TALKE USA, Chambers County open recycling center

January 12, 2026

Chambers County Commissioner Tommy Hammond, who presides over Precinct 3 that includes Mont Belvieu, sat proudly next to TALKE USA officials, county and city officers during a ribbon cutting ceremony Monday that marked the end of over two years of planning, and nearly five months of construction for a TALKE USA plastic recycling center located on Langston Drive in Mont Belvieu. 

Chambers County contributed $1 million toward construction of the plant that incorporates mechanical recycling efforts by processing post-consumer plastic materials through a baler. Bales will be transported to a Cyclyx facility in Houston, which is currently under construction. Cyclyx is a partner of ExxonMobil in advanced recycling, which has greatly increased the variety of plastic products that can be recycled, and can turn plastics back into recycling feedstock.

“These feedstocks enable the creation of new plastics and help reduce landfill disposal,” TALKE USA CEO Richard Heath said.

Hammond has been an advocate for the project since the county’s prior recycling partner stopped its services in 2022. Since then, the county was required to transport recyclable materials more than 60 miles to an alternative facility, and drop hard-to-recycle plastics in landfills. 

The long-distance hauling required significant staff time, increased wear and tear on county vehicles and equipment, and resulted in entire loads being rejected due to contamination or changing acceptance standards, according to Hammond. 

“Plastic never goes away. It lasts forever, and it stays in landfills for hundreds of years, so it doesn’t break down and dissolve,” Hammond said. “This helps the whole cycle of life really improve the environment.”

Hammond’s face lit up when he talked about his vision of a litter-free Chambers County. 

“I’m an avid outdoorsman. I love fishing, and I’m raising my grandkids to do the same thing,” Hammond said. “This (littering) has a huge negative impact on the environment, so if we get it off of the street and recycle it, it goes back to being useful again. I don’t have to see it when I’m out on the water, or when I’m in the woods.”

Cyclx and TALKE USA officials also expect the project will contribute to a “circular economy.”  Heath explained that once wasted plastics can now be reused for production after reprocessed at Cyclyx. 

“One key element of this program is the reduction of plastic loss and becoming part of the recycling supply chain, and we’re really taking an important step towards that today,” Heath said. 

“The project helps the community divert waste from landfills and really makes a truly circular economy, one where plastics are not waste, but they have valuable resources,” Chief Impact Officer for Cyclyx Leslie Hushka said.  “This facility will not only strengthen recycling infrastructure, it will create jobs. That’s the real impact right here in Mount Belvieu and Chambers County.”

Hushka said Cyclyx technology helps re-process hard-to-recycle plastics like multi-layered films, such as chip bags, juice boxes and shower curtain liners, so they can be reused and resold within the industry.  Advanced recycling makes it easier for residents to recycle by not requiring them to sort through their trash to separate different plastics –– all they need to do is “bag it and bring it.” 

“We simplify the process so all plastic can go in one bag and come here for bailing,” Hushka said. “If it looks like plastic, place it in the bag.” 

Chambers County has also opened three Select Citizen Collection Stations Jan. 2 –– each in major cities of Chambers County: Anahuac, Winnie, and Cove. 

Mont Belvieu also invested approximately $600,000 into a recycling collection center in January 2025 for its residents, and the number of households taking advantage has steadily grown, according to Mont Belvieu Public Works Director Bill Thompson. Those materials will now be brought to the new TALKE USA facility. 

“We put our collection boxes out Jan. 2 after (residents) came back from the New Year,” City Manager Brian Winningham said. “It’s had a really positive impact here. We have a lot more communication to inform our citizens.”

The city also contributed to the TALKE USA facility by conducting drainage work, according to Thompson. 

“Our community wants it (a recycling center),” Winningham said. “We don’t give them anything for that, but it’s a grass roots level, where they want to bring this stuff to the recycle center so that they not only feel good about themselves, but also about our society.”