Dirt Hugger Deal Adds Storage Employees, Eliminates Methane
Chief Organics Officer Tyler Miller, 42, shows off the shredding stage at Dirt Hugger on Wednesday, March 31. The company just leased four more acres for storage of compost and topsoil. The company is making some 55,000 tons of product annually and could almost double that output if demanded. “You could put a whole automobile in that shredder,” Miller joked.
By Tom Peterson
Dirt Hugger recently signed a deal with the Port of Klickitat to lease four additional acres at their composting facility in Dallesport.
And they’re not gassing us.
The first load of topsoil was brought in on the added four acres at Dirt Hugger this morning, March 31.
Quite the opposite.
They are actually keeping 55,000 tons of annual green waste from being dumped at local landfills. If not diverted, that much tonnage could produce massive amounts of methane, a significant contributor to greenhouse gasses. Methane is 25 times more potent than carbon dioxide, according to the EPA. In other words, that is the equivalent of eliminating 2,544 passenger vehicles or conserving $1.5 million gallons of gasoline.
Why they need the space.
That brings Dirt Hugger’s total footprint to some 17 acres and what Chief Organics Officer Tyler Miller called full build-out. “This will be it physically,” he said on Wednesday, March 31.
The additional four acres will be used for storing topsoil and compost. The business makes compost year-round, stockpiling for major retail sales that begin in the spring.
Grown Up.
At 17 acres, the facility is twice its original size when they started at 111 E. Rockland Road six years ago.
More Employees
The expanded site has called for the addition of several employees. Dirtrhugger has grown from 13 employees in 2019 to 25 today, with aims to add at least two more in the weeks to come. This is providing support to local families and helps boost the local economy through sales of services and goods. The company is currently looking for a loader operator and truck driver, with wages at $17- $22 an hour. Miller said they had good luck finding and retaining employees because the idea of recycling typically fits with the values of applicants.
Back in August 2019 - From left, Tyler Miller, Andrew Voodre, Justin Smith, and Joe Voodre wrangle some pipe that will allow for drainage from an expanded composting pad at Dirt Hugger.
