‘An entirely green store’

Lewis Forkner’s merchandise includes a dentist’s chair that came from Pelican Bay State Prison. The Daily Triplicate/Bryant Anderson

But that doesn’t necessarily make it worthless, as the recently opened Eco-Store proves every day.

The store, a Hambro Waste Solutions Group recycling business, pulls reusable items from the waste stream and sells them at a discounted price to the public.

“This is an entirely green store,” said Hambro WSG General Manager Wes White. “It only sells recycled items taken from the Transfer Station, this is not a drop-off point.”

From double-door refrigerators with digital readouts and water and ice dispensers  to front-end washers, many of the appliances are not only high-end, they’re still shiny.

Even the office security monitors, above, were rescued from the waste stream.The Daily Triplicate/Bryant Anderson

According to Eco-Store director Lewis Forkner, the store guarantees all  appliances for seven days, and sells washers and dryers for $50 apiece, and double-door refrigerators for $150.

“If it works for seven days it’s going to work,” Forkner said as he opened a freezer door to show a cup of frozen water. “We even froze water for a lady to show that the freezer works.”

“It’s really interesting watching people walk through,” said Forkner. “A lot of people will walk by a particular item, but then somebody who knows its value will see it, zero in, and get a heck of a deal.”

Even the store office, complete with  computers, furniture, clock and a surveillance system that monitors the warehouse, was pulled from the waste stream.

“I really appreciate the fact that Hambro WSG can recognize the value of many things that are thrown away by other people,” said Kevin Hendrick, director of the Solid Waste Management Authority. “We’re happy they are able to pull those out of the waste stream and give them a second life.”

Hendrick sees the store as a necessary step in fulfilling the original plans for the Del Norte Transfer Station.

“The cool part of this is that we designed the transfer station to be a resource recovery park,” Hendrick said. “Ultimately everybody saves money.”

The public saves money by getting goods at low prices and Hambro saves money by reducing the amount it has to haul to the landfill while making money on sales of reusable items.

Added to all those savings is the benefit to the environment — the waste stream is being reduced, which makes authority officials happy because it fulfills a state mandate.

“Every ton that’s not disposed counts toward our recycling mandate,” Hendrick said, referring to the fact that the authority is mandated by the state to reduce disposal by 50 percent.

Hambro sells its own recycled materials at the store. The Daily Triplicate/Bryant Anderson

 The store is located at 640 Elk Valley Road, across from the transfer station, and is open Tuesday through Friday, 10:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Saturdays from 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.

While it was Hambro’s idea to establish the Eco-Store at the former Del Norte Disposal headquarters, the authority “tried to set up incentives to make such a thing not only possible but profitable,” Hendrick said.

“The first and most important incentive for Hambro is that we structured it so that they can remove reusable items from the waste stream,” he continued. “Once that material is thrown away it becomes Hambro’s property.”

Hambro also sells its line of recycled materials at the store, including particle board, fertilizers and soil amendments.

Its Web site is www.ecostore.hambrowsg.com