Glass bottles and jars

Disposal options

Glass cookware and drinking glasses

• Reuse glass items where possible, or donate, sell or gift reusable items to others. Check the Reuse page for more information.
• Reusable glass items in good condition may be accepted by Goodies Junction (conditions apply).
• If in poor condition or broken, place small glass items, such as drinking glasses, glass cookware and wine glasses wrapped in paper into your household general waste bin.

Glass bottles and jars

• Place empty, clean glass bottles and jars in your household recycling bin. Remove lids before recycling.
• Lids larger than a credit card can be recycled if placed loose in the recycling bin. Smaller plastic lids may be accepted through Lids4Kids collection programs (conditions apply).
• Larger quantities of glass bottles and jars can be dropped off for free at a Recycling Drop Off Centre.
• Recycle eligible glass containers through the ACT Container Deposit Scheme (ACT CDS) for a 10-cent refund for each container.

Other glass items

• Reading glasses or spectacles may be recycled through specialised donation and recycling programs. See the Glasses and spectacles page for disposal options.
• Empty perfume bottles and cosmetic containers may be accepted through specialised recycling programs (conditions apply). See the Cosmetics page for disposal options.
• Large glass items, such as glass panes and mirrors, that cannot be reused can be dropped off at a resource management centre (fees may apply) :

  • Mugga Lane Resource Management Centre

  • Mitchell Resource Management Centre

• Solar panels should be taken to a specialised recycling program drop-off service.

Glass containers, jars and bottles and items that include glass are not accepted in the bulky waste collection service in the ACT.

Why?

Glass jars and bottles are made into a sand replacement product at our Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) in the ACT. Other glass products such as drinking glasses and mirrors have been heat treated and cannot be recycled at the MRF. Broken glass is not accepted as it is a safety hazard for MRF sorters. Metal and plastic lids larger than a business card can be recycled via your recycling bin.

Related items

This may include bottles; jars; household packaging; jam jars; vegemite jars; beer bottles; glass beverage containers; glass soft drink bottles; glass beer bottles; beer bottles; coke bottles; mineral water bottles; wine bottles; brown glass; broken glass; glass bottles; glass jars; soft drink bottles; broken glassware; drinking glasses; wine glasses; cups; mugs; mirrors; mirror glass; glass panes; window panes; glass bakeware; Pyrex; cookware; sheet glass; heat-treated products; plate glass; housing glass; window screens; perfume bottles; aftershave bottles.