Glass Pulverizer                       As the name implies, a glass pulverizer is an impact crusher that repeatedly recrushes consumer glass to remove the sharp edges typically found in broken glass. A series of filters removes foreign materials and 95% of paper labels before being sorted and dispensed into a 3/8" and 1/8" product. Operation of this machine produces a little bit of dust, is relatively quiet, and is easy to maintain. Lower quality pulverizers are not as efficient in removing sharp glass edges and are not able to separate different sizes of cullet. By separating glass colors in collection bins, it is easy to produce an attractive single-color product. See Pictures!

History There have been several attempts in Missoula to recycle consumer glass. The reasons past efforts have not succeeded was due to the amount of glass, transportation expenses, not establishing local markets, and not being able to produce high quality cullet. Annually, Missola produces an enormous amount of glass that is hauled to the local landfill. It is cost prohibitive to ship glass to Seattle and Golden as we once did for recycling. Acquiring and operating a high quality pulverizer would enable Missoula to easily handle the local demand for consumer recycled glass. In fact, we expect an influx of glass from surrounding communities including the Bitterroot. The high quality glass cullet produced from the pulverizer has no sharp edges and has many attractive uses. We expect to develop local markets and uses just as other communities in the United States have after acquiring a pulverizer for their glass recycling operations.

The Answer Missoula has the opportunity to take the lead as a model city to establish glass recycling. We need to find a local solution to deal with our local problem. Economic analysis of projected equipment and operating expenses has exhibited a sustainable business solution to meet the demand for glass recycling in Missoula. The answer is to distribute glass and cullet locally within an established infrastructure that can pulverize glass and meet local cullet demands. By keeping the product local, glass recycling is self-sustaining and fulfilling our responsibiltity to the community and our environment.