In the past two years, the amount of wine people enjoy at home has increased. This means that more glass bottles are transported to the side of the road, and the possible destination is a landfill.

My house is five minutes away from a collection center in downtown Richland. When I checked the dustbins designated for glass, it became clear that some wine lovers were recycling.

The same is true for the Rotary Club of Lake Chelan. It meets at the Tsillan Cellars winery every Tuesday, so Chelan lawyer Julie McCoy and her members of the Rotary Club on the Earth Preservation Committee initiated the 911 Glass Rescue project. Guy Evans of Tunnel Hill Winery is president-elect of Lake Chelan Rotary, and now half of the area's 30 wineries are sponsors of the project.

They arranged to purchase a commercial glass shredding system worth $150,000 from Andela Products in New York. Amos Rome Vineyards, Fielding Hills Winery, Lagrioth Winery and Tsillan Cellars are the largest donors of the machine, which produces glass sand and aggregates at the recycling center in Chelan City. These Rotary club members believe this is the first such plan in Washington State.

"We started operations in early July and the response has been enthusiastic," McCoy said. "We have a steady stream of customers every Saturday, smashing 30 tons of glass."

They estimate that this is equivalent to approximately 15,000 bottles of wine. A barrel of modified glass is priced at $5 a barrel and is used for landscaping, artwork and sandboxing, as well as texture and stair traction for countertops.

"Some wineries brought us a lot of glass," McCoy said. If someone using a glass recycling bin in Richland Uptown sees an empty bottle with a white Avery label on it that says "Malbec-12" or "Riesling-19", it is filled with award-winning wines.

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