ROANOKE, Va. – Roanoke is boosting spending so that it can keep its recycling program going.
Roanoke City Council approved to nearly double what the city pays to the company that provides recycling services.
The council voted to increase city payments to Recycling and Disposal Solutions from about $300,000 a year to about $525,000.
The company says it has struggled to sell recyclable materials and has been operating at a loss.
The recycling market has been in upheaval since 2018, when China stopped accepting lower-grade recyclables. That left many communities in the U.S. without a market for the low-grade, mixed recyclables they were producing.