Agenda - 06-01-1992 - Laserfiche WebLink

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The News of Orange July 10, 1991 , . . .. I Mebane company set to reclaim 1 `business, residential recyclables they handle like most recycl' ' By Rick Henry Y facilities, American Reclaim w Contributing Writer handle virtually all recyclab materials. � I � I I I I I u There's one thing John Mace is sure of, and it has convinced him that his latest business venture will be a success. "If we (as a society) are going to stay on this planet," he said. "We can't keep creating materials and not reusing them." With that philosophy in mind, Mace, a Mebane building contractor, and Thomas Barber, owner of Alamance Garbage Ser- vice, are opening American Reclaim, a recycling and materials recovery facility on Redman Crossing Road in Mebane. The start -of- the -art, 3,500 square foot facility will handle all types of recyclables and will provide a place where residents Ind businesses can ,ke their recyclable materials. American Reclaim is' unique from other recycling plants for several reasons. First off, the facility is privately owned. Most recycling centers are funded in varying degrees by the municipality where they are located, according to Zollie Ferrell, the facility's general manager. "Most companies like this aren't going to invest in a facility unless they are provided with some type of guarantee by the county," Ferrell said. "We decided to just open up on our own." The second unique aspectis-the facility's. - ability to handle:: co mingled recyclables. Instead of limiting the type of recyclables tng machine which will allow the ill goods to be sorted. Six people will le man the machine. Mace said he knows of only two other facilities in the country, one "Most recycling centers are in Orlando, Florida and one in specialized," Ferrell. said. "They can Ohio, that resemble American handle one or two materials (i.e. bottles or cans or paper) but not all." American Reclaim's ability to handle co- mingled materials will make it easier for area businesses to recycle, according to Ferrell. "Imagine you own a business and you want to recycle," Ferrell said. "How do you handle the logistics of recycling everything ?" Ferrell used cardboard as an example. "Small businesses may use a lot of cardboard, but they can't afford a bailer to put it together and store," he said. Businesses will be able to put all their recyclable materials in the same containers and bring them to the facility, thus eliminating sorting hassles. "Being in construction I know a lot of people in various industries and I knew from talking to them there wasn't enough of any item to make recycling viable," said Mace. "There is a need for all of it, so co- mingling is the thing to do." ln,order to handle the enormous task' of separating the recyclables, the facility is equipped with a 40- ! foot long, 12 -foot high conveyor, "I think this is probably five to waste and we've got to process it," i 10 years ahead of its time," said Mace said. !Ferrell. "We're hoping to trim that The need for an all- purpose to one or two years." recycling center is even greater A facility like this is inevitable. . given the recent actions of some 'e are running out of space to put government bodies. to the market -6rces to most effective way to handle it." Currently, the company plans to American Reclaim can handle up only pay for source separated to 3,000 tons of co- mingled materials and will have a buy back recyclables a month and larger center at the facility to handle amo•ints of source separated individuals, church and community Reclaim. "Right now these types of facilities are few and far between, but the two in existence are very successful," Mace said. "If you do what Alamance County just did, which is ban virtually all recyclable materials from the county landfill, you are going to create a recycling industry," Ferrell said. "It's then up groups and businesses that want to raise money by selling their recy- clables. American Reclaim is scheduled to 1 begin taking recyclables on July 15.