Does old glass need to be rinsed before disposal?

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For 2022, a total of 694 millimeters of precipitation per year was measured at the Geneva measuring station, about a quarter less than the long-term average. In some places, such as Locarno, authorities had to intervene last year, as groundwater levels were at record lows.

Even outside of Switzerland, such as northern Italy, the last few years have been very dry, making water a more valuable commodity than it is.

That is why water-saving measures are in demand more than ever in recent years. Popular tips range from taking a shower instead of a bath, washing the salad in a bowl rather than under running water, or placing a rainwater barrel in the garden so thirsty plants don’t need to be watered with precious drinking water.

“Please wash the bottles and glasses”

Recently, when I threw my empty wine bottles into a used glass container in the city of Zurich, I noticed the sign that the bottles and glasses needed to be shaken. It was clear to me that half-full bottles should not be thrown away due to odor emissions. But is it really necessary to wash and, above all, is it up-to-date? I dig deeper and confront my concerns with the media office of Entsorgung + Recycling Zürich (ERZ).

Soon after, ERZ takes a stand: “Rinsing doesn’t mean deep cleaning, but rather removing the coarsest residues with little use of (cold) water. This prevents bad odors and bugs at the recycling collection point. Residues like jam sometimes, especially in summer They attract a large number of insects (sting bees) during the months of the year.»

In addition, used glass is automatically cleaned during reprocessing, making deep cleaning at home unnecessary. This not only saves water and money, but also saves valuable time. Meanwhile, bottles of blue, red or undefined wine go into the green glass container. This is because the green color is based on the highest non-color inputs associated with glass chemistry.

What about the desire to rinse the used glass container? The municipality of Zurich writes: “The containers at the recycling points will be replaced in the near future due to their age. This presents an opportunity to improve labeling.”

Source : Blick