Planners Grant Conditional Tire Plant Approval
WAYNESBURG - Greene County Planning Commission granted conditional final approval Monday to plans by the RJ Lee Group to construct a tire recycling plant at Paisley Industrial Park. The company intends to build the plant on a 10-acre site in the Cumberland Township industrial park to recycle tires using its patented "Depolymerization" process.

Observer Reporter
By Bob Niedbala, Staff writer

Clarence Randall Jr. of Delta-Energy, a subsidiary of RJ Lee, said the process involves heating the shredded tires and adding a catalyst to break down the tire material into its various components.

The end products are a heating oil; carbon black, a material used to produce new tires and other rubber products; and a gas with a high heating value that can be used in the recycling process, he said.

The plant will use only shredded tire, Randall said. No whole tires will be stored on site.

Asked about plant emissions, Randall said the company currently is seeking an air permit from the state Department of Environmental Protection.

However, the emissions, he said, would primarily be a particulate matter finer than soot. A "bag house" would capture more than 99 percent of the particulate emission, Randall said.

David Crawford of RJ Lee said the plant would be classified as a "low emitter" by the federal Environmental Protection Agency. The "green" aspect of the project also has attracted the interest of the state, he said.

The company is attempting to obtain money from the state's capital budget to help develop the plant.

The plant initially will process 40 tons of tire materials a day. With most of the operations being done inside the building, noise will be minimal. The plant initially will employ 35 to 40 people.

To receive final approval, the company must receive approval of its erosion and sedimentation plan and obtain a building permit from Cumberland Township.

The commission also approved plans by Consol Energy to build a repair shop and warehouse building at its Crabapple Portal. It also approved plans by Coal Gas Recovery LP to construct a steel building to house a compressor station at a gas well off Ridge Road in Wayne Township.