By Steve Bradley
A fire broke out at the Green Renewable Inc., formerly Cowee, property at 28 Taylor Lane in Berlin Sunday night that brought multiple fire departments to the scene.
A gigantic pile of mulch approximately fifty feet high by 200 feet long was burning and smoldering across the face of the pile. Sitting on top of a hill, the fire resembled a volcano as ashes flowed down the sides while sparks and heavy white smoke rose into the night. Getting water to the fire was a problem but eventually lines were run from the Little Hoosic River to provide enough water pressure to deal with the situation.
Fire departments from Raymertown, Berlin, Petersburgh, Hoosick, North Hoosick, Stephentown, Eagle Mills, Salem and possibly others responded. Many were at the scene until 6 am.
Green Renewable, Inc. primarily processes wood chips into landscaping mulch and animal bedding. It also provides the firewood to Stewart’s stores and Price Chopper, as its products can be shipped more than fifty miles from the source due to a kiln-dried process that meets NYS regulations for invasive species control. Thirty to forty people are employed there.
When those employees arrived for work Monday morning, it was business as usual.