Batavia man's litter scoop provides solution to Gulf spill cleanup

Batavia may be far from the muck and mess left over from April's Gulf oil rig explosion and subsequent disastrous spill, but one resident's invention is being employed in the cleanup efforts.

With help from the brainchild of Chuck Firth, Gulf crews are ditching some of their typical tools and reaching for a local, feline favorite - the Durascoop kitty litter scooper.

Texas company Channel Safety Marine Supply, which specializes in supplying Gulf marine operations with safety equipment, is using the Durascoop on Alabama's tar ball-covered beaches.

"We went through the Internet and sourced them out from there," said Tom Hoerner, explaining how his company, which supplies the scoops to cleanup crews, came across Firth's invention with a Google search. "We outfit contractors doing the cleanup and have been involved since a couple of days after this all started."

CSM first contacted Firth May 13, requesting 4,000 Durascoops with one specific plea: Hurry.

Firth keeps a stock of Durascoops in Chicago and was able to get the supply to Texas within a matter of days, and they were on the damaged beaches shortly thereafter.

The purchase of the scoops, which retail for about $15, brought in $25,000 to Firth's business.

"A nice chunk of change," he said.

Firth has heard of customers using his product for other tasks, such as sifting cigarette butts out of public ashtrays, but he never expected them to be used so far out of the cat realm.

"It never occurred to me to be used to clean up tar balls," Firth said. "But the tar balls actually look like cat (droppings) in the sand."

Firth's invention spawned from a personal need. With six cats to tidy up after, Firth found typical litter scoops to be flimsy and ineffective. Unable to find a scoop to meet his needs, Firth decided to take matters into his own hands, and in 2002, the Durascoop was born.

"I knew the ideal scooper had to be out there, but there was just no such thing," he said. "At that moment, it was like a light bulb when off. I knew this was a golden opportunity."

After a year of development, the Durascoop was perfected, with its cast aluminum body to keep it from bending or flicking and its heavy-duty handle for easy gripping. The invention was picked up by PetSmart, Petco and other retailers in 2005, and was the only product of its kind when it first hit the market, Firth said.

Because of his quick retail success, he left his advertising job and decided to pursue his cat scoop business, Duranimals, full time.

The Durascoop was Firth's first invention. He has expanded his product range to include five other litter scoopers with various price points and usages. None, though, have yet had the success of the original.

Firth, who grew up in Chicago, and his wife, Joni Nelson, who grew up in Elgin, have lived in Batavia for 23 years. Along with their three children, one dog and six cats, they are proud to be helping ease the Gulf disaster.

"It's fun to know we're contributing to the cleanup process, if only in a small way," he said.