Officials in Fairfax County and in Alexandria are crediting the purple bin glass recycling program with helping the region achieve glass-to-glass recycling.
The City of Alexandria recently announced that it would join Fairfax County in no longer accepting glass in curbside residential recycling bins. Instead, residents who want their glass to be recycled must bring it to one of the purple containers set up for glass recycling.
In the past, glass often broke in transport from a resident's home to the recycling facility. Glass shards could damage other recyclables and the machinery used to process them, in addition to being dangerous for employees handling the materials.
There are several purple recycling bins set up in Alexandria and in Fairfax County. Alexandria's bins were recently improved with a transparent section, allowing residents and city employees to better monitor how quickly bins fill up.
Glass is taken to a special facility in Lorton for processing.
