- January 15, 2025
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by: Katie Dockhorn
Assistant to the City Manager, City of Flagler Beach
The city of Flagler Beach, as Earth Day approaches April 22, have announced a new glass recycling initiative.
The Flagler Beach City Commission approved the purchase of a machine that the City Sanitation Department can use to recycle glass products. The machine, nicknamed “Big Blue,” will transform residents’ recycled glass into useable products. The machine pulverizes the recycled glass and creates both glass sand and glass gravel. These products can be used to create sand bags, decorative landscape mulch, drainage, and more.
Starting Wednesday, May 4, Flagler Beach residents can recycle their glass products in their blue recycling bin with their aluminum and tin products. Residents are asked to separate their corrugated cardboard from the blue recycling bin. For now, the city is not recycling plastic and is working on identifying local recycling options.
Mayor Suzie Johnston said, “We are proud that the city of Flagler Beach runs our own recycling program and that residents’ items are truly recycled. We’ll now be able to recycle more than 12 tons of glass a week.”
According to the Glass Packaging Institute, “Glass is 100% recyclable and can be recycled endlessly without loss in quality or purity” and “over a ton of natural resources are saved for every ton of glass recycled.”
When asked about how important this equipment is to the community, City Manager Mr. William Whitson, added, “The addition of Big Blue is a game changer. This will allow Flagler Beach to positively impact the environment while also creating a product that people can use and enjoy.”
The city will be demonstrating “Big Blue” during a press conference on April 21.
