EJC area lacks transfer center

Already in 2008 two companies in Blue Springs and another company based in Independence that serves disabled workers in Independence and Blue Springs have expressed interest in a Materials Recovery Facility or MRF, to sort recycables in the Eastern Jackson County area.

EnviroStar Waste Services, Evergreen Reclamation and Independence Blue Springs Industries, Inc. all have detailed this year plans to bring an MRF to the area. An MRF is described as a specialized plant that receives, separates and prepares recyclable materials for marketing to end-user manufacturers. The most common MRFs are single stream, where all recyclable material is mixed. All are or were considering single-stream MRFs.

“The nearest MRF/recycling facility is in western Kansas City, Kansas,” said IBS CEO Stan Shurmantine, adding an MRF in the area would help the environment as well as IBS’ client base. The company employs disabled workers from the Eastern Jackson County area. “The mission of IBS Industries is simply to create jobs for adults with severe disabilities.”

At a Independence Chamber of Commerce luncheon in June, Shurmantine told a crowd of business leaders that his company is working with a company out of Omaha to develop Eastern Jackson County’s first MRF. The plan, Shurmantine said, is for IBS to build and operate a single-stream MRF for the sorting of recyclable materials, including paper, plastics, aluminum and tin cans.

“We have a document destruction (shredding) business, and recycling is an extension of this, along with the job creation,” Shurmantine said. “In the current economic climate this is extremely difficult.”

Earlier this year EnviroStar approached the Independence City Council for approval of trash pickup to increase the tonnage of trash needed to operate such a facility. The facility would have been on Missouri 7 near Pink Hill Road on the Blue Springs/Independence border.

After EnviroStar let lapse its rights to purchase the property, Evergreen made its pitch, only to be met with hesitation from Independence city officials after getting the go-ahead from the Blue Springs Planning Commission. Citing increased traffic flow of heavy trucks and safety issues, the Independence City Council submitted a letter to Blue Springs officials stating they would be opposed to such a project. The Blue Springs Planning Commission approved Evergreen’s proposal on the contingency that the company receive approval and support from Independence officials and residents. After meeting hesitation from Independence officials, Evergreen withdrew its proposal, nixing the deal.

Matt Riggs, outreach coordinator for the Mid-America Regional Council’s solid waste management division, said financial considerations has led to the lack of an MRF in the area, but with rising fuel costs and economic downturn, developing such a facility would make sense.

“My guess is the potential of a MRF could be developed by a private business,” said Riggs, whose company educates and coordinates recycling and solid waste management efforts throughout the metropolitan area. “If it is successful and it’s the next Internet, then everyone would be trying to build a MRF.”

Shurmantine said the development of an MRF is extremely critical for the area because the landfills closest to the area will be completely filled in the next 15-20 years. A MRF would reduce the amount of landfill space needed. Currently, waste from Independence and Blue Springs residents end up in one or two places; Courtney Ridge Recycling & Disposal Facility in Sugar Creek or Lee’s Summit Resource Recovery Park.

“(An MRF) reduces landfill space and reuses precious natural resources,” Shurmantine said, adding IBS’ plans for a MRF are still preliminary. “There are no public safety issues.”

Riggs said the recycling efforts by cities in Eastern Jackson County and their residents are adequate, but adding an area MRF would bolster a renewed spirit for the act.

“Kansas City and Jackson County as a whole, has been very proactive in recycling,” Riggs said. “But if you think of Oak Grove, Independence, Blue Springs or Grain Valley, the recycling efforts consist of drop-off recycling. The options there definitely need to be more robust.”