This report discusses the link between glass recycling and climate change. As a result of increasing levels of greenhouse gases (GHGs) in the atmosphere, the climate is generally warming up. The likely consequences of this are disrupted weather patterns and rising sea levels. Carbon dioxide (CO2) is one of the principal GHGs (accounting for 80% of UK emissions) and a methodology has been developed for calculating the ‘life cycle’ CO2 emissions for various glass recycling options.
The results have shown that if any increases in glass recycling are diverted towards glass manufacturers there is the potential to achieve significant reductions in CO2 emissions, perhaps up to 126,000 tonnes/year. This would be a helpful contribution towards the UK meeting its decarbonisation commitments.