International Recycling Group receives grants

Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf has announced that International Recycling Group (IRG), Erie, Pennsylvania, has received a $509,000 Rail Freight Assistance Program (RFAP) grant.

The grant will be used in constructing a rail siding to IRG’s new plastic recycling plant, located at the former Hammermill Paper site.  

In November, the company also was awarded a $5 million Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program (RACP) grant.

At the time of that announcement, Mitch Hecht, founder and chairman of IRG, said, “The Erie County Redevelopment Authority (ECRDA) had already invested in our project through a sizeable loan, and the Erie community—and commonwealth—continue to show its commitment to sustainable economic development.”

The ECRDA loan was for $300,000. That money and the grant will go toward the development and construction of the IRG plant, which it refers to as a “SuperPRF,” or a plastics recovery facility. The plant will accept all forms of postuse plastics, including cups, lids, tubs and other single-use plastics that it sources primarily from material recovery facilities. It also will produce 10,000 tons per month of recycled polyethylene terephthalate, high-density polyethylene and polypropylene pellets and flakes.

The company plans to construct a 350,000-square-foot building at the former Hammermill site, with all inventory management occurring under roof, Hecht has told Recycling Today. In addition to bale-breaking and sorting equipment that includes optical sorters, robotics and artificial intelligence, the site will have shredding, washing and pelletizing operations.

Plastics that IRG doesn’t recycle on-site will be sold to other mechanical recyclers. It also will use residual materials to produce CleanRed, an iron-reducing agent used in steel production.

The company says it expects to create 250 direct living-wage manufacturing jobs at the site.

Hecht says of the RFAP grant, “The continued investment by state officials, including Gov. Wolf, continues to shine a momentous light on Erie’s eastside and the future of plastics recycling. We are developing the next generation of industry right here in Erie—and the support from elected leadership continues to show us how essential our work is to our city and State in transforming the outdated plastic waste collection model.”

IRG says Pennsylvania has 65 operating railroads, which is more than any other state. The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation works with private rail operators and rail-served businesses to construct new rail lines and assist in maintaining and improving Pennsylvania’s roughly 5,600 miles of freight lines.

“These investments in Pennsylvania’s rail system create jobs, support efficient freight travel and help keep the business community connected to the global economy,” Wolf says.

According to IRG, almost two-thirds of the plastic Erie households generate is not accepted for curbside collection. IRG and its sister company, newBin, say they will ensure not a pound of plastic goes into landfill or the environment.