News
Building Purchased for Recycling Facility in The Plains
By: Steve Robb - Athens Messenger staff reporter
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Purchase of a site for a proposed recycling facility at Theisen Industrial Park near The Plains has been completed.
Chris Chmiel, chairman of the board of Athens-Hocking Recycling Centers Inc., said the sale was finalized Monday. The nonprofit organization purchased the former Purely American Foods building and adjacent composting facility for $825,000.
Chmiel said the goal is to have a materials recovery facility begin operation in the building in July.
Athens-Hocking Recycling paid $250,000 from its own capital reserves for the purchase and borrowed $750,000 from Hocking Valley Bank, with part of the loan money going toward planned improvements to the building.
Chmiel said a tipping floor will be added to the back of the building where single-stream (unsorted) recyclables will be dumped before being taken by conveyor into the materials recovery facility for sorting. Also, a pier loading dock will be added to the side of the building where sorted recyclables will be loaded for sale, he said. Truck scales will be installed.
Chmiel said a next step will be to order the equipment for the facility.
Purchase of the building clears the way for application to the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency for a $125,000 glass recycling grant, according to Chmiel, who said the money would be used for glass recycling equipment. Also, it would fund the purchase of containers to place in Athens bars to collect glass.
“Were continuing to look for other grants, and low-interest financing as well,” Chmiel said.
Last month, the Athens-Hocking Solid Waste District board voted to provide up to $125,000 a year for five years to help develop the materials recovery facility. The money will come from the district’s garbage generation fee that is charged to haulers.
The materials recovery facility is intended to help the district increase the amount of material diverted from the landfill. Currently, the Athens-Hocking Solid Waste District is able to divert about 17 percent of the solid waste stream from the landfill, but the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency is wanting to see that increased to 25 percent.
Chmiel has said previously that switching to single-stream recycling is expected to increase the amount of recycling because it will be easier — people will not have to sort their recyclables.