Dick McCarrick
Imagine the “ideal” environmental success story. Perhaps it involves the removal of tons of solid waste from an otherwise pristine location, material that not only ruins the scenery but also dramatically affects the local ecology. Further, imagine that the removal of this waste somehow doesn’t cost the taxpayer a penny. And the waste isn’t just carted off to be buried in a landfill; it’s recycled as an important product used by millions. And while you’re at it, imagine that this product solves a major problem that affects many regions across the country, yet costs far less than current alternatives.
The preceding scenario isn’t just some environmentalist’s daydream; it’s the business plan for a small Michigan startup named GreenSand. And if they succeed, they will help restore miles of Lake Superior shoreline, while providing an economical solution to the common problem of algae stains on asphalt roofing shingles.
Mining Waste
The Great Lakes region has long been a productive area for mining various minerals and ores. For over a century, Michigan’s Keweenaw Peninsula has been the site of copper mining. This has resulted in approximately 500 million tons of tailings, fine sandlike material left over by the copper extraction process. These tailings exist in the form of large piles and dunes, drifting along waterways and shorelines. The particles still contain a certain amount of copper (approximately 0.3%), which acts as a natural algaecide. As a result, tailings have a significant impact on the local ecology, particularly at the bottom of the food chain. They also profoundly affect the use and value of the neighboring area. Unfortunately, the anticipated cost of removing such vast amounts of material has precluded cleanup of this waste.
GreenSand has devised a way to not only help remove these copper mining tailings, but also derive commercial value from this material. They are re-using the tailings as raw material for the manufacture of roofing shingles. This material, marketed under the name G-Sand, can be used as surface granules on shingles and possibly as filler material.
Source: Environmental Leader
By Dick McCarrick