Interstate Ag Plastics
P.O. Box 265 , Buttonwillow, California, United States

Interstate Ag Plastics (IAP) is a certified state and federal vendor traveling throughout California, Arizona and Nevada to collect and recycle properly-rinsed and prepped, HDPE ≤ 55 Gallon containers, from half pints to 55 gallon drums.  Our services include on site pick-up and chipping.  Since we are an ACRC contractor (Ag Container Recycling Council) our HDPE container services are free to participants meeting eligibility and container prep requirements.

Interstate Ag Plastics West (IAPW) is our affiliate company formed in 2010.  Also a state and federal vendor, IAPW travels throughout California, Arizona and Nevada to offer Mobile Unit Services for Cleaning, Reconditioning, Recycling and DOT Leak Proof Testing on Mini Bulk and IBC containers;     60, 90, 110, 220, 275 gallon totes and shuttles.

The Ag Container Recycling Council,with Interstate Ag Plastics, earns the 2011 Award for Coalition Building

The Ag Container Recycling Council (ACRC) along with their California recycling program partner, Interstate Ag Plastics (IAG) based in Buttonwillow, California won the California Product Stewardship Council’s 2011 Bow & Arrow award for Coalition Building. The ACRC is the oldest continuously running, voluntary industry-funded product stewardship program in the US.The result of their combined efforts in California yielded the recycling of 20,000,000 pounds of containers; representing an energy saving of more than 45,000 gallons of gasoline and saving 100,000 cubic yards of landfill space. These reductions create fewer potential hazards to public health and the environment.

Eligible Containers

Containers eligible for pickup and recycling in our Ag Container Recycling Council (ACRC)  partner program  must be ≤ 55 Gallon HDPE containers (half pints to 55 gallon drums) and not classified as Mini Bulk or IBC.Containers eligible for recycling and pickup in our ACRC partnership program are HDPE Containers, ≤ 55 Gallon (half pints to 55 gallon drums) that previously held products used in these markets:

• Crop Protection Chemicals – Containers that held EPA registered crop protection products labeled for agricultural uses.
• Animal Health – Containers that held large animal health products including dairy disinfectants are eligible.
• Professional Turf, Forestry, Industrial Vegetation Management, Aquatics, etc. – Containers that held EPA registered products labeled for professional turf, nursery, lawncare, forestry management, industrial vegetation management, greenhouse or aquatic uses are eligible for recycling.
• Spray adjuvants, crop oils and surfactants - Containers that previously held these products are eligible for recycling.

Not Eligible

• Consumer Home & Garden, Pest Control and Swimming Pool Maintenance – Containers that previously held products labeled for consumer use in households, lawn and garden, and swimming pools are not eligible for recycling in the ACRC partner program.
• Veterinary products

IAP Mobile Chipping & Recycling Program

This program has been named Pesticide Container Recycling Program and was started several years ago by the agricultural chemical industry to facilitate the processing of empty, rigid, HDPE, non-refillable containers.  It has since evolved into a joint program between industry and government that today consists of mobile traveling units with self-contained chippers. These chipping units are mounted on a diesel powered, flatbed truck, along with the generator necessary to power the chipper and operated by Certified Container Recyclers, such as Interstate Ag Plastics.

Container Types and Sizes
Containers that held crop protection products, ≤ 55 Gallon HDPE (high density) from half pints to 55 gallon drums, can be chipped and recycled. This includes pesticides (insecticides, herbicides, fungicides, etc.), fertilizer, plant and soil amendments, adjuvants, buffering solutions, and similar containers for Animal Health products, visit Eligible Containers.
We cannot accept for recycling motor oil containers, milk jugs, or other household products or containers that previously held veterinary products.

Preparing containers for chipping recycling

• Rinsing is the most important step to ensure that the containers are clean. They need to be triple rinsed or power rinsed, visit Rinsing Information/Videos for more information. Past experience with the program indicates power rinsing, when feasible, is the best method for cleaning containers. In any event, there cannot be any residue left either inside or outside the containers.
• Removing label booklets is the second important step. Adhesive labels do not have to be removed when cleaning containers, however, label booklets and all metal/rubber gaskets do need to be removed. If you do not have the time to remove these items when you use the chemicals, they can be removed later, or at the time the containers are chipped. However, this does slow the chipping process considerably.

Interstate Ag Plastics West

Interstate Ag Plastics West (IAPW) is an affiliate company to Interstate Ag Plastics formed in 2010.  Also a state and federal vendor, IAPW travels throughout California, Nevada and Arizona to offer Mobile Unit Services for Cleaning, Reconditioning, Recycling and DOT Leak Proof Testing on Mini Bulk and IBC containers.  With our mobile truck units and certified staff we can help keep your containers compliant and save you the traveling time and traveling costs. 

Benefits

Eliminates

• transportation costs
• heel disposal fees

Provides

• container removal
• onsite heel and rinsate management
• onsite USDOT/UN container recertification and container upgrades (includes inspection, reconditioning, or replacement of the inner plastic container and valve, as necessary

Drum Tracker Software

• Keeps you in compliance with EPA 2011 Container and Containment Rule
• Easy to access web based system

ACRC Recycled Uses

One of the objectives of the Ag Container Recycling Council is to evaluate methods of recycling pesticide container resins. Of utmost importance, is that the resin will be utilized in such a way that any residues on or in the resin will have no real or perceived adverse affect on the environment or the user.

Recycling must be carried out using acceptable processes. Both processes and uses (products) will be subject to evaluation by the ACRC Technical Committee.  Products deemed acceptable are:

• Energy recovery
• Plastic pesticide containers
• Pallets
• Construction site mats
• Commercial truck/manure spreader decker boards
• Field drain tiles
• Speed bumps
• Parking stops
• Treated Lumber Substitutes for low-exposure outdoor applications*
• Hazardous waste drums
• Scaffold nailing strips
• Commercial truck sub-floor support members