Balto. County signs deal to provide glass recycling

10-year agreement is with Cap Glass Inc.

Baltimore County has signed a10-year agreement with Cap Glass Inc. of Connellsville, Pennsylvania, to launch a new glass recycling program for residents.

The Cap Glass facility in Baltimore City will remove paper and other contaminants from glass before the material is sent to O-I Glass Inc. to make new containers, according to a county news release Thursday. The recyclable glass will come from the county’s Cockeysville Materials Recovery Facility.

Baltimore County has not recycled glass materials since 2013, the year it also opened a $23 million single-stream recycling facility in Cockeysville. The county’s Department of Public Works could no longer recycle glass at county municipal facilities due to technical and financial limitations over the years.

But on Thursday, Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski Jr., a Democrat, said in a statement that this agreement will make the county’s recycling more efficient.

“A better Baltimore County is one where sustainability and the future of our planet is a top priority, and this new agreement puts that commitment into action as we make our County’s recycling even more efficient,” Olszewski said. “I’m proud that our team was able to find an innovative solution to resume glass recycling in Baltimore County, reducing waste output in the process.”

The county unveiled its new agreement days after the program started delivering loads of glass July 20.

This new agreement comes after Baltimore County initiated a multiyear search for a sustainable glass market, the county said. Olszewski provided new funding in the county’s fiscal year 2021 budget to help support county efforts to pursue a glass recycling initiative.

“This is an important initiative to expand the county’s current recycling efforts,” said Michael R. Beichler, the bureau chief of Solid Waste Management for the county.