Momentum of Western New York is launching a $3.3 million material recovery and recycling facility on Industrial Park Road in Bath that will bring a dozen new jobs, paying close to $60,000, to the area. Momentum will specialize in windmill blade recycling, and the new company is exploring the recycling of additional renewable energy materials such as solar panels and lithium-ion batteries. Momentum is taking over the windmill recycling operation of T&R Environmental, a sister company based on state Route 415 in Bath.
Owner Brian Polmanteer said Momentum’s recycling operation will make the industry more environmentally sustainable and help reduce space shortages in landfills — a growing concern regionally and across the country. “Even here in Steuben County we’re going to hit a cap very quickly,” said Polmanteer, a Bath native. “We routinely receive phone calls from other states and local manufacturers that they have zero landfill. We could see a serious need for recycling (and) waste minimization.”
Momentum is working with the state Department of Environmental Conservation on obtaining a Part 360 permit that governs solid waste management. Permitted waste streams will include non-hazardous liquids, sludges, soils and solids, as well as non-hazardous absorbents. The facility will not be permitted to accept hazardous wastes.