By Renee Cordes, MaineBiz
Ecomaine, the municipally owned recycling and waste-to-energy business serving more than 70 communities, will break ground this week on a $36 million expansion in Portland.
Located across the street from the company’s current recycling operation at 64 Blueberry Road, the planned state-of-the-art facility will be built at 90 Blueberry Road on the former site of home furnishings company Sturbridge Yankee Workshop.
As part of the expansion, the 55,000-square-foot building will be renovated and outfitted with an 11,000-square-foot expansion and all-new recycling equipment from Canada, including ballistic separators and a dozen optical sorters capable of processing more than 1,000 items per minute.
The facility, expected to be completed in 2027, will process up to 25 tons per hour, an increase of more than 66% over Ecomaine’s current capacity. Routine recycling operations will continue uninterrupted at the existing facility throughout the construction period.
Ecomaine, led by CEO Kevin Roche, opened its first facility — Maine’s first single-sort recycling hub —in Portland in 2006.
Contractors
Contractors on the expansion project include Fairfield-based Sheridan Construction Corp.; Westbrook environmental consultancy St. Germain; Portland engineering firm Salas O’Brien; Scarborough-based CWS Architecture + Interior Design; and RRT Design & Construction, of Melville, N.Y.
The new facility will be equipped with machinery supplied by Machinex, a manufacturer of waste recycling and equipment based in Canada’s Québec region.
Ecomaine employs 75 people and will hold a groundbreaking ceremony this Thursday.
