Dive Brief:
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The Cedar Rapids/Linn County Solid Waste Agency has opened a new $12 million Resource Recovery facility in Marion, Iowa, only weeks after getting the news that the city will not be reimbursed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
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Cedar Rapids had expected to receive $6.5 million from FEMA for the total cost that the city extended to a contractor to disassemble and haul away 136,000 tons of debris from the site where the new facility now sits.
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FEMA has decided it will not reimburse the city for the work completed because it could not establish the landfill's fee as reasonable; the removal cost $90 per ton instead of the average $38 per ton due to the special fee charged for materials that contain asbestos.
Dive Insight:
The city may place a request for the Solid Waste Agency to help cover some of the costs. The city manager and city finance director are working together to find options to present to the City Council.
Fiberight LLC is planning to build a new recycling plant only a few miles away from the Marion facility, adding even more uncertainty to the future of the brand-new recycling center.
