In the United States (US), Brightmark LLC, a circular solutions company has announced plans to develop a 2.5 million-square-foot circularity center in Thomaston, Georgia (GA), with the capacity to repurpose over 400,000 tons of plastic per year.
Plastic pollution is a serious issue with an estimated 95 percent of all plastic products in the United States are not recycled. Instead, discarded plastic waste piles up in landfills, pollutes waterways, or is left as litter.
According to Brightmark, recent studies of recycling programs in the Southeast reveal that less than half (49 percent) of the population has access to drop-off recycling; 42 percent of communities offer curbside collection, and 10 percent of the population has no access to recycling at all.
Brightmark’s proprietary “Plastics Renewal” technology takes discarded plastic content and converts it into materials to create new circular plastic products, diverting waste otherwise bound for landfills, incinerators, and waterways.
Intend to invest US$950 million
Brightmark selected the City of Thomaston because of its desire to grow alongside a strong community partner and responsible corporate actor.
Brightmark’s dedication to economic advancement in the Peach State is highlighted by a US$950 million investment, which will bring nearly 200 advanced manufacturing jobs, improvements to regional infrastructure, and support economic growth and development in rural West Central Georgia.
Brightmark’s Plastics Renewal solution repurposes existing material on a large scale, including hard-to-recycle plastics from various sources, such as industrial sites, manufacturing facilities, and schools.
The company also works with material recovery facilities (MRF) to capture post-consumer plastic.
Brightmark then converts these plastics into materials to create new circular products that can be reused, reducing the need for new plastic.
The planned new facility will provide a unique waste management capability to the Southeast region that has not existed in the past, and it will process mixed plastic waste streams so they can be safely converted back into fully circular products.
Over the years, Brightmark has invested heavily in the talent and innovation required to build and refine a circular solution capable of tackling one of the most complex issues of our time: recycling. This investment in Georgia represents a commitment to supporting economic longevity and playing an integral role in building a sustainable future together in my home state. We’re thrilled to be able to offer a circular solution that will make a positive environmental and economic impact on a region so near and dear to my heart, said Brightmark Founder and CEO and Georgia native, Bob Powell.
Brightmark will be a community partner to Thomaston and Upson County and is prepared to support the goals of the community, its economy, and, most importantly, the health and safety of its people.
We are pleased to welcome Brightmark to the Thomaston-Upson County business community. As Thomaston approaches the 200th anniversary of our founding, we look to the future and welcome business partners like Brightmark who are focused on building upon the economic stability and urban growth this town has always been known for Thomaston Mayor John David “J.D.” Stallings said.
Zero Liquid Discharge
Brightmark is steadfast in its commitment to protecting the Thomaston and Upson County environment, particularly the water, air, and land that surrounds the site.
Extensive planning and investment will be undertaken to ensure there are strong measures to mitigate environmental risk.
Brightmark will invest over US$1 million to enable a Zero Liquid Discharge technology to ensure that all process wastewater is managed and processed on-site, thereby preventing any contact with any municipal water supply, including drinking water, groundwater, the Flint River, and other local waterways.
The company’s circularity center will be considered a synthetic minor emitter—implementing the best available technologies (BAT) to reduce emissions.
Brightmark will implement detailed procedures to ensure employee safety, including strong training on critical areas such as operating procedures, emergency response, remediation, and lifesaving protocols.
The Health and Safety team will establish a detailed Emergency Action Plan (EAP) for Thomaston that goes beyond regulatory requirements.
This is a tremendous win for Thomaston-Upson County, and we are thrilled to welcome Brightmark to our community. Creating jobs, growing our community, and building for our future is the cornerstone of economic development. This project encompasses all of those tenets. We welcome Brightmark to our community and look forward to seeing the project prosper, said Chase Fallin, Chairman of Thomaston-Upson County Industrial Development Authority.
Infrastructure investments
Brightmark intends to invest US$20 million in additive infrastructure projects according to agreements with the city and state as part of the total investment, including upgrades to utilities, roadway improvements, rail access extensions, and other necessary resources to operationalize the business, improve local infrastructure, and positively impact the community, the local economy and tax base.
I am excited to welcome Brightmark to Upson County. Bringing diverse industries to Upson has been a priority for some time and I’m proud of our efforts to bring this project home. Over the last year and a half, Brightmark has demonstrated a strong desire to become a collaborative partner and responsible steward of the local environment. I have visited their plant in Ashley, Indiana, and was impressed by what I saw. I want to thank everyone who had a hand in making this happen. This is a huge win! said Norman Allen, Chairman of the Upson County Board of Commissioners.
