A32-Lancuter Farming, Saturday, December 14, 1996
Ag Plastics:
(Continued from Page A3l)
“Plastic does bum well," said
Stoltzfus. The amount of energy
created by the material “would be a
desirable product” for community
incinerators, “compared to some
of the slop they usually get,” he
said. ■
Stoltzfus indicated there are pre
ferential rates for disposable
materials, including small wood
chips and pallets and other items.
“If we could bring a load of just
plastic, we could perhaps get a
reduction in the tipping fee,” he
said.
Stoltzfus is working closely
with growers who sell their fruits
and vegetables at the Leola Pro
duce Auction to work on methods
of pickup.
“The cost of disposal to the far
mer is going to be the challenge,”
Stoltzfus said. “I’m not sure what
the farmers are willing to pay. If
it’s $5O, it’s probably not going to
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be a big deal. If it’s $l5O, it might
be.”
Clark Stauffer, Ephrata-area
vegetable producer, suggested that
some person with a truck could set
up contracts with farmers to get rid
of the plastic.
So mass incineration of plastic
at an appropriate facility could be a
practical solution.
The Lancaster County Resource
Recovery Facility is operated by
the Lancaster County Solid Waste
Management Authority south of
Bainbridge. The facility, con
structed in 1988 for $lO5 million,
processes up to 1,200 tons of
refuse every day including
plastic.
Timothy J. Breneisen, recycling
coordinator, said that farmers can
bring in plastic for a fee of $69 per
ton. Mulch film must be tied in
bundles with baler twine or wire
and must not have any loose tape.
“Farmers who bundle up the
plastic will make it easier and more
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efficient to us to handle,” said
Breneisen.
The incinerator, owned by the
Authority and operated by Ogden
Martin Systems of Lancaster, Inc.,
accepts all types of plastic. The
material is burned together with
other refuse including paper
waste, wet garbage (including veg
etable and fruit products), wood,
and other materials.
The Authority operates on a $47
million per year budget and sells
power generated from steam tur
bines from garbage to Met Ed
about $1 million worth of electrici
ty each month.
The fee to disposal will affect
fanners* options, according to
Breneisen. “It all boils down to
money, no doubt about it,” he said.
At a rough estimate, Lancaster
County farms produce about 5,000
tons of ag plastics a year. At a dis
posal rate of $69 per ton, that adds
up to about $345,000 in garbage
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Pennsylvania is not alone in dis
posal worries. According to James
Garthe, Penn State ag engineer.
“Florida has a major problem with
ag plastics,” he said. ’They have
about IS million pounds of year of
mulch film alone they have to deal
with. And they're tearing their hair
out just like we are.
“You’d think that they would
have some major innovations, but
they don’t They’re looking at
some mobile plastic cleaning
equipment but it’s a $200,000
machine.”
If you simply let the plastic bum
in a barrel or cage, the heat is not
captured and energy is wasted.
“In this area, if farmers have to
pay for disposal, they’re going to
be willing to pay,” said Stauffer.
“We Americans are very waste
ful,” said Garthe. Unlike European
industries, America doesn’t have
the "cradle-to-grave” mentality
that makes use of recycled
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Much Ike what PolyAmerica
does, Garthe believes that the plas
tics industry has to bear some of
the headaches and come up with
some solutions for those who use
ag plastics.
“Tell your supplier,” Garthe
said. ’Tell him that you have a
problem with ag plastics disposal.”
Garthe suggested that farmers
write a letter to the suppliers ask
ing for help in coming up with
viable, economic solutions.
Garthe said, T know our society
will come up with a solution to
these environmental concerns, but
it will have to be economically
feasible. Everything boils down to
economics.”
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Garthe said. “Cradlc-to-gravc is
where the manufacturer of a pro
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its useful life, then is responsible
for accepting it back after you’re
through with it to recycle it into
new products. Unforunately in this
country, after you buy it, you’re
responsible for disposing of it, and
that disposal is often done
wrecklessly .”
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