Blog 8

In class we talked about the importance (or lack thereof) of recycling glass. Professor Everett made the same basic point as MacBride, that with regard to both economics and environmental impact that costs of recycling glass outweigh the benefits; the financial costs often result in little to no profit (or even a profit loss), and the use of fuel for shipping, processing emissions, etc. make a larger negative impact than the energy and resources saved from glass recycling. Professor Pope made a note that, aside from filling up landfill volume, the effect of glass disposal in the environment is essentially irrelevant because glass is inert, not chemically hazardous. MacBride had addressed this point when she talked about why glass recycling became so important to us in the first place (for one thing, broken glass shards from littered glass bottles in cities had been a danger).

The discussion of the significance of glass recycling and the impact of glass in the environment reminded me of Glass Beach, in California. The beach was a local dump until 1967, when it closed and underwent cleanup, often involving garbage fires to burn away some of the trash. After the cleanup projects had finished, some stuff remained on the beach from the dump, including tons and tons of glass shards. In time, most of these glass pieces were worn out and smoothed, leaving a beach filled with thousands of “sea glass” pebbles that are safe to walk on. Although there are still the occasional sharp shards and pieces of trash to be found along the beach from its days as a dump, Glass Beach is now a major tourist site, especially for sea glass enthusiasts and collectors. Collection of the sea glass, though, is prohibited now to protect the beach from such glass collectors; although still a spectacle, the amount and variety of glass left on the beach has greatly diminished over the past 20 years. This presents an interesting situation in which what was once a gross display of human waste is now a protected part of the environment in the area. How ironic that we have prohibited the destruction of what began as an example of human destruction of nature and the environment!

To me this speaks to the idea that has been harped on extensively in this class, the idea that “waste” should not be a waste. In this case, broken, ‘useless’ pieces of glass have become something of beauty and value. Although there are different opinions on the topic, I appreciate the fact that such a disgusting place could become something so beautiful and enjoyed. I did read speculations on a few sites though that there might be a future effort to replenish the glass on the beach since the present amount is being depleted by tourists, and I don’t think that this is an endeavor that should be pursued. Despite the inert-ness of glass in the environment, I can’t see throwing piles of glass for purely aesthetic value as a positive thing.