The borough continues to accept cars and trucks to be scrapped, but the private company that had hauled the smashed, junked vehicles out of town still has work to do before it resumes its operations.

“We need certain upgrades” at the 6-Mile recycling site, Will Tonsgard, owner of Tideline Construction, said last week. That includes a drain rack and an oil/water separator to ensure that all of the fluids are drained from vehicles and properly disposed.

“There are a lot of costs involved,” he said, adding that while the price for recycled copper is at an all-time high, the value of “shred metal” is low.

In addition, scrapyards “have gotten a lot more stringent” about any contamination in what they will accept, Tonsgard said. Tideline barges scrap metal from Southeast Alaska to recyclers in the Seattle-Tacoma area.

Tideline was not charging Wrangell residents to take their vehicles. The company stopped the service this summer, citing problems with owners dropping off their vehicles without draining all of the fluids — leaving the problem for the company.

Though it’s not accepting vehicles, it will take non-vehicle scrap metal “on a case-by-case basis,” Tonsgard said.

Tideline continues to run its scrap metal barge from Southeast, just not as often as it has in years past, he said. It moves junked cars and trucks out of Juneau, where the city picks up the costs.

“We’ll eventually start taking junked vehicles (in Wrangell),” he said. “It’s just going to take time.”

The company’s immediate project is to build a 60-by-80-foot shop for its construction equipment at its 6-Mile property.

While Tideline is not accepting vehicles for barging south, the borough continues to accept junked cars and trucks at the solid waste transfer station on the north end of the island for eventual disposal.

No appointment is necessary, but the owner is responsible for ensuring that the vehicle is drained of all fluids and the tires removed. The borough charges a $319.80 disposal fee per vehicle.