Glass deposited in blue boxes throughout most of Greater Toronto and Hamilton will be processed at a new plant at Brampton starting summer 2008, saving millions for local authorities.
The plant, to b…
Glass deposited in blue boxes throughout most of Greater Toronto and Hamilton will be processed at a new plant at Brampton starting summer 2008, saving millions for local authorities. The plant, to be built by Unical Inc., will turn mixed glass into products such as bottles, fibreglass insulation and tiles, rather than low-value aggregate for road building, which is often the fate of mixed glass. Recycling glass is a cost for municipalities, who pay to have it processed. Peel Region pays a processor in Syracuse, New York, about CAD 40 a tonne to take its mixed glass. Toronto“s average cost is CAD 48.75, which means almost CAD 1 million a year for the city“s 20,000 tonnes of glass. Because Unical will be turning the glass into high-value products such as new glass and fibreglass, it will charge the municipalities less. If the glass is free of contaminants such as plastic and paper, municipalities hope to reduce Unical“s fee to about CAD 10 a tonne, or even less. Shipping costs will also be sharply reduced. For Peel, for example, shipping to the new plant in Brampton will save the complications of a border crossing, plus more than 700 kilometres in round-trip travel for each load, according to region chair Emil Kolb. Toronto, Hamilton, Peel, York and Durham estimate they will collectively save CAD 10 million over the next seven years, once the Unical plant starts. Halton Region will not be sending its glass because it has just signed a six-year contract with another firm. Andre Racine, president of Unical, said recycling glass makes sense if it does not have to be carried far, and is free of contamination. Unical will spend CAD 10 million on the new plant. Stewardship Ontario, an agency funded by industries that produce packaged and printed material, will give Unical CAD 1.75 million to buy processing equipment.
