In 2009, Kansas Citians threw away 150 million pounds of perfectly good glass. To the dismay of the people at Boulevard Brewing Company, this included some 10 million empty Boulevard bottles – lost forever, buried in local landfills.

Area businesses use nearly 200 million pounds of recycled glass every year, so why was it so hard to recycle glass? Because there was no nearby facility to process the glass. And why no local processor? Because, in classic chicken-and-egg fashion, there was almost no local recycling.

The folks at Boulevard finally got tired of being part of the problem. So, with the support of local companies and community organizations, they came up with a solution—Ripple Glass.

the ripple effect

Ripple constructed a state-of-the-art processing plant, and placed dedicated glass recycling containers throughout the metro area. We found a local customer that converts the recycled glass into fiberglass insulation, saving enormous amounts of energy and dramatically lowering emissions, and a business in Tulsa that turns amber glass back into bottles, including those used by Boulevard!

The Ripple effect has spread, with containers in Jefferson City and, soon, Branson. Ripple’s facility is processing glass from all over the region, helping other communities keep glass out of their landfills while giving it the new life it deserves.

It’s a great way to close the loop, protect the environment, support area businesses and even make homes more energy efficient.

But it only works with your help. Help us do the right thing. Help us give glass a second chance.

why recycle glass

here are some important facts you should know about glass recycling:

Container glass is 100% recyclable, can be recycled endlessly, and is a primary ingredient in fiberglass insulation and new glass containers.

Burying perfectly good glass in the landfill wastes all the material, energy, and labor that went into making it.

Using recycled glass produces 20% less air pollution and 50% less water pollution than creating new glass (or fiberglass) from raw materials.

Every ton of glass that’s recycled results in more than one ton of raw materials saved. That’s 1,300 lbs. of sand, 410 lbs. of soda ash, 380 lbs. of limestone, and 150 lbs. of feldspar.

Recycling just one glass bottle saves enough electricity to light a 100-watt light bulb for four hours. (Imagine how long it would light a compact fluorescent!)

A six-pack of recycled beer bottles produces enough fiberglass insulation to fill a standard wall cavity.

Kansas Citians consume approximately 80,000 tons of container glass each year. In the past, because of the difficulty and inconvenience, only about 5% was recycled. Today, we recycle nearly 20% of our community’s glass. We still have a long way to go. Nationally, the average recycling rate is over 30% and climbing; in many places in the world, it’s north of 90%!

Glass isn’t collected in most area curbside recycling programs, and for good reason. When mixed with other recyclables, broken glass degrades and contaminates those materials, causing them to be “downcycled” into lower quality products.

how to recycle

stop treating your glass like garbage
The Kansas City region needed a better glass recycling solution – Ripple Glass is the answer. Over 100 drop-off locations make it easy and convenient. Our processing facility and partner companies keep it local. It all adds up to less waste, more energy-efficient solutions, a better environment, and a stronger economy.

Start recycling…

At home, at work, or in your community.
Ripple Glass collection points are conveniently located, visit our map to find one near you.