Major Quebec glass processing plant shutting down

A Longueuil facility that prepares about 70 per cent ofQuebec's glass for recycling is shutting down, and the companys management says it isnt sure where the glass will end up.

Klareco processes more than 100,000 tonnes of glass in Quebec each year and sends most of it to the U.S., where it's used to make insulation.

But the market for glass is in a bad state, and the Quebec facility is outdated.

"We've been losing money for the last couple of years," said Klareco vice-president Johnny Izzi.

He said it would have been difficult to invest between $10 and $12 million to build a new plant.

Environmental activist Karel Mnard says Klareco's closure will create a problem.

He's calling on the province's liquor board, the SAQ, to implement a deposit system.

Mnard said the SAQsells about 200 million bottles a year and most of the glass in people's recycling bins comes from wine and spirit bottles.

"Eighty per cent of the glass comes from the SAQ, so theSAQ should be responsible for the glass that is in the bins," he said.

Meanwhile, Izzi said he hopes the government will take the opportunity to step in and come up with a solution.

He said he assumes recycling facilities are piling up the glass in hopes that some sort of new program is created.