California’s Department of Conservation has awarded $500,000 in grants targeted toward increasing container recycling to various organizations.
In all, 17 projects received grants, with 13 of the projects funding the placement of new receptacles for used aluminum, glass and plastic containers. Four projects will fund promotional campaigns using Department of Conservation outreach materials featuring the tag line “Recycle. It’s Good for the Bottle. It’s Good for the Can.”
More than 16 billion containers are sold in California each year that are covered by the state’s California Refund Value (CRV system), with about 10 billion of those having been recycled each of the past two years. That leaves six billion bottles and cans – worth about $160 million in CRV– that end up in the trash instead of the recycling bin, according to state estimates.
“In talking with Californians, we’ve learned that they’ll recycle more if it’s convenient to do so,” says Darryl Young, director of the Department of Conservation. “That’s why we award grants to increase the number of recycling bins you’ll find at parks, fairgrounds, sporting venues and other local public attractions. Something else we’ve learned is that people need to be reminded about recycling, so grants that help spread the recycling message are very important as well.”
The largest grant, valued at $69,000, went to Sugar Bowl Ski Resort in Norden to purchase equipment, bins and recycling signage and to transport materials to a recycling facility. The smallest grant, of $1,900, went to the 10th District Agricultural Association in Yreka to purchase recycling bins and establish a water bottle recycling program at the Siskiyou County Golden Fair.
The department’s recycling grants are paid for with unclaimed refunds of CRV containers. In addition to the two grants mentioned above, the Department of Conservation also awarded the following grants:
· 22nd District Agricultural Association, Del Mar: $23,000 to purchase recycling containers for the Del Mar fairgrounds, with the goal of increasing recycling five to 20 percent.
· Associated Students Inc. Recycling Center at CSU-Long Beach: $12,500 for the promotion of and education about CRV recycling via radio advertisements, print advertisements and community outreach.
· City of Antioch: $12,000 to implement a recycling program at the Lone Tree Golf Course in Antioch.
· City of La Mirada: $10,000 to provide sets of receptacles for trash and CRV cans and bottles at bus stops, parks and facilities within La Mirada, plus local media advertising.
· City of Ojai: $14,000 to purchase CRV collection containers for nine Ojai Unified School District sites.
· City of San Bernardino: $15,000 to increase recycling at an under-served public facility, implement a program to collect CRV containers at this facility and redeem them at certified recycling centers.
· El Dorado Irrigation District: $19,000 to purchase and set up recycling containers at trailheads, campgrounds and boat ramps at Sly Park, Silver Lake, Sandy Cove, Oyster Creek and Forebay Lake in El Dorado County.
· Keep California Beautiful: $56,000 to implement a middle-school recycling program in the San Diego Unified School District, in San Bernardino County and elsewhere.
· KJ Services Environmental Consulting, Whittier: $54,000 to adapt DOC print, video and radio spots into Chinese as part of a multi-city educational outreach to areas with large populations of Chinese-speaking residents.
· Regional Waste Management Authority (JPA), Marysville: $16,500 to promote CRV beverage container recycling through local curbside programs and recycling centers in Marysville, with an emphasis on the local Indo-American and Hispanic communities, using DOC outreach campaign materials.
· Sonoma County Junior College District, Santa Rosa: $57,000 to purchase and install CRV recycling bins and signage at three district campuses.
· UC Berkeley Campus Recycling and Refuse Services: $41,000 to purchase and install 50 multi-material recycling containers for the UC Berkeley campus to augment existing containers.
· United Indian Health Services, Arcata: $28,500 to set up recycling programs in United Indian Health Services in Humboldt and Del Norte counties. Purchase bins, storage containers and collection cart.
· UC Davis R4 Recycling Program: $62,500 to purchase a new recycling collection vehicle to keep up with increased recycling at the UC Davis campus.
· West Contra Costa Integrated Waste Management Authority, San Pablo: $8,500 to promote business office and public spaces recycling collection in the waste management authority’s collection area. Production and distribution of brochures and flyers to office personnel, and purchase of newspaper and theater ads using the DOC campaign materials.
Get curated news on YOUR industry.
Enter your email to receive our newsletters.
Latest from Recycling Today
- Port of LA reports hectic June
- Trade issues have nonferrous scrap heading into US
- Recycle BC portrays its end markets
- MP Materials to collaborate with Apple on rare earth elements recycling
- ABTC awarded $1M by DOE for Argonne Laboratory partnership
- Ocean Conservancy report claims most states lagging in plastic pollution efforts
- LRS diverts 330,000 tons of recyclable material in 2024
- FlexCAR project takes modular approach to automotive design