Latest news with #MitchHecht
Yahoo
19-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Community reels after $300 million project is unexpectedly pulled: 'I am personally devastated'
Governmental shake-ups have forced plans for a Pennsylvania recycling plan to be scrapped, Waste Dive reported. International Recycling Group announced it will no longer build a planned $300 million plastic and battery recycling plant in Erie. The company had previously been chosen for a $182 million loan from the Department of Energy, but under changes made by the Trump administration, that loan's status is now uncertain. Waste Dive reports that IRG is one of many companies to pull back on projects because of uncertain funding. In the wake of laws such as the Inflation Reduction Act, the DOE significantly increased its funding for green projects, including recycling plants. But upon taking office, Trump signaled his desire to end many rebates, credits, and funding for eco-friendly projects. IRG also cited other political factors, such as global tariffs, "resulting in expectations of substantially higher project development costs than anticipated." The Erie Times-News reports that the plant was expected to convert 160,000 tons of plastic each year into roughly 100,000 tons of recycled material. It was also supposed to create 300 jobs. CEO and founder of IRG Mitch Hecht said in a statement, according to Waste Dive: "I am personally devastated after 18 years of working to bring this vision to a reality that we have failed to overcome these challenges." Even before its cancellation, the plant had been in the middle of some controversy. The Sierra Club opposed the plant's construction, saying "plastics recycling does not exist in any meaningful form," and that it promoted the use of fossil fuels. Plastic is one of the planet's biggest pollutants, so finding ways to turn it into reusable, recyclable material could be beneficial. Studies have shown that only 9% or so of plastic is properly recycled. Instead, much of it ends up in our landfills and oceans. There are an estimated 170 trillion pieces of plastic in the ocean, and more than 48 million tons in landfills. Should plastic grocery bags be banned nationwide? Absolutely No way Let each state decide I'm not sure Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. Not surprisingly, the effects of this pollution can be devastating. Research estimates that whales ingest up to 10 million pieces of microplastic each day, and plastic trash is carrying coastal species to new, unfamiliar parts of the ocean. Using less plastic in our everyday lives can help cut down on waste and pollution. As mentioned, funding for many rebates and credits within the IRA may be on the chopping block, although congressional approval would be required to do so. By acting quickly, individuals can still take advantage of many of those benefits to save significant money on various eco-friendly upgrades, such as purchasing an electric vehicle, installing solar panels, and buying a heat pump. Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
Yahoo
05-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Timeline of IRG's plans for $300M Erie facility, how close did it get to happening?
It was supposed to be one of the world's largest recycling facilities right here in Erie but now it's still an empty lot. Friday we went back to the beginning to try to find out just how close IRG's project was to becoming a reality before the company's abrupt exit. After going through many documents it seems there are still many unanswered questions from IRG. International Recycling Group is no longer bringing a plastics recycling plant to the region. IRG cancels plans for $300 million Erie recycling facility This announcement coming Thursday afternoon with IRG citing a pause on federal funds and uncertainty surrounding tariffs. This project has now been in the works for over five years. According to a recycling publication Plastics Recycling Update, IRG announced that the $100 million plant was coming here in 2020 and scheduled to start up in 2022. A year and a half later, the project increased its price by $50 million. At that time founder and chairman Mitch Hecht said that if they could close on financing by the end of 2021, the company could break ground during the first quarter of 2022 with commissioning expected in mid-2023. 'It's a loss for the community' ERCGP CEO speaks on canceled Erie recycling facility plans By this time, IRG had a mix of funds from key contributors Erie Insurance and the Plastek Group who are now both very disappointed with the current situation. Matthew Cummings from Erie Insurance said they've always recognized that their investing carried an inherently high level of risk, but it was also an investment in a promising local economic development. In March of 2022 when they were supposed to break ground, the cost went up yet again to $185 million. That's also when they closed on this East Lake Road property. Among other investments, IRG received a $300,000 loan from the Erie County Redevelopment Authority, a $5 million RACP grant, $182 million from a federal EPA loan and a $509,000 rail freight assistance program grant. The last we heard from IRG was in July of last year when the updated plan was to break ground in early 2025. This brings us to Thursday when IRG canceled their now $300 million project. 'I never saw one stitch of paperwork from that company and I mean that did give me a lot of pause,' said Brenton Davis, Erie County executive. 'You can't count on things until they actually happen. We've been sold a lot of false promises we can't dwell on that.' What we still don't know is what the company plans to do with the property or the money received by investors. Erie middle schoolers pitch their projects for Project Ice House We reached out to the company's spokesperson and they referred us to Thursday's statement. We'll keep trying. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
