Bausch + Lomb’s Recycling Programs Save 285 Tons of Products From Landfills

Polar bears are formidably large animals, weighing anywhere between 330 pounds and 1,322 pounds (or 1,500 pounds by some estimates) and measuring between 6.5 feet and 8.3 feet long.

The largest polar bear ever weighed as much as a fishing boat—clocking in at 2,209 pounds—and stood roughly 11 feet, 1 inch tall on its hind legs, according to A-Z Animals. The bear was spotted near Alaska’s Kotzebue Sound in 1960.

That’s one giant beast.

Imagine, for a moment, 690 of these beasts¹ (at the average weight). Collectively, the animals would weigh 569,743 pounds, or 284.87 tons.

Now imagine all that mass in the form of contact lenses and assorted eye care and lens care materials.

It would constitute 94,119,275 units*—the amount collected by Bausch + Lomb Corporation’s exclusive ONE by ONE Recycling and Biotrue Eye Care Recycling programs in the United States.

“Our unique recycling programs continue to be popular with environmentally conscious eye care professionals, patients and consumers,” said Amy Butler, vice president, Global Environment, Health, Safety, and Sustainability, Bausch + Lomb. “The collective success of these programs proves that simple acts can have a significant impact and create lasting habits.”

Due to their small size and the type of plastic used to manufacture them, contact lenses, eye care and lens care materials aren’t efficiently processed in standard recycling facilities and may inadvertently end up in landfills or waterways. In the United States, it is estimated that six to 10 metric tons of contact lenses end up in wastewater each year, which can pollute aquatic environments and eventually impact the human food supply.

“Our practice has relied on Bausch + Lomb’s ONE by ONE Recycling and Biotrue Eye Care Recycling programs for years,” said Jennifer Tsai, OD, LINE OF SIGHT, New York. “It’s rewarding to be a part of an initiative that aligns with our practice’s focus on sustainability.”

Bausch + Lomb has a similar contact lens recycling program in Canada called Every Contact Counts. All three programs are made possible through a collaboration with TerraCycle, a world leader in the collection and recycling of hard-to-recycle waste.

Bausch + Lomb is implementing, maintaining, and enhancing sustainable business practices that support eye care professionals, patients, consumers, employees, and communities worldwide. Its impact initiatives are measured against several key environmental metrics called “FEWW” – fuel, energy, water and waste.

The Bausch + Lomb ONE by ONE Recycling program is the first and only U.S. contact lens recycling program. It collects used contact lenses, top foils and opened plastic blister packs from any brand and is available to contact lens wearers and eye care professionals. To participate, contact lens wearers can bring their used contact lenses and packaging to official ONE by ONE eye care practice recycling locations, which collect the used materials in a custom recycling bin provided by Bausch + Lomb. Once the bin is filled, the optometry practice ships the materials using a Bausch + Lomb pre-paid shipping label to TerraCycle, where it is cleaned and melted into hard plastic pellets that can be used to make new recycled products.

The Bausch + Lomb Biotrue Eye Care Recycling program is the first and only U.S. eye care and lens care recycling program. It allows consumers to properly recycle all brands of their eye drop single dose units, lens cases, and lens solution caps, as well as all Biotrue-branded eye drops bottles. Once consumers collect these items, they can be mailed to TerraCycle using a pre-paid shipping label. When the waste arrives at the TerraCycle facility, it is cleaned and melted into hard plastic pellets that can be used to make new recycled products.

Bausch + Lomb is dedicated to protecting and enhancing sight for millions of people worldwide. Its portfolio of approximately 400 products includes contact lenses, lens care products, eye care products, ophthalmic pharmaceuticals, over-the-counter products, and ophthalmic surgical devices, and instruments. Founded in 1853, Bausch + Lomb has a significant global research and development, manufacturing, and commercial footprint with approximately 13,000 employees and a presence in nearly 100 countries. Bausch + Lomb is headquartered in Vaughan, Ontario, with corporate offices in Bridgewater, N.J.

* Estimated based on weight.

Reference
¹ https://a-z-animals.com/blog/the-largest-polar-bear-weighted-as-much-a-fishing-boat-3-reasons-it-grew-so-large/