Dan Bross, KUAC – Fairbanks
Recycling is about to expand in the Fairbanks area. K&K Recycling in North Pole has worked out a deal with the Borough and its waste hauling contractor to collect paper, glass, cardboard, plastic and metals at local transfer sites. K&K already collects recyclables from the University of Alaska Fairbanks, and area military bases, but access to borough transfer sites has been a road block. K&K owner Bernie Karl says all parties are compromising to change that.
Karl says the first transfer site is expected to be set up next week. He says his company has invested a half a million dollars in new dumpsters and trucks to collect and move materials to K&K’s North Pole facility for re-use, including fuel for a high tech biomass power plant being developed in cooperation with United Technologies.
Karl says borough residents will also see savings in landfill related costs. He needs 5,000 tons of biomass per year to fuel the power plant, a fraction of the 114,000 tons taken to the landfill every year. Karl’s long range plan is even greener: channeling CO2 emissions from the biomass generator to a large greenhouse to grow produce.
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