One of the biggest problems that the recycling industry has encountered is how to most effectively separate recycling that has been mixed together. The amount of manpower that it takes to do this job often cuts deeply into the money generated through recycling meaning that there is less to reinvest in the infrastructure of the industry. Things like plastic and glass are often mixed with plastics or glass that are not the same and thus must be separated. Most of this is not done out of malice or even laziness but ignorance of how to properly separate recycling. People often mix things like plastic bags in with plastic bottles and since the bags cannot be recycled they must be removed by hand which can be a very expensive and time consuming activity.
Guernsey is one part of the United Kingdom which has figured out how to not only separate contaminated glass, but has also figured out productive uses for coloured glass. Because of this Guernsey has been able to save more than ninety thousand pounds this year according to a report by the public service department. Glass is separated at the Fontaine Vinery Recycling Center and then the clear glass is shipped off to other locations in the United Kingdom. The coloured glass stays behind, largely because it has a lower value which makes it inefficient to pay to export. Instead the glass is crushed and then reused in various other materials that can be used for various construction materials.
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