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The City of Troy was one of 16 municipalities to be selected for a grant from the Alabama Department of Environmental Management.

The Alabama Department of Environmental Management recently announced the recipients of $1.7 million in recycling grants for the 2022 fiscal year. The grants will be used by local governments to purchase equipment such as balers, compactors, recycling trailers, recycling bins and collection vehicles as well as educational and promotional items to encourage recycling and educate citizens.

The 16 recycling grants that are being provided this year bring the total amount of recycling grants provided by ADEM to more than $21 million and the number of grant recipients to 214.

These funds will not only benefit local communities but also help the state reach its solid waste reduction goal. The Alabama Legislature set a solid waste reduction goal of 25 percent, and that goal has been achieved three consecutive years.

“This program has been extremely successful over the years,” ADEM Director Lance LeFleur said. “The local communities benefit from the resources the grants provide, the state benefits from the overall reduction in wastes that must be disposed of in landfills, and the environment benefits. Every ton of materials that is recycled is one ton that won’t have to go into a landfill. That saves on landfill costs and landfill space. Plus, recycling enables reuse of these materials, which conserves resources.”

The grants will help bolster local recycling programs affected by the pandemic, further enhance thriving recycling programs, and support education and outreach activities to promote the importance of recycling throughout the respective communities.

The funds are made possible through the Solid Wastes and Recyclable Materials Management Act, which was passed by the Alabama Legislature in 2008. The legislation imposed a $1 per ton fee on all solid wastes disposed of in Alabama landfills. A portion of the proceeds generated by this fee supported the creation of the Alabama Recycling Fund, which provides the foundation for ADEM to award the recycling grants on an annual basis.