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Where Have All the CRVs Gone? store CRV redemption locations.13 Although the CalRecycle website lists the status, hours, and days of operation of recycling and redemption centers, the OCGJ determined the information is not always accurate. The primary cause of redemption center closure is the lack of compensation received from CalRecycle. Liza Tucker, a consumer advocate with Container Recycling Institute, stated, "the formula for calculating state payments to recycling centers is flawed." CalRecycle, she said, "averages costs to run centers across the state. But the cost of operating a redemption center in a grocery store parking lot — which is the most convenient for consumers — is substantially higher. ,14 The rePlanet Recycling Centers suffered the largest closure. Established in 1984, rePlanet grew to 600 redemption centers in California at its peak. In 2016, it closed 191 centers and terminated 300 employees. On August 5, 2019, it closed the remaining 284 centers and laid off the remaining 750 employees. David Lawrence, rePlanet's President said the factors were: Reduction in State Fees: • Depressed pricing of aluminum and plastic • Minimum wage increases • Required Health and Workers Compensation Insurance's The decline in Redemption Centers will result in: • Tons of metal, plastics, and glassware going into landfills • Increased greenhouse gas • Increased litter • Lost jobs in recycling and redemption industry • Income for families and individuals who gather discarded cans and bottles to earn extra cash A letter from Container Recycling Institute (CRI) urged the State to extend the Processing Payment Emergency Regulations for one year.16 The Emergency Regulations add a 10 percent reasonable financial return to calculate the processing payments that will be made to certified recyclers for 2021. This processing payment subsidy is intended to offset the difference between their operating costs and the revenue earned from scrap sales and handling fees. "Recyclers" include recycling centers, and curbside and drop-off programs. 13 www2.calrecycle.ca.gov/beveragecontainer/instore redemption. " Kevin Smith, "rePlanet Closes all Recycling Centers, Prompting a Call for Bottle, Can Redemption at Stores," San Gabriel Valley Tribune, August 6, 2019. 15 Ibid. 16 December 6, 2021, letter from Container Recycling Institute President and Executive Director, Susan Collins to The State of California Office of Administrative Law. 2021-2022 Orange County Grand Jury Page 8 City Council 7 — 10 9/20/2022