Recycling Companies See Growth

As more people recycle their old TVs, refrigerators, and computers, business is booming for the companies that are keeping those products out of the landfills.

The business-focused Inc. Magazine ranked La Crosse-based Dynamic Recycling as the fastest growing business in Wisconsin and one of the top in the nation. In five years, it’s grown from one employee to fifty, with even more jobs to be filled.

President Curt Greeno says people are obviously buying more electronics than ever, “It’s never been as fast as it is right now. We’ll see the iPads, smart phones, flat screen TVs, flat screen monitors. Things are thrown away that much faster now than they ever were.”

The recyclers’ success is due in part to a 2010 law that requires Wisconsin residents and schools to recycle electronics.

According to the Department of Natural Resources, more than 100-million pounds of electronics have been recycled since then.

Frank Perrotto is the sales manager at the Elkhorn-based DP Electronic Recycling. He says people are becoming more aware that they can’t just throw away an old TV or computer in the dumpster, “We’re looking at an industry that’s going to grow not only in Wisconsin, but worldwide. You also have to remember that half the states in the United States don’t even have recycling requirements.”

And when those states do develop laws, electronic recyclers will see even more business.

Perotto says DP hopes to open another facility in Whitewater by the end of the year. Dynamic Recycling in La Crosse plans to build a second location in the southeast United States in the next six months.