City may partner with Sheltered Workshop for recycling services

The city is looking toward joining forces with the Sedalia Sheltered Workshop to provide recycling. Banjo’s Recycling Center plans to relocate from Sedalia to Cole Camp in December, when its lease expires at 2800 W. Main St.

Public Works Director Bill Beck said the city is committed to offering recycling to its citizens.

“It’s tough when the recycling company in town is private. It’s tough for us to get involved,” he said. “But, if there’s no one doing it, we are going to have to step up to the plate and do it because Sedalia needs to recycle.”

Beck hopes a plan will come to fruition before December so there isn’t a gap in offering recycling to citizens.

“I really think we can get something going before then,” he said.

The city decided to pursue an agreement with the sheltered workshop, similar to several other Missouri communities.

“Being that the sheltered workshop is a non-profit, we decided to try to work out a partnership with them,” Beck said.

One possible arrangement would require the city to furnish the equipment needed and the sheltered workshop would provide the labor, management and facilities. The sheltered workshop already owns the facility currently occupied by Banjo’s.

Mickey Paul, director of employment services for the Center for Human Services, is interested in finding employment for the sheltered workshop’s clients, adults with developmental disabilities.

“We’re excited about looking at the opportunity,” he said.

The workshop is cautious about the venture because of the high volatility of the market for recyclable materials.

“We’re not out to make a profit,” Paul said. “We just can’t be in a position to lose money.”

The sheltered workshop had a small recycling program from 1983 to 1998, but abandoned the venture after it was unable to break even or have the proper facilities.

The city doesn’t want to lose a lot of money either. But, there are savings to be had from recycling. The city pays $27 to $29 a ton in landfill fees. Beck said there is potential for the city to save money on the landfill fees with a recycling program.

“Those dollars could be filtered to recycling,” he said.

Equipment needed for a recycling center includes a compactor, or baler, forklift, containers and equipment to move the containers. Beck estimated the cost to purchase used equipment at $75,000 to $100,000. The city already owns a glass pulverizer, which crushes glass into a material like sand that can be used as backfill in storm water and sewer line projects.

Beck would like to see a center accept all types of recyclable goods, and continue to do so on a consistent basis.
Beck and Paul have visited several other recycling centers run by sheltered workshops in other communities. They plan to discuss ideas with the Citizens for Smart Growth Committee at its meeting, which is open to the public, at 5:30 p.m. Thursday at city hall. The mayor and city council would have to approve any final plans.

Whatever the final plan becomes, both Beck and Paul anticipate the recycling program will grow slowly as demand increases. Beck would like to see satellite drop-offs added to destination points in the community, after a center has been established. Long-term goals also include establishment of end uses for recyclable materials, such as creating plastic two-by-fours.

“We don’t want to have to rely on the market,” Beck said.