Gov. Beshear and Energy and Environment Cabinet Secretary Rebecca Goodman Announce Over $450,000 for Rubber Mulch Projects

FRANKFORT, Ky. (May 27, 2022) – Gov. Beshear and Energy and Environment Cabinet Secretary Rebecca Goodman today announced that $452,500 in grant funding has been awarded for benches, picnic tables, walkways and poured-in-place playground surfacing projects that utilize recycled waste tires. 

The grants are from the Waste Tire Trust Fund, established by the 1998 Kentucky General Assembly to receive a $2 fee from each retail sale of a new tire in the state. The fund helps manage the approximately 5 million scrap tires generated in Kentucky each year and promotes the development of markets for recycled tire products.

“These projects are a great way to recycle used tires, which helps the environment and provides better recreation facilities for those communities, Gov. Beshear said. “Getting outdoors, especially as we look to socialize during the summer months, promotes a safer, healthy lifestyle.”

Secretary Goodman applauded all those that applied for the funding. “The cabinet is very pleased to make this funding available,” she said. “Everyone benefits when these projects are done.”

Recipients, along with grant amounts, are as follows:

Applicant	Project Location	Grant Amount
Adair	Adair County Fiscal Court, Jim Blair Recreation Center – Poured in Place Playground	$  65,300
Boyle	City of Perryville, Downtown Perryville Waterfront – Park Benches and Picnic Tables	$    8,000
Breathitt	Breathitt County Board of Education, Breathitt County Elementary – Poured-In-Place Playground	$  65,200
Bullitt	City of Hillview, Kendyl and Friends Playground, Arc of Greater Louisville Campus – Poured-In-Place Playground	$  70,000
Butler	City of Morgantown, Charles Black City Park & Morgantown River Park – Park Benches and Picnic Tables	$  10,000
Estill	Estill County Board of Education, Estill County Schools – Park Benches and Picnic Tables	$  12,000
Kenton	City of Edgewood, Presidents Park – Poured-In-Place Playground	$  69,000
McCracken	City of Paducah (Parks & Recreation Department), Langstaff Park – Poured-In-Place Playground	$  22,000
Ohio	Ohio County Fiscal Court, Ohio County Park – Poured-In-Place Playground	$  16,000
Oldham	City of LaGrange, Wilborn Park – Poured-In-Place Playground	$  14,000
Perry	Perry County Fiscal Court, Eagles Landing Campground and Viper Community Park – Park Benches and Picnic Tables	$  14,000
Robertson	Robertson County Board of Education, Robertson County School – Park Benches and Picnic Tables	$  11,000
Todd	City of Elkton, Elkton-Todd County Park – Poured-In-Place Surfacing in Multiple Playground Areas	$  23,000
Trimble	Trimble County Fiscal Court, Trimble County Park – Poured-In-Place Playground	$  53,000
TOTAL		$452,500

For questions or additional information, please contact Lisa Evans at lisa.evans@ky.gov

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$4.7 Million Awarded in State Recycling, Composting and Household Hazardous Waste Grants

FRANKFORT, Ky. (May 16, 2022) – Governor Andy Beshear and Energy and Environment Cabinet Secretary Rebecca Goodman today announced nearly $4.7 million in grants to Kentucky municipalities, fiscal courts and universities for 71 projects to expand recycling, reduce the amount of solid waste going into landfills, and improve the environmental management of household hazardous waste.

“I am pleased that so many municipalities are stepping up to reuse and recycle to reduce the amount of solid waste piling up in our landfills,” Gov. Beshear said. “This promotes a healthy Kentucky and shows care for the environment and for each other.”

This program awards three types of grants:

• The recycling grant provides funds for counties to purchase recycling equipment with the goal of promoting sustainable regional recycling infrastructure in Kentucky.
• The composting grant funds the purchase of equipment to improve composting and promote creative solutions for managing food waste, lawn waste and other organic material. 
• The household hazardous waste grant provides funds for counties to conduct annual drop-off events for their citizens to dispose of household chemicals, old electronics and other potentially hazardous wastes.

There were 30 recycling grants worth $2.77 million, 30 household hazardous waste grants worth $715,874 and 11 composting grants worth $1.21 million. These grants require a 25 percent local match in the form of cash or “in kind” labor, educational activities or advertising to promote the program from those receiving the awards. A complete list of grant recipients can be viewed here.

Secretary Goodman said some of these projects raise awareness about the importance of recycling home electronic equipment, which can contain metals such as mercury, which would be harmful to human health if put into landfills. “We all need to consider the life cycle of products and how we carefully dispose of them,” Sec. Goodman said.

Funding for the grants comes from the Kentucky Pride Fund, which is generated by a $1.75 fee for each ton of municipal solid waste disposed of in Kentucky landfills.

In order to apply for the next round of recycling, composting and household hazardous waste grants, applications should be postmarked or hand-delivered to Division of Waste Management, Recycling and Local Assistance Branch, or emailed to williamt.collins@ky.gov by 4 p.m. on Friday, April 3, 2023.  The original application and any supporting documentation must be submitted in order for an application to be complete. Application materials and more information about the division’s recycling effort can be found here.

Keep up with Gov. Beshear and the administration’s advances in economic development and infrastructure improvements at governor.ky.gov, and on the Governor’s official social media accounts Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

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State Division of Waste Management Announces Over $3.3 Million in Waste Grants

Recycling, household hazardous waste programs funded

The Energy and Environment Cabinet’s Division of Waste Management today announced 46 recycling and 25 household hazardous waste (HHW) grants of more than $3.3 million. The grants will be used to expand recycling, reduce the amount of solid waste going into landfills and improve the environmental management of household hazardous waste, which includes electronic scrap and mercury from homes throughout the Commonwealth.

Recycling of Surplus Electronic Devices (e-scrap)

E-scrap is a popular, informal name for electronic products nearing the end of their “useful life.” Computers, televisions, VCRs, stereos, copiers, and fax machines are common electronic products. Many of these products can be reused, refurbished, or recycled. In this technology-driven age, the amount of e-scrap is growing because the useful lifespan for devices and products is getting shorter and shorter.  Consumer demand for “the next best” thing is increasing and companies are answering that demand by updating and improving devices and equipment quicker than ever before. In fact, the National Safety Council projects that nearly 250 million computers will become obsolete in the next five years and mobile phones are discarded at a rate of 130 million per year.

The Marketplace – For Recycling Commodities

     The

MARKETPLACE

For Recycling Commodities

The most recent issue of The Marketplace is now available
for download

The Marketplace focuses on recycling trends, the “all state agency” e-Scrap contract and recyclable commodities’ pricing for those in the recycling industry, including centers, local governments, processors, brokers and end users.

The Marketplace – For Recycling Commodities

     The

MARKETPLACE

For Recycling Commodities

The most recent issue of The Marketplace is now available
for download.

The Marketplace focuses on recycling trends, the “all state agency” e-Scrap contract and recyclable commodities’ pricing for those in the recycling industry, including centers, local governments, processors, brokers and end users.

Scrap Tire News Features Kentucky’s Waste Tire Program Success

Scrap Tire News, “the source for information about the
scrap tire and rubber recycling industry,” recently featured the Kentucky Division of Waste Management’s Waste Tire Program’s success in tire recycling. Check out the complete March 2014 issue of Scrap Tire News, including their “Kentucky Posts Increase in Tire Recycling” article on Page 13, here.

Great news is that Kentucky is recycling more tires. In case you missed it,

Spring Into Commonwealth Cleanup Week – March 22-29

Spring is coming and so is your chance to take part in the state’s annual Commonwealth Cleanup Week.
Celebrate Kentucky’s natural beauty and plan to do some spring cleaning during the week of March 22-29.

During last year’s cleanup week, it was reported that more than 24,000 Kentuckians picked up 42,930 bags of trash and 3,657 tires along 1,816 miles of roadway – the approximate driving distance from Covington, Ky., to Walt Disney World and back. In addition, the same volunteers cleaned eight illegal dumps across the state.

The MarketPlace – For Recycling Commodities

The

MARKETPLACE

For Recycling Commodities

The most recent issue of The Marketplace is now available for download.

The Marketplace focuses on recycling trends, the “all state agency” e-Scrap contract and recyclable commodities’ pricing for those in the recycling industry, including centers, local governments, processors, brokers and end users.

Making a Difference – State Office Paper Recycling Program

White office paper, collected from state government offices in Frankfort, awaits grinding and bailing. Photo by Gary Logsdon

The Government Recycling Section of the Kentucky Division of Waste Management’s Recycling and Local Assistance Branch operates a state office paper recycling program. It serves more than 115 state agencies, is self-supporting and funds eight full-time staff positions.

The program offers free pickup and free document destruction of governmental office paper. The Government Recycling Section’s location on Northgate Drive in Frankfort, Ky., offers a secure environment to address confidentiality issues.