Environmental Impact of Windscreen Repair / Replacement

Did you know...

Glass takes more than 1 million years to decompose in our landfills.

In Europe, 9 million windshields are replaced annually. At an average weight of 25 pounds each, this equates to about 225 million pounds of waste per year.

Windscreen glass is difficult to recycle because much of the glass is 2-ply laminated and contains a PVB layer that must be separated. Integrated heating elements or radio antenna are often embedded within the windshields and cannot be returned to the glass furnace for reworking. British Glass, Glass Manufacture: A Mass Balance Study, 2005.

The transportation of glass, which is a relatively heavy product, throughout the supply chain results in high levels of transport-related CO2 emissions. Advances in Glasses and Glass-Ceramics, Frost & Sullivan, 2006.

Glass manufacturing is a high-temperature, energy-intensive activity, resulting in the emission of combustion by-products (sulphur dioxide, carbon dioxide, and nitrogen oxides) and the high-temperature oxidation of atmospheric nitrogen. Environmental, Health, and Safety Guidelines for Glass Manufacturing, World Bank Group.

It takes 15.2 million BTUs of energy to produce one ton of glass. The manufacturing of one ton of glass can generate as much as 385 pounds of mining waste and 28 pounds of air pollutants. Like the production of other materials, glass manufacturing and usage has negative impacts on the environment. The Rhode Island Resource Recovery Corporation.

Thousands of repairs can be carried out for the equivalent environmental impact of 1 replacement.