State awards grants to boost recycling

North Carolina will help pay for projects to improve the recycling of fiber, plastics, metals, construction and demolition debris, organics and more.

The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (NC DEQ) announced nearly half a million dollars in Recycling Business Development Grants to 16 recyclables processors. Businesses must match the awarded funds with their own money. All told, the grants will help stimulate $1.3 million in investments in recycling equipment.

The grants went to the following companies and projects:

• American Recycling received $50,000 for an optical sorter to expand collection and sorting of polypropylene.
• AMES Copper Group received $30,000 for a spectrometer for the company’s new copper smelting facility.
• Brunson Recycling received $37,000 for an aspirator and rotary drum to expand and improve industrial plastics recycling.
• Cardinal Recycling received $20,000 for a baler with a conveyer to increase processing capacity for industrial plastics, film and cardboard.
• Clear Path Recycling received $40,000 for a grinder system to recover mixed-color plastic bottle flakes.
• EnviroVision received $30,000 for a shredder conveyor system to support its new service of collecting, reusing, and recycling 96-gallon carts coming out of service. 
• Global Circle Recycling received $30,000 for a shredder and regrind system to process additional industrial plastics.
• Mahan & Huff received $11,000 for tractor trailers to expand its styrofoam recycling program.
• McGill Environmental received $20,000 for a radial stacker to effectively more and store finished compost products.
• New East Recycling & Container received $11,000 for recycling dumpsters for C&D debris.
• North Davidson Garbage Service received $25,000 for a wheel loader to manage incoming mixed recycling loads.
• Plastic Network received $25,000 for silos to store material and facilitate product blending, allowing the company to expand specifications for plastics that can be accepted and recycled.
• Shimar received $47,000 for a forklift and truck to recycle lab plastics from area research institutions and businesses. 
• Sonoco Recycling in Raleigh received $50,000 for an optical sorter to separate fiber and non-fiber recyclables.
• Strategic Materials received nearly $37,000 for a truck for collection of glass beverage containers. 
• Synergy Recycling received $30,000 for a processing line for cathode-ray tube glass from end-of-life TVs. 

Last year, NC DEQ provided nearly $666,000 to 20 companies.

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