April 2010 Newsletter Table of Contents
973 Pit Materials: A Virtual Tour of Construction Waste Recycling
973 Pit and Recon Services, located at 6005 FM 973 South in Del Valle, are both owned by Walter Biel. The 103-acre construction waste recycling site is active, loud and surprisingly tidy. They definitely have a lot going on, including the recent introduction of asphalt shingle recycling, single stream construction waste recycling, and creating marketable recycled products.
Lining the drive into the site are landscaped beds using screened clean rock made from materials recycled at the site. New scales at the entrance/exit allow tracking of waste by weight. Additionally, for customers using the Recon Services roll offs, Biel is able to provide reports that show the type of materials recycled by percentage.
"We started with a small goal to divert waste from the landfill and generate revenue," says Biel. "Now, 90% of what's brought on site is recycled. Mostly plastic is the only thing still going to the landfill, and we are actively looking for a re-use or a buyer for our plastics."
| Asphalt Shingle Recycling |
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| 973 Pit recently acquired this beautiful Rotochopper. She's more than just a pretty face: according to the website, this machine could potentially process 60-75 tons of shingle waste per hour! This is great since about two-thirds of residential roofs are asphalt shingle. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates that shingles make up 8% of the total building-related waste stream. |
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| This is the first shingle pile at 973 Pit. Shingle recycling is scheduled to start in early April. Nationally, 10 million tons of shingles head for the landfill every year. Recycling is a better alternative: the shingles can be ground and used for patching potholes, aggregate road base, temporary roads and driveways. |
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| 973 Pit accepts shingles by the truckload from any roofer or hauler, and tests them for asbestos before recycling. It's easy to be a part of this new recycling effort (and cheaper than paying tipping fees at the landfill)! Make an appointment to bring your shingles to the site by calling 512-894-4441. |
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Single Stream Construction Waste Recycling
| Recon Services provides single stream construction waste roll offs. The 973 site is not open to other roll offs but they do accept materials by the truckload from anyone (call first). Construction waste is first tumbled to remove the smallest particles and then it is hand sorted along a conveyor line. |
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| Cardboard, paper, wood, and sheetrock is pulled out by hand and taken to Organics by Gosh, where it is used in their compost mix. Owner Phil Gosh offers an Organic Recycling Program for individuals and companies and uses the materials to create compost and soil for sale at local garden centers. |
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Metal is a high-value recyclable, one that contractors often glean for themselves; however, small metals and scraps make it into the mix so the second-to-the-last stop in the single stream line is this big magnet that attracts metal waste. The metal is sold as shreddables to a metal recycler.
Overall, about 90% of the material from the roll offs is recycled. The other 10% is mostly plastic. |
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Products Available
| 973 Pit offers 3 sizes of screened materials, made out of crushed masonry units like brick and concrete blocks. The clean rock is colorful and attractive and can be easily re-used in landscaping or driveways. 973 Pit sells the material by the truck load, call for an appointment (512-894-4441) and bring your own truck. |
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| They also sell crushed material that is used as roadbase or fill to local contractors and nearby county governments. Biel is open to taking materials from manufacturing processes or other large lots and looking for ways to re-use it. Porcelain and ceramic toilets and sinks are one example of something they could accept by the truckload. |
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Resources
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