Research Project Proposal The Accumulation of Glass Containers by Northland Restaurants: The Effect of Dumping Versus Recycling Research Project Proposal Maggie Brown Biology Department Park University December 2th, 2009

Let’s Go Green Social-Norm Celebrities (Gibson, 2008) Tee Shirts (Carlson, 2001) Celebrities (Gibson, 2008) Act Green Cameron Diaz Gwyneth Paltrow Tee Shirts Park University C.H.E.M Club Blue bins White paper Mixed paper Aluminum & steel cans Plastic bottles www.park.edu/recycling/

Glass Composition: silica sand soda ash limestone 100% Recyclable Non-Toxic to the environment Broken down glass is called cullet Cullet is added to raw materials to low temperature need to make new glass (Glassworks Recycling, 1999)

Glass Recycling Circle Manufacturer Recycling bin Separated by color Transported to manufacturer Crush (cullet) Melted New glass Back to retail (Glassworks Recycling, 2006)

Benefits of Recycling Glass Reduces energy Energy drops 2-3 percent for every 10% cullet used in manufacturing process (Baetz, 1994) Saves natural resources Alternative usages: (Ward, 1993) Fiberglass insulation Reflective paints Tiles and Flooring Abrasive materials Decorative applications

Kansas City and Recycling Major part of the community (Ray,2006) Mandatory residential curbside pick-up recycling Deffenbaugh Industries Two times per week All materials except glass Residents contribution of glass in local landfills is minimal. (Ward, 1993)

Restaurants and Bar Establishments Glass bottles primary container of beverages California: 2.7 billion glass bottles of beer sold in 2003 with less than 50% return rate (Johnson, 2004) US recycles less than 1/3 of glass beverage bottles – EPA (http://www.gpi.org) What are Missouri’s figures? 80,000 tons of containers of glass each year only 5% was recycled (www.rippleglasskc.com)

Wilmington, North Carolina Enforced 60 restaurant and bar owners to recycle Owners billed for pick-up services Fined if do not comply by alcohol law enforcement agents Estimated 10-12 tons of beverage containers disposed of weekly (Granger,2007)

My Concerns Volume of glass bottles being disposed of by Kansas City restaurant and bar establishments How much glass is actually being recycled compared to the actual number of glass containers in sales. Can you teach an old dog new tricks?

Hypothesis The volume of recyclable glass disposed of by five local establishments is greater than 20 tons per month. An individual establishment will recycle 40 percent of all recyclable glass sold and decrease waste management cost by 15 percent.

Materials and Budget Type of Supply Name Cost per unit Number of units Total Office Supplies Pen/Highlighter Duo $4.49 1   Printer Paper $7.79 Printer Ink $34.49 2 $68.98 Printing Services Posters $24.00 4 $96.00 Table Talkers $1.69 35 $59.15 Recycle Supplies Recycle Bins $36.50 6 $219.00 Trash Bags $10.00 $20.00 Electronics Laptop Researcher personal $0.00 Printer Excel Cell Phone Transportation Truck Gas per mileage $0.51 1000 $505.00 $980.41

Methods Stage 1 This part of the study will examine and calculate the volume of glass produced from: Paddy O’ Quigley’s 54th Street Granfallon Tomfooleries O’Dowds Stage 1 will be set in a two week time frame. Stage 2 This part of the study will observe and measure the ability of Paddy O’ Quigley’s to recycle glass bottles on a daily basis. Examines specific days and times of business Stage 2 will be perform within one month

This is the worksheet provided by the Glass Packaging Institute

Methods- Stage 1 Print 24 “How much recyclable glass does your business generate?” worksheets for distribution to each establishment Contact business owners by phone Meetings Appointment for pick up will be set Distribute of worksheets Each business will fill out 2 worksheets 1. Amount of glass products purchased 2. Sales of recyclable glass products Reminder calls for pick up of worksheets Collection of worksheets Calculations of data Waste management evaluation per business Follow up with business owners with results

Methods- Stage 2 Meeting with management and wait/cook staff Delivery and placement of recycle bins Schedule for recycling Measure the amount of glass recycled Day shift Night shift All Day Days of week Meeting with staff Hanging of posters Placement of table talkers Measure the amount of glass recycled ** After promotion 1 Full week Calculate results

Preliminary Results Results from the worksheets will be compared to one another Smaller establishments 2 tons Larger establishments 4 tons Waste management savings Paddy O’Quigleys predicted to recycle 35-50 percent of all recyclable glass Improvement Increase in sales

Sources of Error Measuring Organization of data Record keeping Calculations Time management Businesses

Discussion Glass Processing Plant (www.rippleglasskc.com) Changes coming soon Ripple Glass Voluntarily vs. Mandate Incentives (Reschovsky,1994) Costs States with 5 cent deposits (Reschovsky,1994)

Ripple Glass, LLC P.O. Box 414197 Kansas City, MO 64141 816.221.GLASS Created by: Boulevard Brewing Company Why: Kansas City’s growing glass problem Last year 10 million empty Boulevard bottles ended up in the local waste stream In addition to non Boulevard bottles Ripple Glass, LLC P.O. Box 414197 Kansas City, MO 64141 816.221.GLASS www.rippleglasskc.com

Ripple Glass has the Solution Building a state-of-the-art processing plant Metro-wide collection network Local company fiberglass insulation Used in area homes-saves still more energy Its is not required to separate the glass by color, remove labs, or rinse Parkville: 64th Street & 9 Highway

Questions, Comments, Concerns?

Why recycle glass? There are lots of myths out there about glass recycling. You've probably heard some of them – it's expensive, it's inefficient, blah, blah, blah. But we call them "myths" for good reason. Here are some important facts you should know about glass recycling. Container glass is 100% recyclable, can be recycled endlessly, and is a primary ingredient in fiberglass insulation and new glass containers. Burying perfectly good glass in the landfill wastes all the material, energy, and labor that went into making it. Using recycled glass produces 20% less air pollution and 50% less water pollution than creating new glass (or fiberglass) from raw materials. Every ton of glass that's recycled results in more than one ton of raw materials saved. That's 1,300 lbs. of sand, 410 lbs. of soda ash, 380 lbs. of limestone, and 150 lbs. of feldspar. Recycling just one glass bottle saves enough electricity to light a 100-watt light bulb for four hours. (Imagine how long it would light a compact fluorescent!) A six-pack of recycled beer bottles produces enough fiberglass insulation to fill a standard wall cavity. Kansas Citians consume approximately 80,000 tons of container glass each year. In the past, because of the difficulty and inconvenience, only about 5% was recycled. (Nationally, the average recycling rate is nearly 30% and climbing; in many places in the world, it's north of 90%!) Glass isn't collected in area curbside recycling programs, and for good reason. When mixed with other recyclables, broken glass degrades and contaminates those materials, causing them to be "downcycled" into lower quality products.