Council wants more environmental information on recycling site

CHARLESTON (Scrap Monster):  Before Charleston County proceeds with building a new recycling center, some County Council members want assurance they don’t first need to recycle the dirt it would be built on.

The project is scheduled to go before County Council on Tuesday, and council members want assurances that contaminated soils won’t be an issue at the Palmetto Commerce Parkway site.

Councilman Teddie Pryor said he needs more of a guarantee that the former landfill site is a suitable for a new building.

“Without getting into specifics, we asked our environmental contractor to go back and send us a letter to say that the place meets all standards and is cleaned up before we start building. So that’s what I’m waiting on now,” he said.

Councilman Joe Qualey said he favors delaying action on the new recycling center to see how things go with Berkeley County’s plans for a waste-to-energy plant, which he said could be a game changer.

“Let’s let this Berkeley County thing play out some instead of investing a lot of money,” he said.

Charleston County could collaborate with Berkeley County on a waste-to-energy plant, or it could build the same sort of plant, he said. Qualey also expressed concern about the soft market for recyclables.

“There is no money for this stuff right now. We’re losing money like crazy,” he said.

Charleston County has been paying Horry County $5,000 per day to handle its recyclables since last year when the Romney Street recycling center closed because Charleston County and Hartsville-based recycler Sonoco did not renew their contract. The market for recyclables was at an all-time low because of the falling cost of petroleum, officials said.

Council Chairman Elliott Summey said Thursday that recycling is a public service like EMS, police and fire so it’s not a money maker.

“We do find ourselves in somewhat of a pickle,” he said, referring to recycling costs.

The Finance Committee voted 6-3 on Thursday in favor of proceeding with a design-build contract if it receives assurances on its environmental concerns. A $1.3 million contract has been negotiated with Mashburn Construction Co. for pre-construction, design and design/build management services. As the project proceeds, the county would negotiate a guaranteed maximum price for the project, including the construction cost.

The new recycling center would be built on 22 acres that the county purchased for $2.9 million. It was the site of the former Republic landfill. The cost of the recycling center, estimated at $18 to $25 million, would be financed through environmental department funds and bonds, Pryor said.

Courtesy: www.postandcourier.com