Got your eclipse glasses? This nonprofit wants you to recycle them after April 8 eclipse

Heather Eracleous is no stranger to recycling projects.

She is the owner of Vessel Refillery FW, where residents of Fort Wayne, Indiana, can refill their empty bottles of household goods and personal care supplies.

Still, she had no idea that she could do the same with eclipse glasses that will be used to view the total solar eclipse on April 8.

"I know that this solar eclipse is such a huge deal," said Eracleous, 51. "I felt that there has to be something, somewhere where people are able to recycle those glasses."

Eracleous found Astronomers Without Borders, or AWB, a non-profit organization running its second nationwide eclipse glasses recycling drive. Her business will join over 300 schools, museums, city governments, commercial businesses, community organizations, and local libraries that will collect and ship an estimated millions of glasses to be repurposed for use by underserved communities around the world in future solar eclipses.

An eclipse is a once-in-a-lifetime experience, "so why not allow them the same benefits that we get from these glasses?" Eracleous said.

AWB launched its first run of the program after the last solar eclipse in 2017, when volunteer centers across the country collected more than half a million glasses that were distributed to Africa, Asia, and South America for reuse.

This year, the organization has put out a call for new collection centers to box and ship the used glasses after the eclipse.

More:Where will eclipse glasses go after April 8? Here's what experts say about reusing them.

Libraries in path of totality participate in recycling program

Ohio communities Twinsburg and Shaker Heights fall in the eclipse's path of totality, which includes a strip of land running diagonally across the U.S. from Mexico to southeast Canada where the moon will fully cover the sun during the duration of the astronomical event.

That news has residents of the area extra excited for the big April day.

In Shaker Heights, the library is partnering with the local recreation department for a total eclipse watch party.

With so many events planned, Jodie Lyons, the Twinsburg Public Library's public relations and marketing coordinator, linked up with AWB to set up a collection site at the library after she learned Shaker Heights was also participating.

"That just got the ball rolling. We quickly went ahead and tried to figure out how we could get involved," Lyons said.

Lyons is glad to have the box in front of the library to scoop up any spare glasses from all the people anticipated to gather at the library on the big day. "I'm sure we'll have people here on the library grounds who will be going outside, and once that whole event has happened, I can just see tons and tons of them coming back to us," she said. "I mean, hundreds, thousands, I really don't know, but whatever we get, I'll be happy to receive."

For Erin MacLean, the Shaker Heights Public Library's administrative coordinator and leader of its green team, the recycling program just made sense.

"We were certainly one of the first libraries to sign up to get a box... it just sort of snowballed from there," MacLean said. "We're public libraries. We're in one of the best positions to do this."

The libraries will set up boxes at their locations starting on eclipse day where residents are encouraged to drop off their used glasses. "We're going to keep boxes in each one of our branches highly visible from eclipse day through to April 28th to make sure people have the opportunity to drop them off," MacLean said.

For her part, Lyons has already been spreading the word on social media that the recycling drive is kicking into gear. She hopes that "word of mouth, along with the box that I have out front, will get people to think about it."

Although the collection process won't shift into full motion until after the eclipse, Lyons said she predicts that many residents of the area will be happy to learn that their eclipse glasses are reusable.

"I anticipate quite a few people participating in this effort, mostly because a lot of people will not have realized that you can actually give new life to the glasses," Lyons said.

MacLean hopes the reused glasses bring that same eclipse excitement to others. "If we can help somebody else have this experience or share in this experience, that would be one of the best things that we can do," she said.

'Tens of millions of glasses out there'

AWB's first drive in 2017 collected about 3 million glasses in total, said Andrew Fazekas, the organization's communication manager. Volunteers shipped the glasses to a warehouse in Arkansas, where they were vetted by a local astronomy club to ensure they were safe for reuse.

"A vast number were in great condition," he said. "Many, many, many times, there were unopened boxes of glasses that were never used."

Then, AWB distributed them to a network of 143 countries around the world. Supplies collected from the 2017 eclipse didn't run out until last year, Fazekas said.

Although the organization hasn't signed up quite as many collection centers this time around, Fazekas hopes the organization can collect vastly more glasses.

"We figure there's probably going to be tens of millions of glasses out there at the very least," he said. "And most of them are probably very gently used."

Fazekas said people can visit AWB's website to find their nearest participating collection center. AWB's newsletter will also offer more information about how to vet glasses for safety and package them for donation.

This year, the organization also launched a solar eclipse viewing companion app called One Eclipse, which features an eclipse simulator, an eclipse countdown timer, and an interactive eclipse map. Half of the proceeds from the app will go towards AWB and the recycling program.

Once collected, the glasses will be sent out in packages of 2,000 each, Fazekas said. When they reach their destinations, they will be distributed by "teachers, schools, institutes like planetariums, libraries," and some government bodies like education ministries.

The organization is already revving up for the next eclipse in just six months that will be visible from a remote area at the southern tip of South America. "There's populations there, and they'll be asking for eclipse glasses," Fazekas said.

"We want to be able to show the journey of these glasses...from one eclipse to the next," he added.

Cybele Mayes-Osterman is a breaking news reporter for USA Today. Reach her on email at [email protected]. Follow her on X @CybeleMO.