SYDNEY recycler WSN Environmental Solutions and joint venture partner Australian Glass Technologies (AGT) have developed a new glass recycling facility capable of processing up to 40,000t per year of previously unwanted glass.
Ken Kanofski, CEO of WSN Environmental Solutions says the new facility at the company’s Chullora Recycling Centre will transform small pieces of glass into a valuable resource and open up markets that previously did not exist in NSW.
“The new recycling facility crushes the glass which is then sold as granules that can be used in the manufacture of bricks, water filtration medium, pavers and roof tiles,” Kanofski said.
“Up until now, glass that was shattered in the recovery process has been difficult to process and often had to be sent to landfill.”
The new recycling facility sorts the recycled glass from fine powder to larger pieces, with each size being used as an additive in the manufacture of a broad range of products.
In addition to building materials, the recycled glass can also be used as an abrasive in sand blasting and as a filtration system for pools, while coloured pieces of glass can be used as decorative features in pot plants.
Jim McLeod AGT’s MD says using the glass to make bricks and pavers stops salt water from breaking down the clay, “making these products ideal for use in coastal areas or landscaping around swimming pools”.
“The glass is also a safe alternative for the mining industry to use in sand blasting because it doesn’t spark.”
The project is also supported by the National Packaging Covenant, which provided a grant of $400,000 to AGT.