State to clean up largest tire pile

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources is on the road to cleaning up the state’s largest waste tire pile. The D-N-R has signed a contract with a Minnesota firm to begin removing tires from the site in Fort Dodge owned by Don Grell. Grell had originally planned to recycle the tires himself, but that fell through. DNR environmental specialist Mel Pins says the state is paying over two million dollars to clean up the pile. Pins says the D-N-R has also signed contracts to clean up smaller tire piles around the state.Pins says there are around 43 piles around Iowa, and they are getting the sites cleaned up. He says the want to have all illegal used tire piles rolled away. The goal is to clean up all the piles by June of 2002. Like the Grell pile, some of the other illegal tire piles across the state also are a result of recycling businesses that didn’t work out. Pins says they’ve worked to prevent any new build up of mega tire piles. Pins says they have stronger rules now than before to prevent more problems in the future.Pins says work will begin on the Grell tire pile May 1st, and should be completed in one year.