San Diego recently approved an emergency contract extension with the operator of its Miramar Recycling Center to avoid a June 30 closure of the center where most recycling collected from city residents is sorted and processed. The extension keeps the center open until at least Aug. 30, while city officials continue searching for a new contractor to run the center.
Allan Co. has run the center since 2001. Its contract calls for Allan Co. to pay the city rent and a share of revenue from selling recyclables. China adopted new policies on recycled goods in response to increased U.S. tariffs. It banned the importation of 24 recyclable items, including mixed paper, newspaper, plastic and some metals. And it imposed strict contamination allowances, decreased import volumes and increased inspections of recycled items. Even before China’s policy changes, the recycling market has been volatile. More than 2,200 recycling centers have closed across California since 2012, including 112 in San Diego County.
City Councilman Scott Sherman said last month during an Environment Committee hearing that he’s concerned the city is facing a major recycling challenge. He suggested city taxpayers may have to start subsidizing the recycling markets to make the finances work. If not, he said, the city could end up stacking recycled materials somewhere with no place to send them. The problems threaten San Diego’s zero waste goals, the plan that by 2040 all trash produced in the city would be recycled. Allan Co. has been unwilling to agree to a multi-year extension of its contract with San Diego because of the new financial dynamics. The city issued a “request for proposals” from contractors last November, to have a new operator in place when Allan Co.’s contract was due to expire next month. But legal concerns about the request prompted the city to cancel it this spring and issue a revised version in April.
To read the full story, visit https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/communities/san-diego/story/2019-05-24/san-diego-approved-emergency-contract-extension-to-stave-off-closure-of-recycling-center.