County Programs Santa Barbara Regional Recycling Market Development Zone
The Recycling Market Development Zone (RMDZ) is a three-way partnership among businesses, local government, and the California Integrated Waste Management Board (CIWMB). The RMDZ Program was created to provide incentives to businesses that use secondary materials from the waste stream as feedstock for their manufacturing processes. It combines recycling with economic development to foster new businesses, expand existing ones, and create jobs. Businesses must be located within the boundaries of a zone and must produce or add value to a marketable commodity that contains secondary materials. The Santa Barbara Regional RMDZ includes the County of Santa Barbara encompassing the unincorporated areas of the County, as well as the Cities of Lompoc, Santa Barbara, and Santa Maria.
Recycling-based manufacturers located in RMDZs are eligible to apply for low-interest loans and other assistance provided by local zone administrators and Board staff. In addition to loans, the CIWMB offers product marketing and permitting assistance. Local government incentives may include relaxed building codes and zoning laws, streamlined local permitting processes, reduced taxes and licensing, and increased and consistent secondary material feedstock supply.
Through the efforts of a CIWMB Recycling Business Development Specialist and the Santa Barbara Regional RMDZ Administrator, assistance is available in three areas:
Technical Assistance
- Provide information on sources of secondary materials and processes for a variety of material types, such as plastics, paper, construction and demolition debris, and tires; - Provide referrals to other sources of technical information, including online sources of information, and to other state and federal programs;
Marketing Assistance
- Provide referrals of zone businesses to the Recycle Store, to assist them in selling their products. This store is an online store that sells recycled-content products that are manufactured in RMDZs; - Provide referrals of zone businesses to the California Materials Exchange (CALMAX), to assist them in selling or disposing of various types of materials or obtaining such materials from others; - Provide referrals of businesses to industry-specific materials exchanges to assist them in locating specific feedstocks or in selling their products; - Provide referrals of zone businesses for inclusion in the online Board-sponsored Recycled Content Products database; - Provide information on recycled-content products through the Board's online database; searches may be conducted by material type; - Provide links between zone businesses, where one company's products may serve as another firm's feedstock; and - Assist out-of-state businesses seeking to site in California to identify RMDZs that meet their selection criteria and provide referrals to those zones.
Financial Assistance: RMDZ Revolving Loan Program
Low-interest loans are available to private businesses and not-for-profit organizations that are located within the Santa Barbara Regional RMDZ to increase the diversion of non-hazardous solid waste from landfills and to foster market demand for secondary and postconsumer materials. The interest rate is set semi-annually by the CIWMB and remains fixed for the term of each loan. The maximum term of a loan is 15 years, if secured by commercial real estate. If the loan is not secured by commercial real estate, then the term is based on the useful life of the asset(s) being financed, with a maximum term of 10 years. Eligible applicants may receive a loan of up to 75 percent of the direct costs for an eligible project or up to $2 million, whichever is less.
If you would like more information concerning the Santa Barbara Regional RMDZ Program, please contact the RMDZ Administrator, at (805) 882-3616.
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Last updated: March 26, 2008
