A Baldwin Borough business has come to the rescue for South Hills residents who lost the option to recycle glass at the curb starting Jan. 1.
Michael Brothers Hauling & Recycling has launched a free glass recycling pilot program at its Horning Road facility that will run through the beginning of April.
“It was definitely a cry from the public that led us to do this,” said Stephanie Milani, sales and marketing manager at Michael Brothers.
Nineteen of the 22 municipalities in South Hills Area Council of Governments (SHACOG) participated in the organization’s new five-year solid waste and recycling joint bid that started in 2019. Under the specifications of the bid, Waste Management — the successful low bidder — no longer accepts recyclables containing heavy contamination, which includes glass.
As residents in each municipality were notified, calls began to come in to Michael Brothers from people seeking an alternative to tossing their glass in the trash, Milani said.
The company, which focuses on scrap metal recycling and dumpster delivery, decided to dabble in the glass recycling field as a service to the community, she said.
The location already has a drive-through bay that allows cars to pull in, unload recyclables and leave. They added bins for clear, green and brown glass bottles and jars.
The program launched on Jan. 16 at the Horning Road waste transfer station and scrap metal recycling facility. The service also is being offered at their Reserve Park waste transfer station at 408 Hoffman Road.
Milani notified officials in all 22 SHACOG municipalities of the program who then informed the public.
The free glass recycling is offered twice a week: Wednesdays from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Saturdays from 7 a.m. to 11 a.m.
In the first four days of the program, 86 people stopped by with glass to recycle. Of those, 26 were from Mt. Lebanon, 20 from Bethel Park, 10 from Upper St. Clair, six from Peters Township, four from Whitehall and the rest were divided among the other SHACOG communities.
The majority of items dropped off thus far have been wine and beer bottles, Milani said.
Brentwood Borough Manager George Zboyovsky said the borough hasn’t received “too many complaints” regarding the changes to the recycling program. It advertised Michael Brothers new program on its website.
As Michael Brothers is primarily a scrap metal recycling center, company representatives urge people to bring anything from aluminum cans to coat hangers to household appliances when they stop by to recycle their glass. The company pays for scrap metal.
Because the business has limited space, company officials are going to see how adding the free glass recycling works, Milani said. If it doesn’t affect normal business, they hope to keep the program going after the pilot.
Stephanie Hacke is a Tribune-Review contributing writer.
