‘YOUR TRASH IS OUR FUEL’: REG Newton employees lead Earth Day-inspired cleanup at city parks

Kelly Cooper, of Newton, was one step away from falling into a shallow creek and landing face first in mud, but the maintenance clerk at Renewable Energy Group (REG) was determined to remove what looked like a plastic tarp that had somehow ended up in the outskirts of Agnes Patterson Memorial Park.

Co-workers Emma Patterson and Sara Penning watched as Cooper slowly tugged at the material, which had been buried beneath broken tree branches and layers of thick mud. When Cooper had enough, Penning stepped in to carry on the task. Another co-worker, Stephanie Gannaway, joined in, too.

Several minutes had passed but the team finally removed and identified the material: an elastic frame of a trampoline. Patterson rolled the material into a ball, tossed it into a plastic bag and made the long trek back to the soccer field parking lot to dump it into the back of truck already brimming with trash.

Joel Mills, environmental health and safety coordinator at REG Newton, was not surprised by his co-workers’ dedication to their company’s Earth Day-inspired cleanup of city parks.

“We work hard and we play hard,” Mills said with a laugh.

By the time REG workers on Wednesday morning were halfway through their cleanup of Agnes Patterson, their truck bed was already filled with a dozen bags of trash, buckets, rusted metal, an old tube TV, a bike tire and a bumper, among other things. The only other stop they made that morning was Thirty Acre Park.

REG Newton creates a clean, biodiesel fuel product by essentially “recycling” commercial-scale and industrial-scale wastes, fats, oils and grease. Much of the fuel is sold to commercial trucking, but some can be used by off-road vehicles. Mills suggested REG staff is translating what they do into a volunteer opportunity.

“Essentially, your trash is our fuel,” Mills said. “So out here at the Newton city parks today we wanted to make sure we were picking up after other people’s unfortunate mishaps. From old tires to some trampoline parts to an old TV, we’re not even into three hours worth of our day and we already a truck bed full.

“As stewards of Newton, Iowa we want to make sure we’re doing our part not only on the job but off the job as well.”

The group would turn its attention to Woodland Park and Maytag Park as the day rolled on. Kyle Vriezelaar, lead operator at REG Newton, knows Agnes Patterson fairly well, having visited the park with his daughter. When the group split up to cover more ground, he knew exactly where to go: the nearby playground.

“REG loves to do this. We’re called ‘Renewable Energy Group’ for a reason. We like to especially stay involved with the community and try to make a cleaner environment,” Vriezelaar said, acknowledging an environmental cleanup day “definitely makes sense” for REG. “I’m sure all of us don’t mind doing this!”

Contact Christopher Braunschweig at 641-792-3121 ext. 6560 or cbraunschweig@newtondailynews.com