Industrial Solutions
A Conversation with Keegan Gardner
Q1. How do you explain your job to someone who’s never thought about grease traps? Keegan: I usually start by saying I work in waste management, and sometimes people joke that means I’m in the mob.
Third, we like to be as helpful as possible to our customer, taking note of their needs. To do that, we work in the dead of night, early mornings, or weekends. However, we can best service our local businesses so they can operate smoothly.
What I really do is keep two groups of people happy at the same time:
Our customers: Restaurants, hotels, universities, car washes. The folks who need everything to drain, not smell, and pass inspection.
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▪ Our cities. The local governments and other agencies trying to keep fats, oils, and grease out of the sewer so pipes, lift stations, and treatment plants can actually do their job. Day to day, that means scheduling and doing grease, sand, and lint trap service, managing a fleet of vacuum trucks, and working with our processing partners so the waste is handled in a way that’s safe and compliant. Q2. What makes EarthTek’s approach to grease trap servicing different? Keegan: A lot of operators see grease trap service as a checkbox. Our view is it’s closer to infrastructure. First, we focus on doing a complete pump-out, not just skimming the top of the trap. That helps prevent the “surprise overflow” that happens when sludge builds up at the bottom. Second, we pair trap service with preventative hydrojetting where it makes sense. High-pressure jetting is used to keep lines open and give our customers more breathing room before service. Not something need daily.
Q3. Where does all that grease and used cooking oil actually go? Image: AT&T Stadium, a staple in Arlington, the city where EarthTek is headquartered.
Keegan: Well… it doesn’t just vanish.
We typically haul liquid waste to a dedicated processing facility, like LiquiTek, or another approved facility, where wastewater is dewatered and the fats, oils, and grease are separated out. From there, it ends up in gravity boxes or other equipment, and the cleaner water goes back into the sewer system under permit. Yellow grease, often called used cooking oil, which is leftover from the fryers at restaurants, can be routed into biofuel supply chains or other recycling pathways, depending on regulations. Otherwise, we’ll work with the city to ensure it’s properly disposed at regulated landfills if that’s the only compliant option. And that’s the type of hauler we are and like to continue to evolve into: one that can best process your “waste.”
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