Skagway committee explores sending #2/#5 plastic bales to Haines for conversion into lumber and pavers

The Solid Waste Advisory Committee reviewed a proposal from Haines Friends of Recycling and Alaska Plastics Recovery (APR) to upcycle local #2 and #5 plastics into building products such as 'Grizzlywood' lumber and number‑1/glass pavers. Committee members discussed technical, safety and logistical requirements and agreed to gather more information and consider a small pilot this summer.

Committee members read emailed notes from Keith Saunders of Haines Friends of Recycling summarizing APR’s work. According to those notes, APR ran a mobile unit that processed community plastics into lumber. Committee members relayed APR’s reported capacity and experience — for example, a reported output on one run of about 30 boards in three to four hours per two production cycles during an 8‑hour shift — and an example that Pat Simpson processed roughly 3,500 pounds of #2 and #5 plastics in less than a month during a recent season.

Members raised health and safety concerns about melting and extruding plastic — specifically off‑gassing during processing — and asked staff to confirm appropriate controls such as ventilation and respirator use. Equipment cost, power requirements and capital needs were discussed; the committee heard that some equipment vendors make smaller, refurbished units while industrial systems are substantially more expensive and that some machines require three‑phase power. Committee members also noted that planned grant funding for APR’s longer‑term facility expansion had been paused, meaning any regional partnership would need to account for uncertain grant support.

Logistics and storage questions featured prominently: the group confirmed Skagway already has a plastic baler at the transfer facility and discussed bale sizing and weights (committee members estimated a plastic bale might be roughly 3x3x3 feet but agreed to weigh the first bale produced this season to provide exact figures). Members recommended initial steps: coordinate with Public Works to pilot bailing #2 and #5 plastics this summer, document bale size/weight, confirm storage standards (palletized off the ground or wrapped), and ask APR whether they can accept palletized bales and whether samples (a piece of lumber and a paver) could be sent to Skagway for inspection.

Committee members also discussed potential partnerships with cruise operators as a source of relatively clean plastic bales and agreed the likely first step is a small pilot to measure how much material Skagway can produce and the cost of transport.