A new baling machine was recently installed at the Lewis County Transfer Station, and it is able to produce almost twice the amount of compacted material when compared to the landfill's other two balers.

According to Lewis County Mayor Jonah Keltner, "The new baler was purchased during the previous fiscal year for approximately $16,000 with funds that were leftover in the 2020-2021 budget. And based on the current market, this baler will pay for itself within just a few months".

"For instance, the County's last tractor trailer load of recycled cardboard contained 23.76 tons and sold for $185.00 per ton, thus generating $4,395 in revenue. Now, with this larger baler, our Landfill Attendants be able to produce even more cardboard bales in a shorter time frame, and generate revenue much faster than before," Keltner stated.

Solid Waste Director Jason Drum, agreed. "This new baler has really improved the efficiency of our recycling program, because it allows us to compact more cardboard, aluminum and plastic at a time. This has saved the County lots of time and money, and it's increased the amount of recycled material we're able to sale to vendors", stated Drum.

According to the Solid Waste Department, during the first nine months of this calendar year (January 1, 2021 - September 30, 2021), Lewis County Government has already recycled and sold over 407,120 pounds of cardboard...229,120 pounds of scrap metal...3,829 pounds of computer towers...3,272 pounds of batteries...3,096 pounds of aluminum...and 2,979 pounds of scrap wire, along with 5,127 pounds of other items.

As result, over $46,970 in revenue has already been generated from the sale of those recycled materials during that time nine-month frame. Also, by recycling those items and keeping that 654,543 pounds of material out of the county's garbage trailers, the County has saved over $18,389 in waste hauling and tipping fees. That's a total positive impact of over $65,000 on the Solid Waste Budget.

For more information on how you can help Lewis County Government's recycling program, please call the Transfer Station at (931) 796-6058 or visit their Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/Lewis-County-Transfer-Station-102585714817847