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Recycled Glass & Dust Hazards

Glass recycling involves a crushing process so that the glass can be melted down and formed into new goods more efficiently. This crushing process creates glass dust, which can be inhaled and cause injury to pulmonary tissues as well as lead to the formation of several types of cancer, including mesothelioma and renal carcinoma.

  1. Pulmonary Fibrosis and Mesothelioma

    • A study published in the January 1993 issue of Toxicology Science investigated the effects of glass particles in the respiratory tracts of rats. The researchers exposed the test animals to airborne glass fibers for six hours per day for two years, and compared the outcomes with a negative control, exposed to filtered air. The study found that the lung tissue from the exposed rats indicated pulmonary fibrosis, an inflammatory disease, as well as mesothelioma, a rare form of lung cancer. However, the authors noted that there was not a significant increase in tumor formation as compared with the control group.

    Renal Carcinoma

    • Other than being a pulmonary carcinogen, glass fibers can lead to cancers in other parts of the body. An article appearing in the May 2011 issue of the British Journal of Cancer investigated the relationship between glass dust exposure and renal, or kidney, cancer. The researchers evaluated hospital records, occupational histories and job-specific questionnaires and found a significant increase in renal carcinoma among workers exposed to glass fibers. The study further found that the duration of exposure had a cumulative effect in renal cancer diagnoses.

    Damage to Pulmonary Tissues

    • The November 2010 issue of the Journal of Synchrotron Radiation investigated the health effects caused by particles of fiberglass and hollow glass microspheres to mimic airborne glass pollutants on lung tissue. The researchers examined these irritants on live mice and then excised the lung tissue and tracheas of the animals. The study found that glass particle were captured in the airway fluids and lodged into the epithelial tissues lining the airways. The authors concluded that the type and size of the glass particles influenced the degree of pulmonary disease.

    Role of Macrophages

    • An earlier study, published in the June 1970 issue of the Archives of Environmental Health, exposed rats and hamsters to glass fiber dust that had an average diameter of 1 micron, or 1 millionth of a meter. The researchers found macrophages, immune cells that engulf foreign particles, filled with glass particles and glass deposits located in the lymph nodes of the test animals that became necrotic. The study concluded, however, that exposure to glass dust did not lead to fibrosis, or inflammation, of the pulmonary tract.

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