Issuu

Vol. XI No. 3

May / June 2017

Serving Soil, Mulch, Compost & Wood Pellet Producers www.SoilandMulchProducerNews.com

NEWS

Inside This Issue Trump Moves to End Obama-Era WOTUS Rule PAGE 6 New Disruptor: Wood Laminate Building Material PAGE 8 Climate Panelists Call for Far-Reaching EPA Reforms PAGE 10 It’s In The Bag for Soil, Mulch, Compost Biz PAGE 13 Hong Kong Company Pitches Biomass Project in CO Springs PAGE 18 Albany and Saratoga Counties Consider a Shared Digester PAGE 20 International Symposium on Growing Media, Soilless Cultivation & Compost Utilization Aug. 20 in Portland, OR PAGE 21 Organic Waste Collection Takes Off in Massachusetts PAGE 22

Massive Florida Organics Pile Fire – A Lesson for Everyone Involved in Organic Material Recovery

“G

By Ken McEntee

ood luck. Tell us how you do.” Ro b e r t S m i t h , c h i e f o f operations for the North Collier (County, Florida) Fire and Rescue District, said he heard that line a lot as he called fire departments around the country for advice about fighting a massive mixed-organics pile fire at the end of April. The blaze – the second in less than a year at Environmental Turnkey Solutions (ETS) – was identified in one local media report as the largest mulch fire ever in the U.S.

Maybe such a claim can’t be substantiated. But Smith doesn’t doubt it. “I called all around the country to find somebody with advice to help us fight it and nobody could come close to the magnitude that we were dealing with,” he said. The fire, which started on Friday, April 28, was still smoldering as this article was being written in early June. Its cause was being investigated. Without much guidance to follow, firefighters were left to improvise tactics to mitigate a fire that encompassed nearly all of what has been described as a five-acre site, although it is a part of a parcel that exceeds 600 acres. The fire consumed a huge mass of wood and organic waste that Smith described as 850 by 900 feet, and 70 feet high. As the smoldering appeared to be near its end, Smith said he was preparing a presentation about the tactics his department used to mitigate the fire. The presentation, he said, will be shared to help other departments across the country deal with mulch pile fires. Smith also shared some recommendations to help mulching and composting operations Continued on page 3

Cleveland, OH Permit #1737

PAID

U.S. Postage

PRSRT STD

Leadership IN EVERY BAGGING CATEGORY

Uses 60% less service parts

Runs all products – soil, mulch, composts – equally well

Eliminates 70% of adjustments – no more operator standing

No annual rebuild – runs 4 to 5 seasons on core wear parts

Most efficient Form, Fill, Seal/Volumetric Filler combination available

More than 600 industrial form, fill and seal machines in service each and every day.

StoTT F6A pB u8 = -2 sPM per

2 4 bag ulch 23cum. fint.umte! Model 2090FFS/Model 300VF

Soil & Mulch Producer News

May / June 2017

Soil

Mulch Producer NEWS

Massive Florida Organics Pile Fire – A Lesson for Everyone Involved in Organic Material Recovery Continued from page 1

reduce their risk of fires: • Limit the size of the piles. • Break the piles up and keep enough space between them for fire and other equipment to easily reach them • Set up a sprinkler system that can reach each pile. • Monitor the temperatures on a daily basis and turn the piles – especially when they reach a certain temperature. Robert LaGasse, executive director of the Mulch and Soil Council, said those recommendations are generally consistent with the industry’s best practices. “We recommend that you monitor pile temperatures and turn a pile any time it reaches 170 degrees or more,” LaGasse said. “It is a common practice. We just did a survey of our

www.SoilandMulchProducerNews.com

PUBLICATION STAFF Publisher / Editor Rick Downing Contributing Editors / Writers Ken McEntee • P.J. Heller Sandy Woodthorpe Production & Layout Barb Fontanelle • Christine Mantush Advertising Sales Rick Downing Subscription / Circulation Donna Downing Editorial, Circulation & Advertising Office 6075 Hopkins Road, Mentor, OH 44060 Ph: 440-257-6453 Fax: 440-257-6459 Email: downassoc2@oh.rr.com Subscription information, call 440-257-6453. Soil & Mulch Producer News is published bimonthly by Downing & Associates. Reproductions or transmission in whole or in part, without written permission of the publisher, is prohibited. Annual subscription rate U.S. is $19.95. Outside of the U.S. add $10.00 ($29.95). Contact our main office, or mail-in the subscription form with payment. ©

members and most people re-stack the piles when the temperature goes above 170 degrees, typically measured by a probe six feet into the pile.” He also recommends that piles should be no higher than 20 to 30 feet high and no longer than 100 to 200 feet. A 70-foot high pile, he said, is “absurd.” Although LaGasse said monitoring pile temperatures is an inexpensive and common sense practice, he said survey results show that mulching facilities that do not monitor temperatures don’t appear to have shown a higher propensity to have a fire. “In general the operations that don’t monitor temperature keep their piles small,” he said. “There are different theories about whether you should pack the piles tight or keep them loose.” Ap p a r e n t ly, m o s t , o r a l l S m i t h ’s recommended precautions were not being practiced by ETS before the April fire, he said. In fact, he said, following a previous fire in July 2016, the company agreed to install a sprinkler system. The system was not in place when firefighters showed up on April 28, Smith said. “I don’t know whether they were turning the piles,” he said. “But they were so large I don’t know how they could have turned them. They stated that the material wasn’t going to be there long enough for them to turn it because they turned it around so quickly. But they got too much too soon.” Anthony Cialone, president of ETS, did not respond to a phone call before this article was published.

Dry and windy

he April fire at ETS started during a time when Florida firefighters already were busy with multiple wildfires that prompted Gov. Rick Scott to declare a state of emergency. “We are in an extreme drought right now,” Smith said. “We had really high surface temperatures and very low humidity. When we arrived it was also very windy, which helped to spread the fire. It grew so rapidly that it was impossible to fight.” ETA is a compost producer that owns the trademarks on at least two brands - Old Florida Compost and Soil Rescue. The company participates in the U.S. Composting Council’s Seal of Testing Assurance program, which certifies that products are laboratory tested for quality. ETA’s facility, in Naples, takes in about 70 percent of all of the discarded organic material in Collier County, according to Smith. “The facility takes away all the county’s

land clearing,” he said. “There is so much growth in Collier County that they don’t have enough room to store all of this stuff. They are constantly getting more and more and there was a huge volume of debris on site.” The size of the fire, even as firefighters arrived, made mitigation efforts futile. “We tried to use water shuttles and a bunch of brush trucks,” Smith said. “We brought in 10 or 12 water tankers. We set up aerial ladders all around the pile to put water on it but we quickly found out that it was not going to be even remotely close to the volume of water we needed to put on the fire.” During the facility’s fire last July, firefighters decided to let it burn itself out. “It burned for four or five weeks and it put out a lot of black smoke the whole time,” he said. “Embers and small particles would fly around and could possibly start fires elsewhere. So this time we had the idea of advancing it by setting it all on fire at one time. When we back-burned it, it burned up all of the smaller materials, so in the weeks after that there wasn’t a lot of heat being produced. It was only smoke. The idea was if we burned it all at once, then we could come back and worry about turning the piles later.” The next step, Smith said was to water down the massive pile in small sections. Fortunately, the site is adjacent to a quarrying operation with a large lake. A moat, about 10 feet wide, was dug around the perimeter of the burning pile and filled with water from the lake. “We had them (ETI) get those big Rain Bird water guns that shoot 200 gallons per minute,” he said. “It was not nearly enough, so they had to go in with bulldozers and cranes and pick the material up in sections and wet it down and then move on. Every day they would get maybe an eighth of an acre done.” The moat – an idea the department had used before in other fires – had another use. “What happens when you surround the pile with water, is that the water gets sucked into the pile and cools it from the bottom,” he said. For nearly a week, firefighters from the North Collier Fire Department, with mutual aid from Lee and Hendry counties, were on site with their equipment, Smith said. “After that, we couldn’t do it any more,” he said. “We weren’t able to have so many of our resources tie up in one place with other things going on. So we basically shut them down for business and managed the situation, but we made them use their own equipment and their own operators. We had them bring in more sprinkler heads, bulldozers and other equipment. It was a 24/7 operation. We turned and watered Continued on page 4 May / June 2017 Soil & Mulch Producer News

Soil

Mulch Producer NEWS

Massive Florida Organics Pile Fire – A Lesson for Everyone Involved in Organic Material Recovery

Continued from page 3

down a small section at a time. We haven’t turned the site back over to them. We still have operational control of the site. We kept a vehicle there 24/7 to make sure they were complying with what we told them to do.”

Taxing the resources

ollier County is Florida’s largest county by land area, and is one of the most rapidly growing areas in the state. The county’s population grew from 86,000 in 1980, to 251,000 in 2000 and now sits at around 360,000. The county has more than 20 fire stations, 10 of which are part of the North Collier Fire Department. The department has 192 firefighters. During the opening stages of the ETS fire as many as 30 firefighters were on the site, Smith said. “It really did tax our resources,” he said. “We committed a lot of our resources there. We paid overtime and had extra trucks tied up, and it was right in the middle of our wildfire season. At the same time, we were inundated every day with numerous phone calls about smoke from the surrounding areas. We knew where the smoke was coming from, but you still have to send a truck to each complaint.” Asked whether it is annoying to dedicate so many resources, for so long, to a single site, for the second time in less than a year, Smith described the situation as “challenging.” The costs to county taxpayers, he said, hadn’t been calculated. However he said, the costs will be recovered from ETS.

Lack of compliance?

TS also could be subject to fines. Smith said he could not say whether negligence or any violations were involved in the fire. “The cause is under investigation through different departments in the county,” he said. “The code enforcement office is looking into it and the (Florida) Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) is investigating it. At this point we’re just trying to mitigate it. Then the other agencies will investigate any wrongdoing.” According to DEP spokesperson Dee Ann Miller, a DEP inspector was onsite at ETS on May 16 and is reviewing all information. The department had not completed that compliance inspection as of June 5. Miller said that following last year’s fire, a compliance inspection was conducted on August 11, 2016. The facility was found to be in compliance at that time, she said. Smith said the flaming pile at ETS was 70 feet tall. According to Connie Deane, community liaison for Collier County, mulch pile size 4

Soil & Mulch Producer News May / June 2017

Aerial view of ETS organics pile fire. Photos courtesy of Robert Smith, chief of operations for the North Collier (County, Florida) Fire and Rescue District. rules are set by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA). Those rules consider whether or not piles are protected by a fixed fire extinguishing system. When not protected by a fixed fire extinguishing system, piles are not to exceed 25 feet in height, 150 feet in width and 250 feet in length, according to the rules. According to Smith, ETS agreed after the July 2016 fire to have water sprinklers on site. He said they were not on site when firefighters arrived at the April 2017 fire. “After the first fire they did not cooperate,” he said. “After the first fire we gave them directions and they did not comply. For example, we said you need these sprinklers on site in case it happens again. When we got to the second fire we asked, ‘Where are the sprinklers?’ They said they weren’t there. But during the second fire they were very compliant and helpful in mitigating the fire. They lost a lot of inventory. They lost a lot of money on it.”

Will It Happen Again?

mith said he is confident this time that measures are in place to prevent another fire. “Part of our operational plan for this

facility was to fight the fire and also to put in place fire prevention measures for what they have on site and for the future,” he said. “Part of the plan was for them to show us that this was not going to happen again. Which they did. They brought in extra pumps and high gallon sprinklers that are protecting their inventory now and, in addition, they fly over with their drone. The plan is for them to monitor surface temperatures, and if they reach a certain temperature to put their sprinklers on the piles to prevent them from starting on fire.” Smith didn’t express complete confidence that the plan will work, however. “They have a plan in place that conforms to what we think they need to do,” he said. “But with the extreme weather we have had this year, I don’t have a lot of confidence in anything. During the last several months we have seen wildfires like we have never seen before.” Smith thinks the tactics his department uses to control the fire are applicable to other mulch and compost operations. “We have been documenting everything, including flying drones overhead so we can share what we did with other fire departments,” he said.

Proudly Made in America

● 300 yards p/hour of continuous, fully colored mulch ● Extra Long 24 ft mixing chamber for longer retention, full coverage, and less water.

24 Volt DC Battery Inverter Pumping System (Remote Controlled) Florida Coastal Colors, 550 Elm St, Helena, Alabama, 35080 Phone Sales (205) 664-5041 Fax (205) 664 - 5043 www.floridacoastalcolors.com May / June 2017 Soil & Mulch Producer News

Soil

Mulch Producer NEWS

Trump Moves to End Obama-Era WOTUS Rule By Bonner R. Cohen

ulfilling a campaign promise he made to farmers, ranchers, and other landowners, President Donald Trump ordered the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to “review and reconsider” an Obama-era rule greatly expanding federal jurisdiction over small bodies of water nationwide. The target of Trump’s February 28 executive

order is EPA’s Waters of the United States rule (WOTUS). Unveiled in May 2015, WOTUS is the Obama administration’s response to two wetlands-related Supreme Court decisions: Solid Waste Agency of Northern Cook County v. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (2003) and Rapanos v. United States (2006). The court decisions restricted the federal government’s power to regulate what are referred to in the Clean Water Act (CWA) as “navigable

Packaging Systems That Work as Hard as You Do SOIL

waters of the United States,” but the rulings, which were made by divided courts, only provide vague guidance concerning what waters should be considered navigable or significantly connected to navigable waterways. In crafting WOTUS, the Obama EPA effectively removed the word “navigable” from the phrase “navigable waters of the United States” in the CWA. That greatly expanded the types of wetlands and other bodies of water subject to regulation under the CWA, triggering the need for federal permits or other authorization for activities that could affect newly regulated waters. Twenty-seven states sued EPA to block WOTUS, and on October 9, 2015, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals stayed WOTUS nationwide. The rule has been on hold since.

‘A Horrible, Horrible Rule’

n issuing his executive order, Trump left little doubt about how he felt about WOTUS. “It’s a horrible, horrible rule,” Trump said in a White House ceremony before signing the order. “Has sort of a nice name to it, but everything else is bad. The Clean Water Act says that the EPA can regulate navigable waters, meaning waters that truly affect interstate commerce. “But a few years ago, the EPA decided that navigable waters can mean nearly every puddle of every ditch on a farmer’s land, or any place else they decide,” said Trump. “It was a massive power grab. The EPA’s regulations are putting people out of jobs by the hundreds of thousands.”

Executing Trump’s Order

MULCH

FERTILIZER

ecause WOTUS has the status of a final EPA rule, it cannot be undone by an executive order alone. EPA, under Trump-appointed Administrator Scott Pruitt, announced EPA would immediately carry out the executive order. Following the language of the Administrative Procedures Act, EPA will submit a “Notice of Proposed Rulemaking” to withdraw and replace the rule. In addition, the Trump Justice Department is expected to cease defending WOTUS in court. In his executive order, Trump also directed EPA to consider the opinion of the late Justice

Continued on next page

Robotic & Conventional Palletizing Systems NOVA PACKAGING doesn’t just build quality packaging machinery, we provide dependable packaging system solutions. From the moment we begin building your new system, all the way through start-up and on-going technical support; we focus on providing unparalleled customer support. At NOVA, we understand that it’s more than just a piece of machinery; it’s your profit center !

(303) 495-5010 | sales@novap.us | www.novap.us 6

Soil & Mulch Producer News May / June 2017

Join the Mulch & Soil Council TODAY ... YOUR best opportunity to protect YOUR business! For more information, call 806-832-1810 or visit www.mulchandsoilcouncil.org 7809 FM 179, Shallowater, TX 79363

Soil Continued from previous page Antonin Scalia in the Rapanos decision, which restricted the phrase “navigable waters of the United States” to permanent standing or continuously flowing water.

‘Lifts a Huge Burden’

raig Rucker, executive director of the Committee for a Constructive Tomorrow, says he welcomes the demise of WOTUS. “WOTUS would have imposed federal zoning on millions of acres of private land, and getting rid of it lifts a huge burden from rural America,” said Rucker. “Now, it’s time to move on to the next step. The Trump administration needs to define what is and what is not a ‘wetland’ and insert that definition into a budget resolution, or some other appropriate piece of legislation, so it will be codified,” Rucker said. “That way, no future regulation-happy administration can come along and use the administrative process to impose a son of WOTUS.” Merrill Matthews, a resident scholar at the Institute for Policy Innovation, says Trump’s executive order shows the benefits of having someone with business experience as president. “The WOTUS rule reminds us it’s good to have a businessman in the White House for a change,” said Matthews. “As a hotel-builder, Donald Trump had his own run-ins with EPA. “No one better recognizes how a federal agency, particularly EPA, can wreak unnecessary havoc on a business or landowner than someone who has wrestled with the leviathan,” Matthews said. Bonner R. Cohen, Ph.D. (bcohen@nationalcenter.org) is a senior fellow at the National Center for Public Policy Research. This article was reprinted with permission from heartland.org, a product of The Heartland Institute (https://www.heartland.org/news-opinion/news/ trump-moves-to-end-obama-era-wotus-rule).

Mulch Producer NEWS

Snohomish County Jury Rules in Favor of Cedar Grove

verett, WA – A Snohomish County Superior Court jury recently ruled in favor of Cedar Grove Composting in a nuisance claim brought by a Marysville man. “We are relieved with this outcome and pleased with this vote of support for the services we provide to the community,” said Jay Blazey, General Counsel for Cedar Grove. “We remain committed to being a good neighbor and will continue our efforts to mitigate against any odors leaving our Everett property.” Cedar Grove Composting is a local, family-owned business that plays a critical role in the Puget Sound’s recycling infrastructure and sustainability efforts, diverting more than 350,000 tons of yard waste and food scraps from landfills annually. With two processing facilities in Maple Valley and Everett, Cedar Grove is a manufacturer providing green jobs in King and Snohomish Counties. The plaintiff in the Snohomish County trial sought compensation based on allegations of nuisance odors emanating from Cedar Grove’s Smith Island facility in Everett. He did not make claims for personal injuries or loss of home value. According to a recent news release, during the trial, Cedar Grove presented evidence and testimony that its facility is a world leader in the industry and uses state-of-the-art composting technology. It also stated Cedar Grove presented evidence and testimony showing the various other odor sources in the area, including wastewater treatment plants, other industrial operations, and a closed landfill. Ultimately, the jury on April 7, decided that Cedar Grove did not act unlawfully or fail to perform a duty that unreasonably interfered with the use and enjoyment of the plaintiff’s property. According to the company, Cedar Grove produces sustainable, recycled products that are good for their community and the environment. The company also stated that it provides a valuable service to the community and is a vital part of the local recycling infrastructure.

www.brittonindustries.com May / June 2017 Soil & Mulch Producer News

Soil

Mulch Producer NEWS

Bugs Could be a Solution for Invasive Cogongrass

New Disruptor: Wood Laminate Building Material

ortland, OR – Using cross-laminated timber (CLT) in building large commercial buildings, such as high-rise office and residential towers, might be the answer to reviving Oregon’s wood products industry, reports Oregonlive.com. A state-approved subsidy program could stimulate more interest in use of CLT, an engineered wood product that can have the structural strength of steel. Laminating wood is not new. The process has been used to make furniture and other items for many years. The problem is, the nation’s building codes, many of which have not kept up with latest materials, have been slow to accept wood products. For now, getting approval for all-wood large structures can be an arduous process. Concerns about safety factors can lead to expensive design reviews with experts and computer-based simulations. Then, there’s red tape as various jurisdictions get involved in the permitting process and the influence of industry trade groups, such as The National Ready Mixed Concrete Association, that call for more testing. CLT is a bit more popular in Canada and Europe, but in Oregon the material is an anomaly, albeit one that is gaining support. Manufacturer, D.R. Johnson received an Oregon BEST grant of $150,000, which helped build a manufacturing line. The company produced its first panel in 2014 and has been supplying the wood for design and performance studies by architecture students at Western Oregon University in Monmouth and University of Oregon. Oregon State University has established a dedicated research center, the TallWood Design Institute, to explore advanced wood technologies.

ainesville, FL – According to a ScienceDaily.com article, professors from the University of Florida (UF) and their worldwide research team have found an insect that has a taste for cogongrass, an invasive plant that spreads in lawns, rights-of-way, golf courses and pastureland throughout the Sunshine State. Finding the creature was only the first step of exploring this solution, though. The scientists must be able to get the insect, a midge, to reproduce in high enough numbers in order to use it in the battle against the invasive grass. Orseolia javanica, which is native to Japan, East Africa and Indonesia, attacks cogongrass, causing galls that interrupt natural leafing activity. According to UF/IFAS, entomology professor James Cuda, who has been conducting the studies with retired entomology professor Bill Overholt, a biocontrol method makes sense in the battle against the weed. Pine growers, conservationists and others who must control cogongrass mainly use mowing and herbicides, but these solutions are costly, timeconsuming and not always effective. Cuda cited a 2009 report that showed the state of Alabama spent $6.3 million of federal stimulus funds exclusively for chemical control of the weed. The species was introduced in the U.S. in the early 1900s as packing material and as livestock forage grass. The most expensive losses occur on pine plantations, where the plant outcompetes native ground cover and increases the frequency and intensity of fires, according to the researchers. Congongrass also displaces native vegetation in sand hill communities in Florida. “Biological control using natural enemies from the native range of cogongrass has received little attention, and no biological control agents have been introduced anywhere in the world,” Cuda said. “That’s why we are investigating biocontrol agents for cogongrass. Biological control is more sustainable and can be integrated with conventional controls”

www.ptchronos.com

Soil & Mulch Producer News May / June 2017

AgriCoatings Superior Mulch Colorants out perform the competition. Our four decades of colorant experience means consistent color throughout your production run. You’ll have a beautiful final product and a very happy customer. If you are looking for an affordable mulch colorant that doesn’t sacrifice high quality consider AgriCoatings. AgriCoatings’ mulch colorants yield consistent adhesion,weatherability, color matching, and coverage. AgriCoatings’ now offers the Renegade - a state-of-the-art,user-friendly, color injection system. Renegade has accurate variable throughput from 40 to 800 yards per hour.

Contact your AgriCoatings representative today!

615-443-0345 Ext. 103 www.agricoatings.com info@agricoatings.com

OHIO TENNESSEE SHANGHAI, PRC May / June 2017 Soil & Mulch Producer News

Soil

Mulch Producer NEWS

Climate Panelists Call for Far-Reaching EPA Reforms By Bonner R. Cohen

he speakers on the “Climate Politics and Policy” panel at The Heartland Institute’s 12th International Conference on Climate Change said the election of Donald Trump as president opened

the door for fundamental changes to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and climate policy in general, to reflect a realistic assessment of the benefits and costs of climate and environmental policies.

EQUIPMENT PRODUCT SHOWCASE

Saying EPA’s recent regulations “provide no actual environmental protection; that is all done by the 50 state agencies,” Jay Lehr, science director for The Heartland Institute, which publishes Environment & Climate News, called for a radical restructuring and downsizing of EPA. Lehr, who helped found EPA, said returning scientific integrity and regulatory accountability to U.S. environmental policy requires dismantling many of EPA’s programs and devolving most of the agency’s functions to state environmental agencies.

Cites Agency Bloat

L www.duffbrush.com duffbrush@gmail.com

sales@armorhog.com TM

www.armorhog.com

www.portablestackers.com

hogzilla@cwmill.com

www.hogzilla.com

www.hclmachineworks.com sales@hclmachineworks.com www.united-rotary.com/engineered engineered@united-rotary.com

www.hclmachineworks.com sales@hclmachineworks.com

Sell your products or equipment with a showcase ad in Soil & Mulch Producer News. For more information, call 440-257-6453.

ehr noted there are 14 separate offices within EPA, each with its own staff and budget. Lehr says only five of the offices actually address environmental issues: the Office of Water, Office of Air and Radiation, Office of Chemical Safety and Emergency Response, Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response, and the Office of Research and Development. Lehr said two EPA offices, the Office of American Indian Environmental Affairs and Office of International and Tribal Affairs, properly belong in the Interior Department’s Bureau of Indian Affairs, and seven offices do not address science at all, such as the Office of General Council, Office of the Chief Financial Officer, Office of Enforcement and Compliance Management, and the Office of the Administrator. EPA has 15,000 full-time employees and a current annual budget of $8.2 billion. Yet with all these resources, EPA has engaged in only one actual field project in recent years: an attempt to clean up the abandoned Gold King Mine in Colorado in 2015. “They botched it and polluted the Animus River for over a month,” Lehr said. Characterizing the status quo as intolerable, Lehr laid out a five-year plan to transfer almost all of EPA’s responsibilities and authority to a Committee of the Whole, which would made up of the 50 states’ environmental agencies.

Says States Are Ready

ehr’s call for devolving federal environmental responsibilities to the states found a receptive ear with Dennis Hedke, who served in the Kansas House of Representatives for six years, four as chairman of the state House Energy & Environment Committee. He is a consulting geophysicist conducting research on the climate and policies on energy and the environment. Hedke told the audience the 50 states know the environmental problems most pressing in

Continued on next page 10 Soil & Mulch Producer News May / June 2017

Soil Continued from previous page their states better than EPA and are capable of handling them. Hedke also said federal agencies impose more regulations on the fossil-fuel and electric-power industries than any other sector of the economy. For instance, the coal, oil, and natural gas industries combined face more than 37,000 regulations, and the electricpower industry must comply with nearly 21,000 regulations. The next-most regulated industry is motor-vehicle manufacturing, which deals with more than 16,000 regulations. “The U.S. Department of Energy aided and abetted the war on fossil fuels as much as any federal department except EPA,” Hedke said. Hedke suggested the Trump administration begin reducing EPA’s budget by ending funding for EPA’s Environmental Justice and Environmental Education programs.

Perils of Government-Funded Research

cott Armstrong, a professor at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, called for slashing EPA’s research funding because government funding corrupts scientific research. As a sign of how far the quality of government research has fallen, Armstrong pointed out the projections made by the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change violate 81 percent of the 89 basic principles of forecasting. Armstrong said the problem is government grant recipients know what results it will take to continue receiving funding for further research, and they produce the desired results. “Research grants lead to advocacy,” Armstrong said. “Even after the current climate scare has run its course, something else will take its place, … so government has no business in research.” Bonner R. Cohen, Ph.D. (bcohen@nationalcenter.org) is a senior fellow at the National Center for Public Policy Research. This article was reprinted with permission from heartland. org, a product of The Heartland Institute (https://www.heartland.org/news-opinion/news/ climate-panelists-call-for-far-reaching-epa-reforms).

Read more online at www.SoilandMulchProducerNews.com.

Mulch Producer NEWS

Anaerobic Digester Will Save Haverhill $300K

averhill, MA – A local farm will be supplying this Massachusetts city with power from a one-megawatt digester, reports an EagleTribune.com article. Haverhill City Council has approved the construction of the animal waste-to-methane conversion plant. Under an agreement with Vanguard Renewables, the municipality will be purchasing electricity at a rate of 13 cents a kilowatt hour, a savings of 5 cents per kilowatt from the current rate. Construction of the facility is expected to be completed later this year or in early 2018. The renewable energy is transferred to the city through the purchase of net metering credits from National Grid PLC, a British multinational electricity and gas utility company headquartered in Warwick, United Kingdom. The company supplies electricity to cities in Massachusetts, New York and Rhode Island. Along with manure from the farm’s 185 dairy cows supplying most of the waste to be processed by the digester, food waste will be collected from local schools and restaurants. The electricity generated by the plant will be used primarily for powering its operations. According to its website, the 400-acre Crescent Farms is the largest working farm in Bradford, MA. In addition to the cattle operation, the farm draws tourists from nearby Boston and New Hampshire who come to enjoy a range of special events and fresh produce. The farm is operated by the third and fourth generations of the Davidowicz Family.

www.amerimulch.com info@amerimulch.com

May / June 2017 Soil & Mulch Producer News 11

Soil

Mulch Producer NEWS

European Biomass Carbon-neutral Status Under Fire

A For more information, visit www.ishs.org/symposium/490

http://www.amadas.com

12 Soil & Mulch Producer News May / June 2017

NewScientist.com article reports that the Dutch nonprofit, FERN has accused European nations of a behind-the-scenes “greenwash” campaign to hide negative impacts of generating electricity from biomass. FERN, which wants to limit the use of wood and forest harvests for energy, released a report, “Up in Flames - How biomass burning wrecks Europe’s forests” in 2015. The group contends that the policies wrongly promote biomass as a renewable energy source in the report, and its growing use skews the EU carbon trade system. The EU’s carbon credit system was established as part of a drive to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions. The FERN report notes that almost half of wood harvested in the EU is being used for energy. Biomass accounts for 60 percent of the EU’s electricity and heating and it supplies about five per cent of EU’s overall energy. The FERN website explains that industry investors say that if the EU’s 2020 renewable energy targets are to be met, Europe will need between seven and 16 million hectares of energy crops. Under international climate treaties such as the Paris Agreement, burning wood-based biomass is defined as carbon-neutral, even though it emits at least as much carbon as fossil fuels. The assumption is that new trees will be grown to take up the carbon emitted from the burning. A complex accounting process known as LULUCF, for Land Use, Land Use Change and Forestry, is used to account for carbon loss when forests are reduced for whatever reason. Critics say the methodology used in LULUCF is an inexact science with high potential for accounting errors. In June, European environment ministers will set their own rules for LULUCF carbon accounting. Their policies will play an important role in how Europe meets emissions targets under the Paris Agreement. A FERN spokesperson told New Scientist there’s pressure from industry groups in France, Finland and a few other countries to weaken the rules and to increase forest harvesting. A spokesman pointed New Scientist to a 2016 EU report that forecast “a more than 30 per cent reduction in the forest management sink” between 2005 and 2030 in the 28 EU countries. Biomass and land use change can be identified as key drivers. In late May, FERN issued a news release saying that the Environment Committee voted to strengthen the EU’s climate target for the Effort Sharing Regulation (ESR), which covers the agriculture, waste, buildings and transport sectors. The vote supported reducing access to LULUCF offsets for those sectors. The move amounts to eliminating credits equal to 90 million tons of CO2, almost equivalent to the annual carbon emissions of Belgium.

Soil

Mulch Producer NEWS

It’s In The Bag for Soil, Mulch, Compost Biz By P.J. Heller

an Sutton knows the dilemma faced by soil, mulch and compost producers who want to expand their marketing reach. “Freight kills all deals,” says Sutton, senior vice president at Rexius Forest By-Products in Eugene, Ore. “It’s kind of a tongue-in-cheek way of saying that if you have to truck it very far, your freight is going to outweigh the value of the product.” The solution, according to those in the industry, is contract bagging. Numerous companies across the United States, from New Hampshire to Washington State, offer soil, compost and mulch producers the opportunity to have their products packaged and distributed to independent garden centers, big box stores and retail chains. The same contract bagging businesses also can provide private label branded products directly to those retailers. “It’s fairly common nowadays that pretty much all the biggest companies have people packaging for them,” notes Ron Alexander, president of R. Alexander Associates, an environmental consulting company based in Apex, N.C. “The primary reason is because you can get better distribution and lower transportation costs of the packaged materials. Instead of producing the product in Texas and shipping it to Florida, they contract package it in Florida and specify the formulation for the product that needs to go into the bag. Typically the contract packager will use the client’s bag and charge a fee for putting the material together and the labor to package it.” By offering their products in bags — versus selling it in bulk by the truckload — soil, mulch and compost producers can market to independent garden centers who may be seeking unique products (i.e. those not found in big box stores). Bagged products are often ideal for consumers who may only require a small volume of material as well as landscapers who may find the bags more convenient. Large national companies producing soil amendments, compost, growing media and mulch early on recognized the need to have their own numerous packaging facility locations, or to employ contract bagging services, spread across the U.S. to meet their distribution needs, says Alexander, whose company specializes in composting and “organics recycling” and offers a full range of product and market research, labeling and registration and organic listing services to companies worldwide. “They’re doing it to improve distribution and lower the overall costs, including transportation, of the final product,” he explains. For smaller soil, compost and mulch producers, utilizing an outside bagging service can make more financial sense than running the operation in-house. The cost of an automated bagging line can run into the hundreds of thousands of dollars and may need to be run constantly to justify its cost. Used and smaller mobile equipment is available which can lower the entry point. Personnel will also have to be trained to run the bagging line with additional personnel required to run a semi-automated line. “If you‘re going to package your product, and if you’re serious about doing it, then you definitely need to do a financial analysis, a cost analysis,” Alexander says. “You really need to figure out if it makes sense to package internally or contract it out. It may only make sense to package at all if you create three or four products for a full line.” Brad Tuminello, owner of Southern Mulch in Port Allen, La., agrees, noting that the seasonal nature of the mulch business may make it impractical for companies to invest in their own mulch bagging equipment. “Unless you‘re down in Florida or California or maybe in parts of Texas, mulch is a seasonal business,” he says. “You can only run that bagging line, depending on where you’re located, three months to seven or eight months a year. The return on investment doesn’t behoove you to spend that kind of money on a bagging operation.” “We‘re running two separate Amadas bagging lines for about seven to

www.grinderwearparts.com

www.apolloequipment.net

marisa@e-milagro.com

Continued on page 14

May / June 2017 Soil & Mulch Producer News 13

Soil

Mulch Producer NEWS

It’s In The Bag for Soil, Mulch, Compost Biz Continued from page 13

eight months out of the year, then it trickles back to one bagging line for three to four months a year,” Tuminello says. “We have the capacity but the time of year we have capacity is the time of the year when nobody is buying mulch. We run the dual bagging line October through May working five to six days a week. From June to September, we run one bagging line working maybe four days a week.” Another company with excess bagging capacity is Columbia Cedar in Kettle Falls, Wash. It describes itself as “the last full-time producer of random-length western red cedar lumber in the United States.” The mill in northeast Washington has two automated bagging machines, one running a Hamer 2090 dedicated to all bark western red cedar mulch, the other a Hamer 2080 dedicated to a colored mulch line, either colored chips, a bark and chip mixture or just natural chips. That latter line has the capability to produce 3 million bags a year, according to Pete Adkins, who handles lumber and byproduct sales and is also transportation manager. “We’re looking for wholesale customers that we can private label for, and build long-term relationships with,” he says. “Bagging products directly at the mill eliminates production and transportation costs and gives the customer the most competitive pricing. “Columbia Cedar produces year ’round, so supply is not a question,” he adds. “Another bonus is we have a plant site 20 miles south of our Kettle Falls location with the capability to store all material that’s produced year ’round for spring shipment.” Columbia Cedar has been bagging its all bark mulch for about five years. It began bagging the colored mulch about eight months ago. Its bagged products are shipped throughout the intermountain region, with colored mulch primarily going to big box stores. “We have customers who send it to landscape companies, garden centers, hardware stores, you name it,” Adkins says. Adkins expects more mills in the region are going to consider bagging

BACKERS ONCE YOU START. YOU WON’T STOP. TRACK, SCREEN, AND CLEAN AT THE SAME TIME Backers combine high productivity, operating efﬁciency, and ultimate ﬂexibility to overcome your most challenging screening needs. www.ecoverse.net ECOVERSE.NET - (440) 937-3225

14 Soil & Mulch Producer News May / June 2017

services. “I believe more mills will look at installing their own bagging lines to add more profit to the bottom line due to all-time high log costs,” he says. “There are some other mills in the area that are bagging their wood shavings with others trying to figure the whole bagging bark/mulch thing as well.” Tuminello, meanwhile, is considering an automated bagging line for Southern Mulch. While he says it would not be any faster than the semiautomatic line, it would allow him to reduce the number of personnel required to run the bagging machine it from the current five or six to just one employee. Southern Mulch has been in business about 10 years. Its bagging operation began as a way to add value to its waste stream from its pallet manufacturing operation, according to Tuminello. Today, Southern Mulch works with large geographical mulch companies who distribute bagged cypress mulch throughout Louisiana, Texas, Mississippi and parts of the Midwest. “We provide bagging with the cypress in this part of the country that they might not have in the Midwest, but they service the Midwest and the South so they work with us to fill their orders down here.” Tuminello says. “Companies that have business in this area of the country may not have bagging lines here to serve the big box stores,” he adds. “They need to have a bigger presence. Plus we have the raw material, the access to cypress.” Southern Mulch fills 2.5 million to 3.5 million bags a year of natural and colored mulch. The majority of bagged products are in 2 cubic foot bags; 3 cubic foot bags are also filled. The company also provides bulk mulch products. The company offers landscapers, big box stores and nursery stores private label bagged products under the Southern Mulch name. “If you’re a small private lawn care center or business of that nature, it doesn’t behoove you to go and have bags made under your name,” he says. Continued on page 16

Innovative Solutions

Peterson offers full service solutions to your mulch or composting operationsfrom high volume horizontal grinders, to screens and stacking conveyors.

Terra Select T6 Trommel Screen; Exclusively distributed by Peterson

Get the right sized product, sort it out, and stack it higher with Peterson! Visit us a www.petersoncorp.com www.petersoncorp.com today and see why Peterson is the industry leader for disc and drum chippers, horizontal grinders, blower trucks, screens and stacking conveyors.

Peterson GT3660 Tracked Stacking Conveyor

Let us know how we can help you grow your business!

www.petersoncorp.com 800-269-6520 • www.petersoncorp.com PO BOX 40490 • Eugene, OR 97404

May / June 2017 Soil & Mulch Producer News 15

Soil

Mulch Producer NEWS

It’s In The Bag for Soil, Mulch, Compost Biz Continued from page 14

Issues a company should consider when selecting a contract bagging service include the quantity of printed bags they may have to order and the number of filled bags or pallets that have to be ordered. Some contract bagging companies, such as family-owned Grant County Mulch, have no minimum ordering requirements. “We take care of customers who buy one load a year to some who get thousands of loads,” says Tonya Berg, manager of the business headquartered in Petersburg, W.Va. The company, which has been in business for 30 years, has eight locations through Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia and Pennsylvania and serves the Mid-Atlantic region. It ships to West Virginia, Maryland, Virginia, Delaware, Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana and the Washington DC. It operates four automated bagging lines; three Nova packaging bagging lines and one Premier Tech bagging line. Three of the lines are in West Virginia and one is in Maryland. “With freight being such a major part of the industry, we had to move closer to our markets,” Berg says. “That’s why we opened up these additional plants.” Grant County Mulch produces about 10 million bags a year, mostly in 1 and 2 cubic foot sizes. Products include color enhanced mulch, potting soil, pine nuggets, composted leaf humus, stone, biomass and firewood. It also does custom labeling for some of its larger customers who want their own brand/bag. It offers big box stores, landscape contractors and wholesale

nurseries its own packaged products under its Lumber Jack, Countryside Accents and Mt. Top brands and sells bulk material to landscape contractors and nurseries and garden centers. “We have our hands in a little bit of everything,” Berg says. Soil, mulch and compost companies who don’t want to go to the trouble and expense of having bags printed can arrange to have labels printed and put on white poly bags when contract bagging through Rexius Forest ByProducts. The fourth-generation family business — started in the late 1930s — has two separate bagging lines, one geared toward chain store customers and the other geared toward independent garden center customers. It also offers the Rexius line of products in mulch, soils, compost and soil amendments. In addition to private label packaging for customers, Rexius also does custom packaging for customers who need products in plain white bags or bulk totes. It can fill almost any size bag, from 4 quarts to 2 cubic feet to a bulk tote. Its white poly bags are available in 1, 1.5 and 2 cubic foot sizes. A typical order is about eight pallets. “A lot of people will start off with a plain white bag to get up and rolling and pretty soon will do their own bags. They’ll get the artwork done and plates made and have bags printed and they’ll send those bags to us,” says Rexius’ Dan Sutton. “Our hope is that we start people off in a smaller way, get the ball rolling, because once you start printing your own bags,

Continued on next page

The following are companies mentioned in this article that offer contract bagging services: Southern Mulch 7170 Little Sister Drive, Hwy 190 West Port Allen, LA 70767 Phone: (225) 383-4646

Grant County Mulch 181 Mulch Drive Petersburg, WV 26847 Phone: (800) 749-7451 x103

P.R. Russell 91 Pine Road Brentwood, NH 03833 Phone: (603) 772-4060

Rexius Forest By-Products 1275 Bailey Hill Road Eugene, OR 97402 Phone: (541) 342-1835

Columbia Cedar 24419 US-395 Kettle Falls, WA 99141 Phone: (509) 738-4711

CONTINENTAL BIOMASS INDUSTRIES CBI 6800BT Horizontal Grinder

• •

• CAT C-27, 1050HP diesel engine (available as Tier 4 Final) • Grinds pallets, stumps, & logs into quality fuel and mulch • Large capacity feed hopper easily handles full-length trees • High-strength, forged steel 40”D x 60”W upturn drum rotor

OUTPRODUCE • OUTPERFORM • OUTLAST CBI • 22 Whittier Street, Newton, New Hampshire 03858 USA • (603) 382-0556 • www.cbi-inc.com 16 Soil & Mulch Producer News May / June 2017

Soil Continued from previous page you’ll need to print 15,000 to 20,000 or more to get started. It can get kind of costly if you’re rolling out a four or five bag line of products. You’ve got a pretty big investment there if you’re trying to come up with your own bag and your own label. “We offer a way to get you started for the first year or so and then from there we can move you into a much larger volume as your market grows,” he adds. Rexius, whose operation encompasses about 160 acres, serves customers in the West, including Oregon, Washington, Arizona, Nevada and California. The company runs an automated bagging line that can fill about 12,000 bags a day. It also has a manual open-mount machine which can do custom blended products and small runs. Being able to custom blend products is increasingly important for contract baggers, especially with the growing number of specialty products being marketed by the industry. “Some of the mixes we’re doing now, especially for the cannabis industry, may have between 15 to 20 different ingredients that go in their blend,” Sutton says. “We have customers who will bring in some of their secret recipe ingredients and we’ll add that to the mix during the batching cycle. “Fifteen years ago you had peat moss. You had aged bark pine. You had pumice and perlite, and some commercial fertilizer and maybe some compost available and that was pretty much it,” he says. “Now you’ve got biochar, worm castings, bokashi and every kind of animal and plant fertilizer you can imagine. The list is a mile long.” “Times are changing when it comes to these types of products,” agrees Ron Alexander. “We have more variety in both products and ingredients . . . and I think it will continue to grow in that area. The market is getting more complicated. We‘re making products for specific end-users.” Within the last two years, for example, Rexius introduced Opus Grows, a line of natural and organic premium growing mixes designed to appeal to millennials. P.R. Russell in Brentwood, N.H., which since 2011 has been bagging it own products as well as products for others, also reports customers expanding their offerings. “It‘s definitely a line of business we hope continues to grow,” says manager Kristen McRae. In addition to contract bagging, the company offers its own line of bagged soil, mulch and compost products as well as bulk mulch products. Contract bagging customers come from Maine, Massachusetts and Connecticut, with products going throughout New England and into the New York area. “What we specialize in is a manufacturing and distribution service for customers that have packaging and formulations in place,” McRae says. “We take care of sourcing all the raw material. We mix the product. We package and store the product until it’s ready to be shipped and then we distribute it for them. Whether it’s direct to a store or a distribution center, we work with our customers on what works best for them. All they need to worry about is growing their sales.” P.R. Russell has two Premier Tech fully automated bagging lines. The company can package from 8 quart to 3 cubic foot bag; it has a bagging capacity of 6 million bags a year. “That technology allows us to do the manufacturing at a lesser cost compared to other packaging systems that may be more labor intensive,” she notes. “And on the mulch side, we have good supply of bark as well as other raw materials. Our goal is to offer that raw material supply for customers at a better cost than having them sourcing their own supply and packaging and distributing their own products. We take care of all those logistical things for them.” McRae agrees with others who offer contract bagging services that customers using their services can save money while expanding their market. “They also can save a lot in transportation,” she says. “If they’re located out of our region and they want to service customers in the Northeast, instead of shipping from their location they can come to us with their specific products and we can save them money on transportation.” P.R. Russell will handle orders as small as 25 pallets. “This service is not just for box stores and it’s not just for the big players,” she says. “We also help large garden centers that want to start branding their own products.”

Mulch Producer NEWS

CREATE THE IDEAL COMPOSTING ENVIRONMENT IN A

CLEARSPAN STRUCTURE GET INDUSTRY-SPECIFIC INFORMATION AT www.clearspan.com CLEARSPAN.COM

F o r n e a r ly 40 y e a r s c l e a r s pa n F a b r i c s tructures has been providing structural solutions for composting needs of any size.

i ndustry -l eading w arranties - ClearSpan structures are built to last with triple-galvanized steel frames and durable covers. c ost -e FFective b uilding s olutions - Drastically reduce construction costs, monthly utilities and maintenance requirements, with a structure that is superior in quality. F inancing a vailable - Speak to your Truss Arch Specialist today. www.clearspan.com V isit www . clearspan . com or call 1.866.643.1010

to find out how we can help with your structure needs

Arthur B. Robinson Center on Climate & Environmental Policy

The center is named in honor of, and chaired by, Arthur B. Robinson, Ph.D., a distinguished chemist, cofounder of the Oregon Institute of Science and Medicine (OISM), and editor of the influential newsletter Access to Energy.

“The Heartland Institute has published the work of many excellent scientists ... [and] has taken the fight right to the enemy with aggressive and highly effective campaigns aimed at elected officials and civic and business leaders.” Arthur B. Robinson, Ph.D. April 2017

t the Arthur B. Robinson Center on Climate and Environmental Policy at The Heartland Institute, we are producing the research and conducting the effective advocacy needed to help restore sound science and common sense to efforts to protect the environment. The Center promotes pro-energy, proenvironment, and pro-jobs policies based on sound science and economics, not alarmism or ideology. Through events, publications, social media, and government relations programs we have changed public opinion on climate change and other environmental topics. We have changed public policy not only in the United States but in other countries as well. In 2017 and onward, we are focusing on winning the global warming war and repealing bad legislation and regulations adopted during the height of the global warming scare. With your help, we can win the global warming war. Please contact us at 312/377-4000 or www.think@.heartland.org think@heartland.org, or visit our website at www.heartland.org/Center-Climate-Environment heartland.org/Center-Climate-Environment.

<Based on 12pt ITC Caslon 224 bold

FREEDOM RISING

<Based on 7pt ITC Caslon 224 medium h

<Based on 12pt ITC Caslon 224 bold

FREEDOM RISING

<Based on 7pt Frutiger; light horizontally

May / June 2017 FREEDOM SoilRISING & Mulch Producer News 17

<Based on 12pt ITC Caslon 224 bold <Based on 7pt Frutiger; light horizontally

Soil

Mulch Producer NEWS

Odor Complaints Arise Over Hamilton’s Composting Rule

amilton, Ontario, Canada – A Hamilton city councilor says that a provincial law intended to promote composting is contributing to complaints about foul odors, according to CBC.ca news report. The Hamilton Central Composting Facility, which handles about 70,000 tons of waste annually, has drawn 21 complaints this year. Last year, there were just three complaints. One city official blames the odor – and the complaints – on the provincial legislation. Last year, the Ontario Ministry of Environment completed a long overdue update of its compost standards. One new rule requires that compost moisture content be maintained at greater than 40 per cent during curing. According to a ministry spokesperson, if the city is found to be in noncompliance, it must treat the materials as waste. The Hamilton facility has been trying to remedy the problem by storing less compost in the curing building, using an “odor neutralizer” in the stack exhaust and turning the compost as little as possible at night to avoid release of odors, according to Hamilton’s manager of recycling and waste disposal.

Hong Kong Company Pitches Biomass Project in CO Springs

olorado Springs, TX – VannZa Group proposes to turn slash wood leftover from wildfire mitigation programs into fuel and other marketable products, reports Gazette.com. VannZa, according to its website, provides a range of forestry and renewable energy solutions, including consultation and management and technical support. If plans are approved by state and local governments, the company would lease county land on which it would build a 2- 2.5 megawatt biomass plant to generate enough electricity to power lights at the El Paso County jail. The electricity would be sold to the county at market rates. Construction of the biomass facility would be financed by private investors. A VannZa official told The Gazette that the plant is part of a larger planned enterprise that capitalizes on slash wood. The company is considering building a lumber processing facility in Golden that would make mulch, biochar and wood pellets. Residents and businesses could hire company crews for clearing dead or diseased trees and removing branches which would be chipped and hauled to the plant in Golden, Colo.

Digester Will Supply Fuel to SoCal Gas

erris, CA – Once a connecting pipeline from an anaerobic digester to Southern California Gas Company lines is operational this summer, a new era of renewable energy will begin, according to a statement issued by the utility. The Riverside County digester, constructed by waste management company CR&R, is one of the largest and most advanced of its kind in North America. CR & R is the first company to contract with SoCal Gas to supply gas. The company has installed 1.3 miles of 8-inch pipeline to carry the gas from the plant to the utility’s line, according to a public presentation by company officials. The Perris plant is state-of-the-art. Using a 21-day process, the digester breaks down organic waste in a closed oxygen-free, fullyautomated system. The facility was designed to process 335,000 tons of solid waste per year and create 4 million gallons of conditioned natural gas, as well as 250,000 tons of separated digestate that can be used as soil fertilizer. The four-phase $100 million project began as an idealistic concept ten years ago. In the meantime the California state legislature passed laws intended to promote renewable energy while also diverting organic waste from landfill.

www.westsalem.com 18 Soil & Mulch Producer News May / June 2017

Truck Measurement & Ticketing Systems

Volumetric Load Scanner System Starting @ $23,900.00

Skid Steer Scales Starting @ $1,495.00 Wheel Loader Scales Starting @ $4,400.00 Truck Scales Starting @ $3,950.00 800-747-0701 - www.walzscale.com 656 Highpoint Lane, East Peoria, IL 61611 May / June 2017 Soil & Mulch Producer News 19

Soil

Mulch Producer NEWS

Albany and Saratoga Counties Consider a Shared Digester

St. Lucie County Ordinance Sets Limits on Large-Scale Composting

t. Lucie, FL – St. Lucie County is proposing an ordinance that would require commercial composters to house processing facilities in covered buildings, reports TCPalm.com. Last year, the county turned down a proposal by CompostUSA to build a 189-acre composting facility that would have processed up to 380 million pounds of sludge annually. A county-commissioned engineering report found that nitrogen, copper, arsenic, lead and several herbicides could drain into the C-24 Canal, the St. Lucie River and the Indian River Lagoon during typical summer rains. The most common complaints and concerns related to composting tend to involve noise, odor and water quality issues. The measure would not apply to normal farming operations or backyard compost pile and bins. The proposed ordinance would require commercial composters to do all composting activity in an enclosed building with a concrete or asphalt floor, control stormwater runoff, noise, odors, and pests and wash trucks to prevent roadway mud. In addition, the ordinance would require at least 1,320 feet between any composting material and the nearest building. Several public hearings were scheduled for June.

lbany, NY – A plan to build an aerobic digester serving Albany and Saratoga Counties could become a reality depending on the findings of a feasibility study, TimesUnion.com reports. A $26 million project, the Regional Anaerobic Digestion facility, would be located in Menands, New York. The two counties would share in the construction cost, operation and maintenance of the digester. The plant would take in food waste and sludge from both counties and run on the electricity it creates. If the project goes forward, it would replace the current methods of waste disposal for both Albany and Saratoga Counties: landfill and incineration. Once operating, the facility could lower disposal costs for the counties as well as decrease water and sewer rates for residents, county officials told The Times-Union. The $100K study will be funded by a $50,000 grant from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, with the remaining $50,000 divided evenly between the two counties. The study, conducted by global design and consulting firm, Arcadis, will evaluate each county’s current waste management facilities, identify design criteria and funding sources, and help prepare a master plan and project schedule.

IN THE NEWS

Texas Disposal Systems Announces Mark Cummings as New Director of Organics

reedmoor, TX – Texas Disposal Systems (TDS), a resource management company that helps customers manage and divert waste to beneficial uses, announced Mark Cummings as the company’s Director of Organics. His duties will include supervision of TDS’ and Garden-Ville’s compost manufacturing and production operations. Additionally, he will handle training, financial interests, innovation and management operations related to organic material production. Cummings has been in senior leadership roles related to organic services since 2003, where his primary duties have involved identifying management strategies and developing operational systems for a wide variety of  composting, livestock and organic operations.

South Carolina-based Richardson Service 1991 Inc. Joins Bandit’s Network of Dealers

andit Industries recently announced that it has partnered with Richardson Service 1991 Inc., serving nearly all of South Carolina, expanding their dealer network in the southern United States. According to the company, Richardson Service 1991, based in Conway, gives Bandit’s South Carolina customers a local option for parts, service, rentals and sales for Bandit hand-fed wood chippers and stump grinders. “The team at Richardson Service is committed to providing the best possible service and support to its customers,” said Bandit Sales Manager Jason Morey. “They’ve built a reputation as an industry leader over more than 25 years in business, and we’re excited to partner with them.”

American Colors Inc. Promotes Waymon Winfree to Assistant Plant Manager

merican Colors Inc. recently announced the promotion of Waymon Winfree to Assistant Plant Manager of their Lebanon, TN facility. According to the company, Mr. Winfree has been with American Colors, Inc. for 7 years. He started as a mixer and eventually took over their mulch mixing department. Prior to his promotion, he managed the production schedule for American Colors’ Lebanon facility. Mr. Winfree attended Lipscomb University in Nashville, TN, where he graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Organizational Leadership. The company stated that during his tenure at American Colors, Mr. Winfree he has implemented many improvements, which have increased the efficiency of their Lebanon facility.

20 Soil & Mulch Producer News May / June 2017

2018 Midwest Green Industry Experience welcomes the Kentucky Nursery and Landscape Association

he Kentucky Nursery and Landscape Association (KNLA) will welcome its members to the 2018 Midwest Green Industry Experience in Columbus, OH, in lieu of holding the annual KNLA Spring Training and Showplace. The Midwest Green Industry Experience began in 2017 as a refreshed and redefined version of Ohio Nursery and Landscape Association’s (ONLA) annual conference. Its mission: Welcome all who play a role in the green industry—in Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, and beyond. The 2017 convention welcomed just short of 5,000 attendees for three days of education, networking events, and a tradeshow experience that featured more than 250 vendors. “We are thrilled to be partnering with ONLA at the 2018 Midwest Green Industry Experience,” said Kim Fritz, KNLA President. “The possibilities are endless when combining the education programs that KNLA and ONLA have both offered in the past, which we will build upon in the future. Also, the combined energy of having all our vendors under one roof is fantastic. All of our members will truly benefit from our partnership and this is a win/win for both associations.” MGIX 2018 takes place January 15–17 at the Greater Columbus Convention Center. KNLA and ONLA members receive discounted pricing on MGIX exhibit space and registration. To learn more, visit www.mgix18.com. Companies interested in exhibiting at MGIX should contact keith@onla.org.

Soil

Ulster Composting Program a Success

own of Ulster, NY – An Ulster County food waste recycling program has collected more than 800 tons of material so far this year – three times as much as this time last year, a DailyFreeman.com article reports. Ulster County Resource Recovery Agency (UCRRA) officials attribute the success of the program to good planning and customerfriendly hours and service. The program started collecting food waste last year from Ulster County sources, but now accepts waste from other areas. UCRRA charges $20 per ton for food waste, which is processed into soil over a six-month period. The end product, Grow Ulster Green Compost, is sold for $30 per ton to customers who use the material for gardens, lawns and fill. This compost product is screened to 3/8 inch and certified by the US Composting Council’s Seal of Testing Assurance Program. According to the Daily Freeman article, UCRRA’s revenue for the first four months of 2017 from composting tipping fees and sales was $29,240, an increase of $15,809, or 177.7 percent over the 2016 figures. Operation expenses were $8,365, an increase of $6,560, or 363.43 percent. Under a state Department of Environmental Conservation permit, the agency is limited to accepting 2,000 tons of food waste per year (the pilot program was limited to 500 tons).

A small, inexpensive showcase ad is all you need to reach more than 5,000 potential customers! For details, call Rick at 440-257-6453

Mulch Producer NEWS

International Symposium on Growing Media, Soilless Cultivation & Compost Utilization August 20 in Portland, Oregon

rowing Media, Hydroponics, and Compost research will be on full display and thoroughly discussed at the International Symposium on Growing Media, Soilless Cultivation, and Compost Utilization which will be held in Portland Oregon, August 20-25, 2017. This symposium is part of the International Society for Horticultural Science and will focus on all aspects of growing media and soilless cultivation. This year’s conference is being hosted by NC State University. In addition to learning about the latest research on substrates, soilless cultivation and compost utilization, attendees at the conference will also have an opportunity to participate in tours of the unique horticulture industry located in the Northwest U.S. state of Oregon. We are promoting this to the Horticultural Industry as much as we are to Academic/University members. Some of the areas of the industry we are promoting and recruiting include: Peat producers and users, Wood Fiber producers and users, Compost producers and users, Biochar producers and users, Raw Material suppliers, Hydroponic and Aquaponic growers, Perlite/Vermiculite/Mycorrhizae/ suppliers, Organic Fertilizer producers, Coconut Coir Producers and users, Professional AND Retail growing media producers, Urban Substrate and Urban Farming (green roof substrates, vertical walls, rain gardens, etc.) among others. The conference hosts welcome all substrate research scientists, growers, and industry professionals from around the world. For more information, please visit http://newbeginningsmanagement. com/compsubsci2017/.

Service and Quality that You Can Count On!

CMC Mulch Colorants is a privately owned company that values our customers. We strive to provide dependability, quality, and outstanding service. Our colorants will help you increase your bottom line by allowing you to use less colorant and still achieve optimal coverage. We manfuacture millions of pounds of colorant every year at our 70,000 sq. ft. Fleetwood, Pennsylvania facility. Contact us Today to speak to a representative and see for yourself.

330 Gallon Totes

Call: 610.926.0984 Email: sales@cmcmilling.com www.cmcmulchcolorants.com May / June 2017 Soil & Mulch Producer News 21

Soil

Mulch Producer NEWS

Organic Waste Collection Takes Off in Massachusetts

A1 Organics Food Waste Recycling Gets Underway

aton, CO – Eaton-based A1 Organics has launched a field test program to determine which food service products to accept into its food waste composting programs, reports GreeleyTribune.com. Co-mingling certain types of disposable cups and take-out containers causes problems in composting because the products don’t break down completely or, in some cases, not at all. The field test results, which A1 will be sharing with the Compost Manufacturing Alliance are expected to help improve operational efficiencies at composting facilities across the U.S. This is an important step in satisfying requirements for higher levels of food waste recovery at colleges, stadiums and corporate campuses, an A1 news release explained. According to the company’s website, A1 processes approximately 355,000 tons of inbound tree and limb waste, clean dimensional lumber waste, yard clippings, food scraps and wastewater treatment biosolids every year, turning the material into soil amendments used in landscaping, gardening, farming and storm water application. A1 has been in the organics recycling business since 1974, and is a supplier to the Heartland Biogas Project, which turns food waste and other organic material into electricity.

ewburyport, MA – Curbside collection programs are gaining community support, helping to put Massachusetts on track for its goal of reducing the amount of organic waste in landfills, a NewburyportNews.com article reports. A two-year pilot program in Newburyport, which ends this September, has 425 households signed up for weekly food waste collections. The program has generated a total of 274 tons of scraps, and the town’s Recycling Committee notes that residential trash weight has been reduced by 20 percent. The state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has mandated similar pilot programs in various communities to cut down on food waste. Massachusetts has banned organics in the waste stream for generators of more than one ton of organic waste per week, which mainly include businesses and restaurants. City officials say about 3,200 pounds per week – or 10 to 12 pounds of organic waste per household – is being diverted from landfill and incinerators. But if all of the city’s 8,000 households participated, they estimate that 365 tons of organic materials could be diverted and the city’s trash hauling bill could be cut from more than $1 million to about $390,000 a year.

Product/Equipment Profiles Peterson Introduces the 4710D Horizontal Grinder

Bandit Color Max Coloring System Now Available For The Beast® Horizontal Grinders

eterson Pacific C o r p . , recently introduced the Peterson 4710D horizontal grinder. The 4710D is designed for highvolume producers with very demanding end-product specifications. The 4710D is powered by a Tier IV Caterpillar C18 engine rated at 755 horsepower (563 kW). A Tier II, 765 horsepower (570 kW) engine is also available. Peterson’s three-stage grinding process with an up-turning rotor and large grate area enables the 4710D to produce materials to exact specifications. Quick-change multiple grate system makes it easy to customize grate configurations to produce a wide variety of finished materials. Grates are removed through an access door on the side wall. The 4710D features Peterson’s Adaptive Control System, which controls all components of the feed system to optimize output. This system monitors the grinding load and varies the speed of the feed system to keep the engine working at the top of its power curve. It automatically accelerates the feed system when the engine load is light, slows when the load is high, and reverses if the engine speed drops. It even monitors the engine temperature and varies the cooling fan speed to minimize power usage and reduce fuel consumption.

ith Bandit’s enhanced Color Max colorizer system, creating beautiful colored landscape mulch from waste wo o d h a s n e ve r been easier. The Color Max colorizer system is a quick, efficient and cost-effective system; creating a high quality colored mulch faster and with lower operating costs. The Color Max coloring system sprays color directly to The Beast’s patented cuttermill, which thoroughly coats material during processing. “This system takes full advantage of the high-production capabilities of The Beast, distributing color throughout the mulch as its broken down,” said Jason Morey, Bandit Industries sales manager. “Because color is applied to the cuttermill, coverage on the product is distributed evenly while also being efficient with the colorant.” By applying color to the cuttermill, material stays in better contact with color to literally produce more colored mulch with less colorant. The Color Max system is available as on option on all models in The Beast lineup.

For more information contact Michael Spreadbury, Marketing Manager, at 541-607-7911 or michael.spreadbury@petersoncorp.com.

Learn more about Color Max system and other wood processing machines at www.banditchippers.com or by calling 1-800-952-0178.

22 Soil & Mulch Producer News May / June 2017

sales@loadscan.com www.loadscan.com May / June 2017 Soil & Mulch Producer News 23

GRIND COLOR SOLUTIONS

The ONLY Patented Grind & Color System After more than 15 years as the standard for efficiency and simplicity, the patented Rotochopper grind and color system remains the only “Perfect In One Pass” ® solution. It was the first, and it’s still the best. Contact us today to learn how Rotochopper grind and color technology can maximize the margins of your mulch operation.

320-548-3586 www.rotochopper.com