AGC Glass Europe

We consider solid waste to be an absolute waste of resources, something that has to be minimised as far as possible. The solid waste that remains should be collected separately and sorted whenever possible, in order for it to be recovered or recycled.

Today the amount of solid waste produced by the Group is around 220,000 tonnes/year, of which more of 80% is recyclable glass. Further reduction in waste and greater recycling are leading principles in the management of our waste. Sending our waste to landfill is avoided as much as possible.

In 2010, less than 4% of the waste went to landfill and more than 94% was recycled or recovered (Fig. 15. Solid waste disposal treatments.). This strong improvement in comparison with previous years is due mainly to inclusion for the first time of the figures for the Automotive division, where plants have reached the goal of 0% waste to landfill.

 

Fig. 16 shows the amount of waste sent to landfill as a proportion of the total solid waste. 

Although further reduction of waste is mainly organised at plant level, AGC Glass Europe has centralised contracts with waste disposal companies in all countries. These service providers audit the plants on a regular basis, and have committed themselves to helping us find further possibilities for reduction and recycling.

AGC Glass Europe Environmental Department also initiates central research activities in order to increase the amount of reuse or recycling of specific waste streams (see “Recycling”).