Why Isn’t Curbside Glass Recycling Free? The Honest Economics Behind It

The reality of running a glass recycling operation.

This might be the most common question we get on social media: “Why do I have to pay for glass recycling? You’re making money selling the glass on the back end, so it should be free!” 

We totally get why people think this way, as it seems logical on the surface. While dropping off your glass is available at no cost to you, we do charge a fee for curbside pickup. Let’s get into why.

The Reality Of Glass Recycling 

When people see glass getting sold to manufacturers, they assume it’s highly profitable. Here’s what’s actually happening behind the scenes and the expenses that quickly add up:

Collection Costs Are High

• Fuel for collection trucks 
• Driver wages and benefits
• Vehicle maintenance and insurance
• Bins, bags, and collection equipment

Processing Is Expensive

• Sorting out contamination (labels, caps, ceramics, windows, etc.)
• Crushing and cleaning the glass
• Quality control to meet buyer specifications
• Facility rent, utilities, and maintenance
• Equipment repairs and replacements

Recycled Glass Travels Nationwide 

• Shipping processed glass to manufacturers
• Fuel costs for heavy loads
• Logistics coordination

When you add it all up, glass often costs more per ton to process than we can sell it for. So why do we keep doing it?

Recycling Glass is Simply the Right Thing to Do

Momentum Recycling was founded 13 years ago because glass recycling is critically important, even when it’s not profitable. Before we started, glass wasn’t being recycled at scale in Utah. It was all going to landfills—even though, when handled correctly, glass can be recycled indefinitely.

We started this company to improve recycling in our community; we’ve been mission-driven from day one, not profit-driven. Our mission is to keep glass out of landfills and turn it into useful products like the fiberglass insulation made by Owens Corning right here in Nephi, Utah. This reduces waste in our community and saves natural resources and energy over the long run.

Our Options For Glass Recycling 

We understand that everyone’s situation is different, which is why we’ve designed multiple ways to participate in recycling glass:

Curbside Collection: The small monthly fee that curbside customers pay helps cover the costs to pick up and recycle glass from individual homes. Think of it as community-supported recycling—everyone who participates helps make the whole system possible. Perfect for busy families who value convenience.

Free Drop-Off: For people who prefer not to pay the monthly fee or live outside our collection areas, we offer free drop-off locations throughout Utah. Your glass still gets recycled, just with a different service model.

Both options work great—the important thing is that glass gets recycled instead of thrown away!

What About Other Recyclables?

You might be wondering, “If glass recycling can lose money, why don’t paper and plastic recycling cost extra too?” Great question! 

The short answer is that mixed recycling does have associated costs, but these are typically part of your city utility bill. Glass is a special case because it needs to be collected separately, which increases costs. 

The other materials that you put in your mixed recycling bin (paper, cardboard, metals, and plastic) all have their own unique market dynamics that make their values fluctuate. Sometimes the fluctuations are extreme. But in general, even these recyclables cost more to process than to landfill. Currently, that cost is about 3 times the cost of landfilling. But this cost is built into your city utility bill, and is therefore a bit hidden. 

Glass is on the expensive end of the recycling spectrum because it’s heavy to transport, requires careful processing, and the end market doesn’t pay much for it. But it’s still a valuable resource!

Why We Believe In Recycling Glass

Even though glass recycling isn’t very profitable, it creates enormous environmental and community benefits:

• Keeps thousands of tons of glass out of Utah landfills every year
• Preserves natural resources like soda ash (which is finite and mostly comes from Wyoming)
• Creates local jobs and keeps recycling infrastructure in our community
• Turns waste glass into useful products like insulation

The small cost to participate in curbside pickup helps sustain these benefits for everyone.

We’re not hiding any secret profits, and we firmly believe that our business is a community service. Recycling glass is the right thing to do for Utah and the environment.

The fees we charge for curbside service help keep this important program running so that everyone has an option to recycle glass properly. It’s community-supported recycling at its finest.

When you choose to recycle glass (whether through curbside pickup or drop-off), you’re supporting a system that prioritizes environmental benefits over profits. And that’s something Utah can be proud of.

Check out our locations page or learn more about our curbside service options to find your best option to do your part.