Unused NYS Hand Sanitizer To Be Discarded In Rochester - WHAM

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Unused NYS hand sanitizer to be discarded in Rochester

by Chase Houlse

Tue, September 20, 2022 at 4:53 PMUpdated Wed, September 21, 2022 at 12:21 PMMore than 700,000 gallons of unused, expired hand sanitized produced by New York state has been sitting on an old airport runway in Oriskany, Oneida County. The sanitizer is being brought to Rochester to be discarded at Eastman Business Park (WRGB photo)Comment on this story0CommentShare storyShare

topics:

• Brett Wilkins
• EASTMAN KODAK COMPANY
• Harry Bronson
• Kodak
• Rochester
• Vicki Milne
• GENERAL SERVICES 2 LIMITED
• Antiseptics

Rochester, N.Y. — More than 700,000 gallons of unused — and unusable — 'NYS Clean' hand sanitizer will be brought to Rochester to be discarded.

The hand sanitizer was made by state prison inmates in 2020 during the early days of the coronavirus pandemic.

The state is now paying Kodak $2.32 million to bring the unused product to Rochester, where it will be distilled for use in manufacturing. The process is expected to take about 10 months.

The sanitizer has been sitting on an old airport tarmac in Oriskany, Oneida County, just outside Utica. It's expected to arrive at the Eastman Business Park this week.

"It's outrageous," said Vicki Milne of Rochester. "I think everything is going onto taxpayers right now, and that’s not right.”

Assemblyman Harry Bronson said Tuesday was the first he had heard about the issue. He said taxpayers will likely be on the hook for the cost of shipping the sanitizer and getting rid of it.

"Tax dollars are for the public good," Bronson said. "It’s not my fault that there are potholes in the streets, but I pay for them."

Brett Wilkins of Rochester said the extra hand sanitizer should have gone to places in need, like hospitals, child care centers and schools, before it expired.

"Personally, I don’t think it's fair that us who didn’t make that mistake should have to pay for something," he said.

Milne said she was left with more questions than answers.

"What are they going to do at Kodak?" she asked. "How are they going to get rid of it? Well, that’s another question. How exactly are they going to get rid of it?"

The state said Kodak will transport and recycle 168 trailer loads of materials, including hand sanitizer, tarps, shrink wrap, cardboard, plastic containers and pallets.

The distilled hand sanitizer will be used to "extract the isopropyl alcohol to produce a high-quality product suitable for reuse in manufacturing that can be employed as a substitute for new-made materials."

The state's Office of General Services released a statement that read in part:

Throughout the pandemic New York State took decisive actions to protect New Yorkers and to ensure that our state and local governments could effectively respond to the global pandemic. To respond to an emergency such as COVID-19, the state sourced and supplied more products than were needed. The NYS Clean hand sanitizer was produced and distributed at no cost to the consumer during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic in New York State when supplies of the product were limited.

The state's contract with Kodak runs through Feb. 29, 2024.

Eastman Business Park has not responded to 13WHAM's questions.

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