LAHARPE — Junk is good, Ray Maloney declared.
The owner of Ray’s Metal Depot explained how one man’s trash can be another man’s treasure, all the while benefiting the environment.
Maloney hosted a group of about 30 local Girl Scout Brownies from Iola and Moran Tuesday afternoon.
There, he gave the youngsters — all in the second or third grade — a tour of his salvage lot on the north edge of LaHarpe, detailing how scrap metal is prepared for recycling, so it can be reused.
The girls were predictably enthralled with the various metal piles and rows of old vehicles. They were just as enamored with small pieces of metal scattered about, carefully picking at the small scraps, much to the chagrin of the troop leaders.
Maloney also showed the aluminum recycling process, including how some aluminum goes into a blast furnace to be melted into large blocks, while other pieces are compressed into giant bales.
The visit was capped with the youngsters handing over more than 130 pounds of aluminum cans, netting the troop $52. The proceeds will be used to fund future field trips or other activities.
The cans were collected as part of a recycling merit badge.
The visit was an enjoyable one for Maloney and his crew, he said.
“They asked some great questions,” he said.
The Scouts also gathered upon one of Maloney’s large scales. All 30 Brownies, plus their troop leaders weighed a combined 2,640 pounds. If they were aluminum cans, their value would have been about $1,056, Maloney said. If they were a car, their value would have been $274.40.
The visit also coincided with another recycling drive the Girl Scouts are hosting April 21 at Wesley United Methodist Church.
They will gather at Wesley’s parking lot from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. to collect household paper, plastic and aluminum products.
Brownie Troops 70108 and 70323 participated in Tuesday’s field trip.
