rumpkes glass
recycling process conserves each year:1,640,436 Kwh of energy 4,687
barrels of oil292,935 pounds of air pollutants from being released
into the atmosphere
And there are more benefits: According to data from the
Institute for Local Self-Reliance, 39 recycling jobs and 293
materials reuse jobs are created through this process. In the
course of just one year, this glass recycling process conserves
84,000 cubic yards of landfill space in Ohio.
Through partnership with the Ohio EPA and a dozen solid waste
districts throughout the state, Rumpke is growing glass recycling
by providing collection and processing.
Rumpke has been committed to keeping neighborhoods and
businesses clean and green since 1932 by providing environmentally
friendly waste and recycling solutions. To learn more, visit
www.rumpke.com.
