Recycle your glass with curbside service

If you are looking for a more convenient way to recycle your household or business glass, there are three companies that provide regular curbside pickup service in the Kansas City metro area.

Although most metro cities have curbside recycling for non-glass items, recycling glass has always been an issue because when it breaks it contaminates other recyclables and is difficult to recycle when it is in smaller, broken pieces.

For the past six years, Kansas City residents have been able to recycle glass by collecting it at home or work and taking it a purple Ripple Glass bin located near businesses, restaurants and bars throughout the area. Those efforts have helped Ripple Glass keep 1 billion glass containers out of the waste stream resulting in saving enough energy to power all Kansas City homes for 18 days. Ripple Glass has more than 100 bins in the Kansas City area and additional bins in Jefferson City, MO; Branson, MO; Lawrence, KS; Omaha, NE and Sioux City, IA.

But for many, transporting glass to a recycling bin is difficult or inconvenient. Three local entrepreneurs saw the need for curbside pickup services and are building their businesses by offering the convenience of picking up glass. They are:

• Atlas Glass is a veteran-owned business started in 2012 by Damon Wittenborn. Currently, the company collects about four tons of glass per week from 450 customers including, residences, restaurants, bars and business locations bordered by 31^st street to I-435 and Metcalf Avenue to Paseo  Boulevard. The majority of customers are in the Brookside/Waldo area in Kansas City, MO. Glass pickup can be scheduled weekly, biweekly and monthly with prices ranging from $7 to $20 per month. Contact: [email protected] or 913-735-6116

• Glass Bandit curbside recycling services was started in 2014 by owner Jamie Arnold. He collects about two tons of glass per week using a converted school bus. His service area is south of the river, mostly between Troost Avenue and State Line Road. The area includes Kansas City, MO and Kansas City, Leawood, Roeland Park, Overland Park, Lenexa, Prairie Village, Westwood and Westwood Hills in Kansas. He picks up glass biweekly and allows customers to name their own price based on the quantity of glass they normally need collected. The minimum price is $3 a month, but the average customer pays $7 a month. Contact: [email protected] or 913-721-6970

• KC Curbside Glass was started in 2013 by Hunt Magee and collects glass in Gardner, Lenexa, Leawood, Olathe, Overland Park, Shawnee, Spring Hill and Stillwell in Kansas. The monthly pickup service costs $10, with 10 percent being donated to Harvesters Community Food Network. Contact: [email protected] or 913-617-6401

PHOTO: Jamie Arnold, owner of Glass Bandit, converted an old school bus to use for his glass curbside pickup service.