A total of $3 million is available through the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy’s (EGLE) Recycling and Organics Infrastructure Grant program for the development of recycling infrastructure or food waste management programs.

Schools and universities, local units of governments, non-profits, tribal governments, health departments, and solid waste/recycling authorities can apply for funding to improve recycling programs that would increase the amount of material collected or processed or to improve the level of participation in recycling programs. Organics management infrastructure grant applications is for projects primarily focused on food waste (not yard waste) and must result in a finished or partial compost product.

The maximum amount of requested funding for a project is $1 million. Successful grantees must provide a local match that equals at least 20% of the total grant budget. Grant funding is made available through the Renew Michigan Fund. The Request for Proposal and additional information is posted on EGLE’s recycling grants web page.

The application deadline is 5 p.m., April 20. Proposals must be submitted electronically in one PDF file that contains the complete grant application to EGLE-RecyclingGrant@Michigan.gov. For more information, contact Erica Richard at 517-284-8337 or RichardE1@Michigan.gov.

The Recycling and Organics Infrastructure Grant program is part of a larger effort to increase the statewide recycling rate. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and state legislators want to double Michigan’s recycling rate to 30% by 2025 and ultimately reach 45% annually. Michigan’s current 15% recycling rate is the lowest in the Great Lakes region and ranks among the nation’s lowest.

The economic impact of tripling the recycling rate to 45% would support 138,000 new jobs in Michigan’s recycling industry, providing $9 billion in annual labor income and $33.8 billion in economic output, according to a new study commissioned by EGLE. The recycling industry in Michigan currently generates nearly 36,000 jobs statewide and an annual payroll of $2.6 billion.

Equally important, EGLE and its partners across the state are promoting awareness of cleaner recycling practices to reduce the amount of contaminated materials improperly going into recycling bins.

More information about the Know It Before You Throw It campaign is available at RecyclingRaccoons.org.