Every place has a different set of rules and procedures for the recycling of that area. Some places make us feel confident that what we do is not in vain and our efforts are met with facilities that recycle what we throw in our blue bins. Other places, not so much.
When we moved to Lafayette and learned that there was no glass recycling, we hoarded our bottles in hope that something would change. Later on, we realized that we weren't the only ones that saved boxes upon boxes of glass, waiting.
My partner and I had been rolling around ideas for a couple years, we read about small operations that collected glass, crushed it and found uses for the sand.
It seemed feasible for two people, a yard, minimal equipment and hope to pull off. The containers piling up in the barn acted like our timer to make something happen. The machinery we wanted to start out with was expensive, so we built a glass crusher that gave us 3 different sizes. We had more than sand, we had what looked like BackYard Sapphire. So with wanting to divert glass from the landfills, we went into the Glass Mulch business! We sift, we crush and blend the colorful bottles into a beautiful sustainable product to beautify your garden and yard.
We started BackYard Sapphire February of 2021.
Cheers,
Tina & Dawn
Who We Are
BackYard Sapphire is a grassroots movement working towards sustainable living, here in Lafayette, Louisiana. We aim to bring the community together through the avenue of caring. We value what we have and use it creatively. There's no need to waste as much as our culture has trained us to do. Take a minute and think of all the wasteful convenient habits that have become our norm. It's hard to work around but with a little extra effort, lots of little actions can make a difference.
One community at a time!