Scotland – continental drift to recycling green glass

Never mind the 10 million green bottles standing on a wall, Scots recycle twice that amount of green glass alone each year, according to new figures cited by The Scotsman.

The latest figures for glass recycling show Scotland‘s drinking habits are becoming increasingly continental – at least among those who recycle. Green glass, the colour used to bottle red wine, champagne and continental beers, is more commonly found in many recycling bins than clear glass, the type usually used for white wine, whisky and beer – the drinks traditionally more popular north of the Border.

Scotland also seems to have finally lost its “dirty man of Europe” image, when recycling rates in the country were much lower than in most of Europe. In Edinburgh, which traditionally regards itself as more cosmopolitan than other parts of Scotland, and has a centuries-old love affair with claret, each household recycles 15kg of green glass per year. That adds up to around 30 red wine bottles – and just 9kg of clear glass. But in Dundee – a city seen as having more traditionally Scottish drinking habits – a typical home recycles 17kg of clear glass and only 10kg of the green variety. In neighbouring Angus, households are similarly wary of such southern decadence, with clear glass dominating the recycling bins.

However, the drinkers of Argyll and Bute, which includes Islay – home of some of the most famous malt whiskies – also seem to be embracing drinks in green bottles rather than clear-bottled malt. The average household there produces 24kg of empty green bottles and just 22.5kg of empty clear glass.

The expansion of Inverness, the Highland capital, has clearly led to an appreciation of some southern comforts. The north-west, traditionally keen on whisky and beer, recycles 17kg of green glass per household and only 12kg of clear glass.

Neither Glasgow nor Aberdeen calculates separate totals for each kind of glass.

The Scotsman notes that Richard Halstead, managing director of the Wine Intelligence Unit, said: “The figures are fascinating, although they only give clues to the drinking habits of the environmentally conscious. The green glass from red wine and continental bottled beers is more common among those who consider themselves more sophisticated. It also tends to be the general rule that more experienced and sophisticated wine drinkers will move to more red wine rather than white.” The highest recycling rate is in Scotland‘s smallest council area. The people of Clackmannanshire recycle 79kg of glass a year: 28kg of green, 38kg of clear and 13kg of brown. The authority denied the high turnover of glass was due to the locals being too fond of the bottle