Grant enables re-use of plastic farm waste

The Franklin County Solid Waste District is drawing on a state grant to make possible the recycling of a large volume of plastics used in greenhouses and for other farming-related purposes.

The funding, which is expected to total about $30,000 over two years, will enable Solid Waste District officials to provide the used plastic to Terrecon, a California-based company that converts used plastic to synthetic pavement used in sidewalks, according to Jan Ameen, the Franklin County Solid Waste District administrator.

Ameen estimates that there are 20 tons of plastic film serving as greenhouse covers in Franklin County, with an even greater amount of plastic being used for purposes such as wrapping up hassock-shaped bales of cut hay.

“The problem with this stuff is that it doesn’t weigh a lot but it’s extremely bulky,” Ameen said. “I’ve heard that some farmers just dig a hole and bury it.”

Conventional recycling centers typically won’t accept the soiled plastic, due to the difficulty of cleaning it. But Terracom doesn’t care if the plastic is dirty “because they want the sidewalk tiles to look like concrete,” Ameen said. “The dirt and grit actually make it look more natural.”

The grant, which came from the state Department of Environmental Protection’s Sustainable Materials Recovery Program, should help farmers’ bottom lines, since they won’t have to pay for the removal of the soiled plastic, Ameen said.

A farmer interviewed by the Greenfield Recorder said that over the winter his cows go through seven or eight bales of hay a week, creating a dumptruck load of soiled plastic that the farmer must pay to dispose of.