$1.2 million awarded to boost use of recyclables

Pennsylvania Governor Edward G. Rendell announced four Pennsylvania companies will receive $1.2 million in financial assistance to increase their use of recycled materials in the production of finished goods.

Recycling Market Infrastructure Development grants enable companies to invest in their own operations, contribute to the growing recycling industry in Pennsylvania and at the same time help improve the overall business and economic climates in the commonwealth.

“Recycling plays an important role in managing the waste we generate,” said Governor Rendell. “To truly complete the recycling process and make it work to everyone’s advantage, we must also reuse our recycled materials more efficiently.”

The reimbursement grants are awarded to businesses and nonprofit organizations that manufacture a product or reuse an existing product with recyclable material from Pennsylvania. Entities that want to begin using recyclable material are also eligible. Grants of up to $500,000 are available for any single recycling infrastructure development project.

The following is a list of the four Recycling Market Infrastructure Development grants:

Team Ten, LLC (dba American Eagle Paper Mills (AEPM) – $500,000 to add dispersion and bleaching systems to its recycled fiber operations. This will enable AEPM to process and use an additional 14,880 tons annually of fiber rejects and junk mail from Pennsylvania sources, increase the post-consumer fiber content in its paper products, and reduce its annual operating expenses.

Chambersburg Waste Paper Co. Inc. – $82,240 to purchase a high-capacity fiber shredder, capable of manufacturing up to 5,750 tons of animal bedding annually. The bedding material will be made from recycled newspaper, cardboard, and junk mail collected from the local area.

Casual Living Unlimited LLC – $493,936 to purchase post-consumer and post-industrial high density polyethylene plastic processing equipment and an additional extruder. This will enable the company to improve the quality of its recycled plastic feed stock used to manufacture outdoor furniture. The company will be able to use 890 tons of recycled waste plastic from Pennsylvania sources. This project will also create five new full-time positions.

Meridian Precision Inc. – $132,047 to purchase pulverizing equipment that will increase the use of recyclable plastic materials and allow the company to process traditionally more challenging waste plastics such as post consumer film, shrink wrap and other commingled and cross-contaminations plastics. The company will use an additional 900 tons per year of waste plastics, 240 tons of which will be from post-consumer sources and create six new full-time positions and three part-time positions.