http://www.bizjournals.com/pacific/news/2014/04/04/pacific-biodiesel-shuts-down-facility-at-maui.html?page=all
Apr 4, 2014, 1:02pm HST
Pacific Biodiesel shuts down facility at Maui landfill after being open
for almost 20 years
Duane Shimogawa Reporter- Pacific Business News
Pacific Biodiesel Technologies recently closed its facility at the
Central Maui Landfill after being open since 1996, its owner said Friday.
Robert King, president and founder of Pacific Biodiesel, said that the
company was notified by the Maui County Department of Environmental
Management last December that continuing the current operation would
require multiple permits and extensive upgrades to comply with new
county requirements.
“With just over two years left on our contract, we couldn’t justify the
costly site improvements that were required to meet the county’s
demands,” King said in a statement.
Pacific Biodiesel, which said the plant was the oldest of its kind in
the United States, will continue its full range of pumping and
collection services on the Valley Isle and Lanai, as well as its
collection and processing operations on Oahu and the Big Island with
distribution of its fuel still continuing.
Prior to closing, the Puunene facility was providing pre-processing of
waste oils for shipping to its state-of-the-art biodiesel refinery in
Hilo, but now that the landfill facility has closed, the cooking oil on
Maui will be transferred directly to Big Island Biodiesel. Grease trap
waste will continue to be processed on Oahu and the Big Island.
“Needless to say, it was difficult to shut down the plant after all
these years but we found ourselves with little recourse given the extent
of the requirments to continue operations,” King said. “We are committed
to our community-based model and hope to return to Maui with our
industry-leading technology in the future.”
In the meantime, Pacific Biodiesel will continue to collect Maui
County’s waste oils and grease and distribute premium distilled
biodiesel across the state.
To date, the Maui-based company has diverted more than 22 million
gallons of waste from the community’s landfill.
--
Darryl McMahon
It's your planet. If you won't look after it, who will?
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