Image courtesy of Interstyle Ceramic & Glass

When it comes to reusing waste, glass is one of our favorite recycled materials. The most obvious aspect that we like about it is that it is truly recyclable. For example, containers (such as wine bottles) that are not meant for direct reuse can be broken down and the resulting cullet (i.e. crushed glass) can be used exactly as is in innovative ways, or it can be melted down to become … glass. This material is therefore not downcycled, the fate of much of what we “recycle” (like paper, wood products, carpet, etc.).

Image courtesy of IceStone

Cullet can be used in a variety of ways. For our projects, we’ve been most interested in its role as aggregate in concrete, clay, and resin matrices for applications like floors, tiles, cement blocks, countertops, planters, furniture, etc. IceStone, a company based in Brooklyn, New York, uses it this way for its line of countertops that rival mainstays such as Corian in their durability, performance, and beauty. It’s essentially terrazzo slabs but glass is used instead of stone as the aggregate with a wide variety of glass and matrix colors. IceStone, a B Corporation, has instituted transparency initiatives, is working hard to be a more socially responsible corporation, and has cradle to cradle certified products.

Image courtesy of Interstyle Ceramic & Glass

We have specified recycled glass for many designs primarily in tile form. Recycled glass tile comes in a wide array of colors, textures, shapes, and sizes. This versatility means that it’s also easy to experiment with it and develop new combinations. For example, a few years ago, we were looking for a translucent, reddish material out of which to manufacture letters for an interior sign. Glass could fit the bill, so we reached out to Instersyle Ceramic & Glass, a company based in Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada, and producer of some of our favorite recycled glass tiles. They are fabulously experienced in working with this material, and even though their stock did not include slabs in the hue that we needed, they gathered cullet in orange and red shades, fused the pieces through a proprietary method, and in the process created a beautiful new product we had never encountered before. Unfortunately, the design moved in a different direction and the fused glass letters were shelved, but it was an unforgettable experience that gave us a truly unique product, one that we do hope to use one of these days.

Here’s a small selection of companies that work with recycled glass in a variety of applications:

Northeast:

• IceStone (New York)

Mid-Atlantic:

• Meld USA (North Carolina)

South:

• EnviroGLAS (Texas)

Mid-West:

• Terra Green Ceramics (Indiana)
• Wausau Tile (Wisconsin)

Pacific Northwest:

• Bedrock Industries (Washington)
• Interstyle (Technically in Canada, but it’s so close to Washington that it would still count as a locally sourced [within a 500-mile radius, per USGBC definition] product for anyone in this state.)
• Sandhill Industries (Idaho)
• Stardust Glass (Oregon)

Pacific:

• Artflor (California)
• Fireclay Tile (California)

As always, we welcome any information about new sources. Let us know if you know of any. Thanks!

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• May 19, 2010 -- on tour: PDX sustainable materials (0)
• May 16, 2010 -- on tour: PDX (1)
• April 19, 2010 -- stories of sustainability: Interstyle Ceramic & Glass (0)
• April 11, 2010 -- review: the ZENERGY House opens (3)
• April 8, 2010 -- stories of sustainability: Deborah Guyer Greene (0)