Materials Processing Corp., the Minneapolis-based e-scrap company fined by state regulators for improper storage of CRTs, has shut down operations.
The Minneapolis Star Tribune reports MPC shut down in the wake of state fines, the loss of e-Stewards certification and a drop in commodity prices.
E-Stewards investigated and withdrew MPC’s certification for one year after the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency levied a $125,000 fine against the company for stockpiling 2,500 tons of CRT glass in the Twin Cities area. MPC paid to move the material to a hazardous waste facility.
The company has been struggling financially for some time, court records indicate. The company used to have a processing facility in Philadelphia but, starting in August 2014, became embroiled in a legal battle with the landowner over alleged back-rent and damages.
While the case was proceeding, MPC told the landowner it was in financial distress and unless the landowner would accept a modest settlement paid over time, MPC’s financial situation would continue to deteriorate, attorneys representing MPC wrote in court documents.
In July, MPC terminated its legal representation because it couldn’t afford their services, court documents show. The attorneys said MPC owed them more than $60,000 in unpaid legal costs. MPC currently lack representation in the case.
Jim Puckett, executive director of the Basel Action Network, which created the e-Stewards standard, told E-Scrap News his group received a letter from MPC saying the company intended to appeal the suspension, but the appeal never came, and e-Stewards hasn’t heard anything from the company since.
The Star Tribune reports competing companies OceanTech and Tech Dump have seen significant demand from former MPC customers.
MPC’s listed phone number was disconnected as of Wednesday morning. The company did not respond to a request for an interview on the matter.
