Recycling center, borough work to resolve funding setback

PALMER — Now that a new, state-of-the-art recycling center is up and running near the Mat-Su landfill, Valley Community for Recycling Solutions hopes a recent snag in funding for additional equipment will be ironed out soon.

“We’ve invested in the long-term vision and are confident it will all come to pass eventually,” VCRS Executive Director Mollie Boyer said Tuesday. “We know this facility will be here for our children’s children and beyond. We’re very excited for its future.”

When the building that was originally estimated to cost about $6.5 million was actually finished recently for about half that, hopes were high that the leftover funds could be used to purchase about $800,000 worth of equipment that would enable the facility to process even more recyclables with less effort.

Because of strict federal rules attached to most of those funds, VCRS and Mat-Su Borough officials are now looking to state lawmakers to help them come up with usable monies.

A glass crusher, a truck scale and an in-floor conveyor that feeds recyclables into a larger baler that automatically ties up large blocks of recycled materials and kicks them out onto the storage floor are all on VCRS’s wish list, Boyer said.

“These are all important pieces of equipment that we’ve been planning for a long time,” she said. “We’re down here in the right spot now next to the landfill. We just need to continue to expand with even better equipment and we’ll be able to reach our goal of diverting 25 percent of the materials that would otherwise end up at the landfill.”

Dave Hanson, Mat-Su Borough Economic Development director, explained that a $2.5 million loan from the U.S. Department of Environmental Conservation could only be used on the building itself as part of the Clean Water Act.

“The EPA had attached strings on the money so that it couldn’t be used for the recycling equipment,” Hanson said. “Of course, everyone was disappointed when they realized that. Everyone was working so hard and then we hit the wall and couldn’t go any further. It’s never nice to get your hopes up and then have them dashed. But the complexities of the funding situation are totally amazing. There are a lot of different entities with a lot of different rules.”

Boyer said there already is a spot reserved in a nearby vinyl building for a glass crusher, but until they actually get it they won’t be able to accept glass at their facility. She said no one is Alaska is taking glass for recycling at this point.

“The glass crusher is the most popular item for the public,” Boyer said. “Being able to take glass will make us all feel better. But if I had to prioritize, I’d say the conveyor and large baler are at the top of my list.”

The two-stroke horizontal baler with auto-tie capability would enable VCRS to process much larger quantities of aluminum, plastics and paper, Boyer said.

Boyer was hesitant to discuss the funding issues because she was afraid of somehow upsetting the delicate partnerships between VCRS, the borough, the state and the federal government.

“We’re all working together on this to make it happen,” she said. “We’ve had a great relationship so far and I’m sure we’ll find a solution.”

Contact K.T. McKee at kate.mckee@frontiersman.com or 352-2252.