SOUTH PEKIN -- The recycling industry may be suffering from a downturn, but Peoria Disposal Company is making a big investment in green technology.
PDC unveiled a new $3.5 million expansion of its South Pekin processing plant on Thursday.
“The recycling industry is at a critical point in its history and the value of recycling material is at a historic low. This new sort system produces a purer recycled commodity and it does it four times as fast as the old equipment. Adding value to our end product is one way to reinvigorate recycling,” said PDC Vice President Matt Coulter in a prepared statement.
The new recycling system can process 12 tons of materials per hour, with the capacity to process up to 18 tons an hour. It can also easily separate metal from other materials.
More than 8,000 square feet of space was added onto the South Pekin plant to make way for the new recycling machine. The expansion also creates five new jobs.
Drops in the prices paid for recycled materials and spikes in processing costs have taken a heavy blow on the industry's bottom line as of late.
Coulter said he believes the recycling industry will survive the downturn.