The Rush Township supervisors voted to sell a tub grinder that was going to be used at an organic recycling facility.

In 2023, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection awarded the township a $350,000 Recycling Program Development and Implementation Grant, earmarked for developing and implementing recycling programs.

Approximately $265,000 of it was for the tub grinder, which Chairman George Gerhard said cost about $624,000.

The grinder would have been used for large branches, stumps and heavy timber.

“Are you guys out of your minds?” former supervisor Shawn Gilbert asked after the board voted to advertise the grinder for sale.

Gilbert said that the township would be on the hook for the DEP grant since it would not be completing the organic recycling project.

Land for the facility at 54 Progress Ave. had been under development but had been put on hold.

The former board of supervisors had been hoping to obtain additional funding through DEP for the project.

Another grant, however, wouldn’t be available until at least 2027, engineer Bill McMullen said.

Gerhard has expressed his concerns about the price of the organic recycling project at previous meetings.

He said that $43,375 had been spent on interest for the grinder over the past two years.

Gerhard previously noted that the township must refinance the bank loan in July if another DEP grant isn’t received.