Op-Ed: Maui eyes glass recycling revival after decade-long hiatus

Op-Ed: Maui eyes glass recycling revival after decade-long hiatus authored by JD Pells

The County of Maui is considering recycling glass on Maui again. One of the least recycled materials in the US, glass bottles are produced three times faster than they are being recycled, according to the EPA.

On Maui, commercial glass recycling operations halted over a decade ago. The Aloha glass processor would roll over bottles in a cement bunker, run the glass through a crusher multiple times and then submerge the aggregate in water to remove contamination, such as paper from labels and residue. But it was unsustainable due to several operational logistics and end-use issues, according to Cecile Powell, Maui County’s recycling grant manager.

The issues were plentiful: Salty air eroded machine parts; glass consistently tore pits in the cement; and glass was being stockpiled at the recycling facility because of push back from end users.

With a new Request for Proposal, “RFP 24-25/P-30 for Glass Recycling on Maui,” expected to get posted this winter, the County’s Recycling Section believes these challenges can get ironed out and glass processing on Maui can resume again.

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According to the Maui County Department of Environmental Protection and Sustainability Recycling Section, glass pulverizing technology has come a long way in the past decade and should lead to more success in a bid to recycle glass locally.

Recycled glass can be used as aggregate for covert fill, and can be incorporated into asphalt. When finely ground to a sand, recycled glass can be used for filtration — or even made into fertilizer. Powell says there are more relevant use cases for Maui County, such as using recycled glass in new septic tanks, as more than 10,000 kamaʻāina transition away from cesspools. Recycled glass has also been applied in agriculture and pool sand filtration systems.

The project to crush glass is slated to begin as early as August 2025, pending budget approval by the Maui County Council.

Local processing may also help the County meet compliance on a state mandate to use glass in all public construction projects, which was enacted in 2011 but has been skirted since 2016. 

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HRS Title 9 §103D-407 specifies that all highway and road construction projects funded by the state or counties must utilize at least 10% crushed glass aggregate, as long as it is available at a competitive price. Also, nonstructural backfill for public projects must use 100% crushed glass when it is available at a price equal or lower to traditional aggregates. 

The mandate has not been strictly enforced due to a shortage of the material in its usable form, according to the County’s Recycling Section.

“Now that we are moving towards recycling glass on Maui again, we are revisiting enforcement procedures and developing a re-implementation plan,” said Powell.

Presently, residential recycling operators on Maui have a contract to ship glass to Strategical Materials, Inc. in Oakland, CA. According to its website, the facility recycles glass into new containers, fiberglass and aggregate. This year, Maui County has collected and shipped over 496 tons of glass to Oakland – or nearly two million standard bottles. The total FY23 budget of Maui’s glass recovery program for glass containers not in the Deposit Beverage Container Porgram, like wine bottles, was over $170,000, per the Office of Solid Waste Management. More information on Maui County recycling can be found here.

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Despite efforts to recycle glass, the contracts in place impact the footprint of Maui residents through necessitating overseas shipping and the costs associated. It has also proven to be a logistical challenge for the Material Recovery Facility, the local sorting and baling center, and for contract holders. Last year, a funding delay also led to some stockpiled glass getting dumped in the Central Maui Landfill, where it was applied as Alternative Daily Cover, a productive but unforeseen use, according to Powell.

Commercial glass pulverizing technology is being adopted in some communities across the nation. The Andela GP-1HD Glass Pulverizer machine is capable of processing up to 10 tons of glass per hour, which is approximately the tonnage Maui County collects each week now, according to County data. The Andela’s price tag is well-under a quarter of one million dollars.

JD Pells is a news writer and reporter for Maui Now. He is also co-founder of Upcountry Curbside, a curbside recycling service for those who want a curbside option in Kula, Pukalani and Makawao. The program receives partial funding from the County of Maui Department of Environmental Protection and Sustainability.

*****Views expressed in Op-Ed pieces are those of the author’s alone and do not reflect or represent the opinions, policies or positions of Maui Now.*****