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Vinyl Recycling Project: A Success Story
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No one ever said it would be easy to implement a multi-partner recycling operation. But it's worth it. By Dyan M. Neary.
Four years ago, the Vinyl Recycling Project began in Grand Rapids, Mich., as a small-scale vinyl siding-recycling program to better understand the economics of recycling vinyl siding off-cuts from construction sites. It was a collaborative effort involving the Vinyl Institute, the Vinyl Siding Institute, National Association of Homebuilders Research Center, the Greater Grand Rapids Home Builders Association, Lubbers Resource Systems, the Center for Environmental Study and four West Michigan Area vinyl product distributors.
"The project was real successful while they were doing it," Jane Secord, administrative manager of the Center for Environmental Study, told the Earth Times. Unfortunately, the project has been discontinued because waste haulers have decided to charge a fee for the services. Earlier, services for the entire project were free.
The distributors were very excited about the innovative prospect of recycling vinyl, which lasted from April to August last year, and although they did not keep specific records, they felt that as many as half of their contractors were participating in the project. Three of the distributors assigned an employee to follow the course of the project and were responsible for its smooth implementation. The fourth, RSI Wholesale, approached the project with a more relaxed approach, assigning duties to available personnel as necessary.
Eikenhout, Inc., was the preferred recycling site for the contractors and installers. Conveniently placed next to the vinyl bin was a cardboard recycling bin and a general refuse bin. This made cleaning up their trucks extremely efficient and kept the amount of contamination in the vinyl to a minimum. The exit survey done at the end of the project indicated that the hardest aspect of the program for the contractor was that of hauling the material back to the distributor. In addition, 60% indicated that more drop-off locations would have a significant positive impact on continued participation.
Of the contractors not participating, 91% said the program was "too inconvenient.” Eighty percent called for larger bins.
The recycling bins were located behind completely locked fences at Eikenhout, Inc., ABC Building Supply Co. and RSI Wholesale, whereas Fox Brothers opted to keep the bin in an open area adjacent to their parking lot. Fox Brothers is set 200 yards from the main road and the bin was not visible from the road. This contributed to the safety level and they felt a fence was not necessary. Accessibility to the collection sites and the bins themselves also was a factor.
Both Eikenhout and RSI are within a quarter mile of US 131. Eikenhout's yard was by far the smallest of the four and could pose a problem when maneuvering into position to unload. RSI moved its bin at least three times during the study, causing confusion. ABC and Fox Brothers each had very open areas in which to unload, with ABC having the advantage over Fox Brothers in overall accessibility.
Communication was difficult for all parties to maintain. The ability to ensure that enough space was available for the contractors to place their scrap in the bins was compromised by the lack of communication. Several times during the project, bins were left full for more than a week, preventing contractors from recycling their scrap. The reasons for this problem varied, however; often it was due to over-filling of the bins. This prevented the Lubbers workers from picking up the bins, as there are traffic laws that prohibit transportation of the bins with loose materials hanging over the sides. Both Lubbers and the distributors waited for "someone" to clean up the extra material.
After discussions, the distributors assigned a worker to try to keep the area neat. If the lines of communication had been stronger, the bins would not have been overfilled at all and Lubbers would have informed the distributors that the top needed to be level.
Another problem with communication was the inability to talk with the contractors. They often called in the orders to the distributors and therefore were not told about the project or were not available to answer questions about their participation in the project.
Discussion with the distributors themselves was positive. Most were enthusiastic about the process and wanted to continue a recycling program. Many indicated the need for a larger effort involving all of the West Michigan area, with more advertising of the service and significantly more availability of bins near the construction sites.
Discussion with Lubbers Resources resulted in two conclusions. The final poundage was significantly less that originally anticipated. A much greater volume would be necessary to continue the program. Also, more contamination was present than could be seen. There was an unacceptable amount of aluminum included in the material collected. Due to this excess contamination, an end market has not yet been found. These problems would need to be addressed before a permanent recycling program could be implemented.
In conclusion, from the perspective of the distributor and contractor, a permanent vinyl recycling program in conjunction with cardboard recycling would not only be positively received, it is necessary. From the perspective of the collecting agent, it is very difficult to find a market for the material unless a consistent method of collection can be devised that ensures uncontaminated materials. If such a method can be devised, and the program were large enough to cover the costs, it would be feasible to run a permanent recycling program.
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Dyan M. Neary is a writer for The Earth Times. Copyright 2001 Earth Times News Service, all rights reserved. The Earth Times is a GreenBiz News Affiliate.
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