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Make 2009 a Bumper Recycling Year

02/01/2009

Rehab Recycle has announced that additional vehicles and collection services will be put in place to deal with the glass deposited at its network of bring bank sites during the festive season.

With nearly 90 million bottles and cans of wine, beer and spirits consumed in Ireland over Christmas and New Year, the period is Rehab Recycle’s busiest time of the year.

“Glass is the easiest material of all to recycle and can be used time and time again,” says Bob Rowat, General Manager, Rehab Recycle. “Recycling glass not only lessens the load on landfill, but it also helps to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and conserve our natural resources. In fact, nearly three million gallons of fuel is saved each year in Ireland purely through the recycling of glass. So after the celebrations, make it your New Year’s resolution not to bin glass bottles and jars but to bank them at your local bring centre.”
 
Rehab Recycle encourages people to bring their glass to recycling banks where it is separated at source, thereby minimising contamination from other types of glass and recyclables. The glass recycling process is a closed loop system, creating no additional waste or by-products.
 
When visiting bring banks, people are reminded to segregate glass by colour and to remove any boxes or plastic bags they may take with them. In the event that their local bring bank is full due to heavy demand, Rehab Recycle can be notified by calling Freefone 1800 661 551, Monday to Friday, during office hours.
 
“A huge amount of other recyclable waste, such as wrapping paper, cardboard boxes and plastic bottles, is also generated over the festive season. We would remind people to deposit this waste in the relevant paper and plastic bring bank containers,” added Mr Rowat.
 
Andrew Hetherington, CEO of Repak, also commented, "Every year we have witnessed superb efforts by Irish householders in recycling. However, this year we are asking people to go one step further and help the recycling effort more by preparing and cleaning their recyclables before disposing of them. This can be done by making sure to wash out bottles and containers, crush cardboard and plastic, remove labels where possible, and ensure the materials are as clean as possible. This year we are aiming to recycle over 45% of packaging and the better the quality of recyclables the higher value achieved and the greater and more access to end markets.”
 
Rehab Recycle has over 1,800 bring centres nationwide and is part of a unique integrated employment model with a workforce of 180 people, 105 of whom are people with disabilities. Further details on the range of glass, can, paper, polystyrene and waste electrical recycling facilities can be found at www.rehabrecycle.ie
 
Note to editor:
Some Glass Recycling Facts
- Glass will never decompose. Archaeologists are still finding glass used during Roman times.
- Just one recycled glass bottle saves enough energy to power a computer for 25 minutes. 
- If all the glass collected by Rehab Recycle in just one year was laid end to end, it would stretch for a distance of over 67,000 kms!
 
Ends
 
For further information, contact:
Bob Rowat                                 tel: (01) 626 0284
General Manager, Rehab Recycle     
 
Tess Tattersall                           tel: (01) 205 7260
Communications and Public Affairs Team, Rehab Group       

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