Amarillo Vet Saves 312,000 Tons From Landfills

Cody Earle saw a problem nobody else wanted to tackle: massive wind turbine blades destined for landfills when their useful life ended. The Amarillo Army veteran decided to do something about it.

Since launching Destructable in 2025, Earle's company has diverted 312,000 tons of materials from landfills across more than 20 states. That includes 12,000 tons of fiberglass from turbine blades and 300,000 tons of metal, all recycled into new products instead of buried in the ground.

The growth has been stunning. What started with 10 employees just one year ago has ballooned to 120 workers tackling more than 115 completed projects. "It's kind of breakneck," Earle said, calling the expansion "a blessing for sure."

The process works like this: companies contact Destructable for a quote, the team travels to the wind farm, breaks down the turbine blades on site, and transports them to shredding facilities in Amarillo or Dexter, Iowa. There, the materials become something useful again.

The shredded fiberglass gets transformed into fiberglass rebar used in construction. Earle's sister company, Constructable, recently used the recycled fibers in a foundation pour, proving the material works in real projects. He expects the fiber rebar market to grow significantly within the next year.

Last week, Destructable acquired Wind Ecom, a seven-year wind energy decommissioning company that shares the mission of reducing renewable energy's carbon footprint. The acquisition brings additional expertise to help Destructable reach more sites and divert even more material from landfills.

The company is also expanding beyond wind turbines. Destructable plans to establish a turnkey solar panel recycling facility in Amarillo, allowing them to process panels from start to finish in house.

The Ripple Effect

Earle's commitment to helping others extends beyond environmental impact. He founded VetsGiving, an Amarillo nonprofit that feeds veterans for Thanksgiving, and Destructable has donated more than $20,000 to community outreach programs.

"There's three things you do with money: you spend it, you save it, and you give it away," Earle explained. "We have to take care of the people around us."

Every decision at Destructable centers on one question: can we achieve 100% landfill diversion? That means ensuring every piece of a decommissioned turbine finds a second life as something useful.

As renewable energy expands across America, Destructable proves the industry can walk its talk on sustainability.