PLASTICS FIRM GIVES CITY LIFT TO HELP IN RECYCLING

CAPE GIRARDEAU -- The city's recycling efforts got a boost when Wahlco/DW Tool donated a forklift to the Recycling Center.

The forklift will be used to move pallets of recyclables at the drop-off center in the Public Works building.

Doug Kaminskey, the city's environmental services coordinator, said Friday he's pleased not only with the forklift donation, but the benefit of securing a new market for recyclable plastics.

Wahlco/DW Tool, along Highway 177 near Procter and Gamble, recycles scrap diapers and other plastics for use as plastic "lumber." Plant Manager Ron Wahlers said the company will begin to purchase all the city's recyclable plastic.

Kaminskey said the local market for discarded plastic will help the city's recycling efforts.

"It was a real shot in the arm for us to secure them," he said. "We won't have a contract as far as giving the plastics to (Wahlco), but we are planning on giving him what plastics we receive at a fair market price."

Kaminskey said the forklift donation was an unexpected blessing.

"It's going to be useful in all of our recycling operations," he said. "We'll use it to load cardboard and newsprint or whatever it is we'll be collecting."

Kaminskey said the city is working to secure several other donations to help the recycling center. Wahlers said he also plans to donate a plastic shredding machine to the city.

He said the equipment not only will help the city, but the smaller shredded plastic containers will allow Wahlco to avoid handling cumbersome truck loads of plastic jugs and bottles.

"When the city approached us back several months ago, they wanted to know if we'd be interested in working with them to take their plastic," Wahlers said. "We'll still pay them for plastic, but we decided to donate the forklift because they needed something to help get them going."

He said the company donated a gas-powered forklift that it used only sparingly.

"We used it here when we were putting up the building," Wahlers said. "But, with the type of materials we work with, we can't really use gas-powered equipment inside our building."

Wahlers said his company will have no trouble receiving all the city's recyclable plastics. The firm also will receive scrap diapers from plants throughout the U.S., Canada and, soon, Mexico.

Wahlers said the firm's process to turn used plastic into a reusable product is unique.

"We recycle the diapers and extract out all the raw materials, which then becomes a reusable item that can be shipped to various markets," he said. "The plastic remains will be made into plastic lumber."

Wahlers said the plastic lumber is used for such things as warehouse pallets and boat docks.

"Eventually, anything that we receive, 100 percent of that diaper will be recycled and won't have to go to a landfill," he added.

Wahlers said diapers consist of three basic components, plastic, "super-absorbent" material and fiber. He said his company is the only one in the U.S. that's developed a process to extract raw materials from the "super-absorbent" material.

"I don't know, but we might be the only one in the world that can do it," he added.

Kaminskey said the Wahlco market will allow the city to continue to offer recycling services for plastics. He said the city also has secured strong markets for other materials the city collects corrugated cardboard, newsprint, glass and aluminum.

"The mixed paper still is in a glut," Kaminskey said. "It's just too costly to process it to ship, so there's no profit there.

"We're looking for other recyclables all the time. But right now, we'd just like to get the four or five we've got off the ground established."