Pennsylvania’s Department of Environmental Protection has awarded more than $3.1 million in recycling and composting grants for 49 projects designed to bolster recycling and reduce waste in Pennsylvania.
“Recycling is a growth industry with many kinds of business opportunities, from waste management to manufacturing to inventing new technologies,” said Kathleen McGinty, EPA’s Secretary.
The awards come from both the Act 101 Recycling Development and Implementation and the Composting Infrastructure Development grant programs.
The Recycling Development and Implementation awards make up $3 million of the grant total. The money will be used by local governments to establish recycling programs, purchase supplies and materials, and support environmental education efforts.
Awarded to 45 municipalities and counties, these grants provide up to 90 percent of approved program costs in developing and implementing recycling programs, including establishing or upgrading facilities and equipment for curbside and drop-off recycling, yard waste collection, composting and recycling processing.
With the announcement of these grants, the number of Recycling Development and Implementation Grants awarded since the passage of Act 101 in 1988 climbs to 2,788 totaling more than $275.5 million.
The Act 101 grants support the infrastructure of Pennsylvania’s $23 billion recycling industry, which includes $2.9 billion in wages paid to 81,322 people employed in 3,247 recycling and reuse industries. The annual sales receipts of these establishments totaled $18.4 billion last year. The indirect benefits totaled $1.8 billion and tax receipts were estimated at $305 million annually.Latest from Recycling Today
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