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Re: [greenyes] Benefits of Glass Recycling
It seems to me the fallacy in Jeff's analysis is in not recognizing that 
glass recycling is actually in a steady state.   If you were seeking to develop a 
theoretical average age for the glass in an average bottle, then the sum of a 
geometric series might apply.   But in a steady state all of the glass 
containers already have the same theoretical age, so it's one in, one out.

One wine bottle recycled, 20 ounces of raw material and .1 kwh saved for that 
bottle.   Nationally we know how many tons of containers are made per year, 
and the amount of virgin materials that are mined.   One to one minus recycled.

If you ended recycling except for bottles in service, you would have the long 
tail Jeff describes.   But that's not what's happening.

Have you heard the one about Achilles and the tortoise?

Bob Kirby


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