Glass scientists at Alfred University in New York, in partnership with New York state and consulting company Vitricity (Madison, Wis.), are studying ways to wash and reuse wine bottles. The project could remove tens of thousands of wine bottles from the waste stream each year while helping Finger Lakes Region wine producers realize significant savings.

There are more than 130 wineries in the Finger Lakes Region, primarily on Keuka, Seneca, and Cayuga lakes. According to a survey of the region’s wine producers, the average winery uses about 10,000 bottles each year in their tasting rooms alone, with some going through as many as 50,000 annually. For the most part, those bottles are not reused and likely end up in landfills.