A new Peoria recycling company is expecting continued growth as more people dispose of old electronics. The Finland-based Kuusakoski Recycling Center opened its facility five months ago. It specializes in harvesting cathode ray tubes from electronic waste like old computer monitors and televisions.
The CRT glass is crushed at the facility. It’s then sent to Peoria Disposal Company for treatment, so that it’s no longer toxic. The glass is then used as an alternate daily cover at the Indian Creek Landfill in Tazewell County instead of soil.
Anssi Takala is the Vice President of Sales for Kuusakoski . He says the landfill has the ability to use the glass material for up to 40 years.
“They (PDC) need a lot of material. We can’t provide all that they use right now, not even if our volumes grow to our maximum capacity. They (PDC) are still going out and digging out primary soil to cover the landfill, so that’s actually creating CO2 emissions and so forth so this is a beneficial way to use the glass,” says Takala.
Kuusakoski in Peoria has processed several million pounds of CRT glass from recycling companies around the U.S. since it opened in October. It has 20 employees so far and plans to add another ten in the next couple of weeks. The company will begin allowing individuals to bring electronic waste to the facility, free of charge in May.