Glass Recycling is Becoming a Major Issue for New England Communities

Several New England communities are running into issues with their ability to recycle glass. The sudden closure of a glass bottle manufacturing plant in Milford, MA, has brought the issue to light for the area, as glass’s weight and decline in value over the years means there are fewer end-markets for regional glass. You can read more about the issues Milford and surrounding areas are facing, their response, and the larger “domino effect” in Massachusetts in Cole Rosengren’s article for Waste Dive.

Similarly, residents of Laconia, New Hampshire, will no longer be allowed to recycle their glass in the wake of new recycling regulations from China, and the closing of the last glass recycling facility in the Northeast. In an effort to reduce costs, Laconia will now require residents to toss their glass into the trash, where it will be taken to a waste-to-energy incinerator for disposal. Read more about how the community is dealing with their glass now in Bea Lewis’s article for the New Hampshire Union Leader.