COMPANY PROVES IT PAYS TO RECYCLE.Byline: Krystn Shrieve n. 1. A sheriff. v. t. 1. To shrive; to question. Staff Writer CAMARILLO Camarillo (kă'mərē`yō), city (1990 pop. 52,303), Ventura co., S Calif.; inc. 1964. It is the center of a fertile farm area where citrus fruits and flowers are grown. - Recycling recycling, the process of recovering and reusing waste products—from household use, manufacturing, agriculture, and business—and thereby reducing their burden on the environment. efforts have paid off for one Camarillo business, which, after years of recycling silicon for the computer industry, recently received money from the state to expand its programs. Silicon Recycling Services collects silicon waste from the computer industry and sorts, cleans and processes it so it can be used in the making of solar panels. The company recently received a $1.6 million loan from the California California (kăl'ĭfôr`nyə), most populous state in the United States, located in the Far West; bordered by Oregon (N), Nevada and, across the Colorado River, Arizona (E), Mexico (S), and the Pacific Ocean (W). Integrated Waste Management Board to help it bring 28 new jobs to the area and nearly triple the amount of material it recycles from 600 tons per year to 1,500 tons annually. ``Recycling the silicon is much cheaper than buying it new,'' said company President Rob Bushman, who explained that when he first opened the business there was a shortage of silicon. ``It can't be used for the same applications when it's recycled, but it's still cheaper than buying it new even for those secondary applications.'' Bushman estimates that in the past 20 years he's diverted di·vert v. di·vert·ed, di·vert·ing, di·verts v.tr. 1. To turn aside from a course or direction: Traffic was diverted around the scene of the accident. 2. hundreds of thousands of tons of waste from the landfill. His passion to recycle re·cy·cle tr.v. re·cy·cled, re·cy·cling, re·cy·cles 1. To put or pass through a cycle again, as for further treatment. 2. To start a different cycle in. 3. a. began while he was working in his father's scrap metal business. In the early 1990s, he started a recycling consultant service and helped companies such as Sanyo, Fisher, 3M and Siemens Solar cut back on waste. ``Some of my business customers asked me if I could do anything with contaminated contaminated, v 1. made radioactive by the addition of small quantities of radioactive material. 2. made contaminated by adding infective or radiographic materials. 3. an infective surface or object. silicon and quartz quartz, one of the commonest of all rock-forming minerals and one of the most important constituents of the earth's crust. Chemically, it is silicon dioxide, SiO2. that they were throwing away and I started experimenting at my recycling center,'' Bushman said. ``I developed a process to turn what was formerly waste into an item needed by the solar industry.'' Silicon Recycling Services, which opened in 1996, receives silicon in the form of silver rocks with white quartz attached to it. The company mechanically removes the bulk of the quartz by chipping away at it. Then the silicon is sent through a blasting process to remove further traces of the quartz. The money from the state - which must be paid back at 5.3 percent interest over 15 years - will be used to purchase an etching etching, the art of engraving with acid on metal; also the print taken from the metal plate so engraved. In hard-ground etching the plate, usually of copper or zinc, is given a thin coating or ground of acid-resistant resin. system, which basically gives the silicon an acid bath to further clean it from surface impurities. Bushman hopes to have the new etching system up and running by the end of September. Bushman, an Oak Park resident, said his recycling efforts have spilled over into his home life as he recycles paper, glass, plastic and aluminum cans. ``When I grew up, throwing stuff away was the norm,'' Bushman said. ``Hopefully now recycling will become the norm. We're running out of landfill space so recycling is important. It's good for the environment and if we continue to recycle we'll have a lot more natural resources left over in the long run.'' Silicon Recycling Services is located at 322 N. Aviador St. in Camarillo. Call (805) 388-8683. CAPTION(S): 3 photos Photo: (1 -- 3) From top right, three of the stages employed by Silicon Recycling Services. |
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