The commonwealth of Massachusetts has awarded the second round of its annual Recycling Business Development Grants (RBDG) to seven companies operating in the state. The goal of the RBDG program is to help Massachusetts recycling processors and manufacturers create sustainable markets for eligible materials and add value to municipal and business recycling efforts.
To qualify for the grant money, companies must have a properly licensed location in the commonweath where the proposed recycling or recycling-related activity will take place. The applicant also must have been in substantial compliance with federal and state environmental laws for the past three years. Grant recipients also need to provide a minimum financial match of 25 percent on the project.
The recipients of the second round of grants to be issued in 2016 are:
- Aaron Industries, Leominster, which will receive up to $75,000 to purchase equipment for processing postconsumer and postindustrial polypropylene and polystyrene.
- Abby Enterprises Inc., Marshfield, will receive as much as $150,000, which will be used to procure a new system for crushing, processing and recycling mixed-color glass that cannot be converted back into glass containers. Glass will be crushed to an appropriate size for use as utility backfill material, drainage media and subgrade construction and su-soil drainage system applications.
- Casella Waste Management of MA Inc., Auburn, will receive up to $100,000 to upgrade its system for processing glass from curbside recycling collection programs, removing a significant percentage of contaminants.
- Northstar Pulp & Paper Co. Inc., Springfield, will receive up to $90,000 that will be used to purchase and install three separate methods for reducing ferrous contamination from plastic pallets. The separation system will improve the capacity to produce quality postconsumer plastic regrinds. (Northstar was profiled in the February 2016 issue of Recycling Today. To read the article, click here. )
- Raw Material Recovery Corp., Gardner, will receive funds to purchase a coil spring compactor and a specialized container transport frame, which will compact bedsprings into dense cubes for more efficient shipping and more efficient collection of mattresses. The grant for the equipment will be as much as $150,000
- Recycleworks Inc., East Weymouth, will receive up to $200,000, which will be used to purchase a specialized baler that depackages food and beverage products, allowing the recovery of containers and liquids. Packaging material will be marketed, and outlets will be found for liquids (e.g., animal feed, anaerobic digestion, composting, gray water and natural detergent ingredients).
- United Teen Equality Center, Lowell, will receive as much as $152,000 to purchase a roll-off truck, forklift and five roll-off containers. The equipment will enable the company to provide more efficient collection of mattresses. The company also will purchase a trailer setup for heat-treating/sanitizing mattresses. The company also says it expects the purchase of assorted warehouse tools will increase efficiency of the mattress-processing operation.
