Very nice recycling story for a waste product we have lots of.
Recycling mine tailings into 'green' tiles
Grass Valley firm looks for investors
By Clint Swett - Bee Staff Writer
Published 12:00 am PDT Sunday, June 3, 2007
Investors and big business have put their money behind green energy, green autos and green lighting, but they aren't biting yet on "green" tile.
That's the product a company in this well-forested mountain township is pitching -- what it described as a high-quality product manufactured from waste materials that come out of mines, gravel quarries, coal-fired power plants, and even leftovers from cat litter production.
Ceramics engineer Carl Frahme and others at Golden Bear Ceramics hope to tap into the building industry's demand for products made out of recycled materials and consumers' desire to purchase environmentally friendly products.
Housed in a business park in this Nevada County community, Golden Bear promises tile equal to any in the $3.7 billion U.S. tile market but with the added benefit of being made from 100 percent recycled material.
As the Golden Bear engineers refine the process, they hope to leverage the label of green technology to attract investors interested in funding its proposed $35 million tile production facility.
