One way to keep material out of landfills and establish a robust recycling sector is to increase demand for those materials in the secondary market. Litco International, for instance, has been doing just that for decades. North America's leading presswood pallet manufacturer is a significant wood recycler, having consumed 22 million pounds of scrapped presswood pallets last year that might otherwise have ended up in landfills. Litco converted 11,000 tons of scrapped presswood pallets into 600,000 new pallets. (Full disclosure, the story I am linking to is posted at one of my other websites.)
Litco International also produces other molded wood products such as core plugs, separator boards and other items for blocking and bracing.
In addition to consuming waste wood in its production process, Litco also contributes to reuse and recycling in a number of ways:- Picking up and sorting good condition used presswood pallets for resale and reuse.
- Picking up of broken presswood pallets for recycling.
- Litco offers clean wood fiber generated from broken presswood pallets that can be utilized for new products, absorbents, animal bedding, composting, boiler fuel and other applications.
As my journey as the new recycling guide at About.com continues to unfold, I'm excited by the new opportunities I am hearing about with respect to the reuse and upcycling of materials into valuable new products, creating a demand for material previously destined for landfills.
In our challenge to divert from the landfill, there are "tons" of stories waiting to be told. If I haven't reported on your company's breakthrough yet, why not post me a note?
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