BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 2658
Page 1
Date of Hearing: April 28, 2014
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON NATURAL RESOURCES
Wesley Chesbro, Chair
AB 2658 (Bocanegra) - As Amended: April 21, 2014
SUBJECT : Recycling: waste tires: public works projects
SUMMARY : Clarifies that "parklets" and "greenways" are
eligible for grants for public works projects that use tire
derived products (TDP) and requires the Department of Resources
Recycling and Recovery (CalRecycle), when awarding grants for
parklets and greenways, to give priority to projects located in
disadvantaged communities. Extends a sunset date relating to
the use of rubberized asphalt concrete (RAC) by the Department
of Transportation (Caltrans).
EXISTING LAW establishes the California Tire Recycling Act
(Act), which:
1)Requires a person who purchases a new tire to pay a California
tire fee of $1.75 for each new tire purchased in the state.
One dollar of which is deposited into the Tire Recycling Fund
for oversight, enforcement, and market development grants
relating to waste tire management and recycling. The
remaining $0.75 is deposited into the Air Pollution Control
Fund for programs and projects that mitigate or remediate air
pollution caused by tires.
2)Reduces the fee on January 1, 2015 to $0.75 per tire, to be
deposited into the Tire Recycling Fund.
3)Requires CalRecycle to adopt a Five-Year Plan, which must be
updated every two years, that establishes goals and priorities
for the waste tire program, including grant programs.
4)Authorizes CalRecycle to award grants, subsidies, rebates, and
loans to businesses and public entities that result in reduced
landfill disposal of used tires.
5)Specifies that the grants awarded by CalRecycle pursuant to
their authority under the Act be awarded to local government
agencies for the funding of public works projects that use
waste tires, including RAC, TDP, and tire derived aggregate
(TDA), as prescribed. While CalRecycle is granted broad
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authority to continue grant programs under their existing
authority within the Act and the Five-Year Plan, this
statutory guidance for the program sunsets on June 30, 2015.
6)Pursuant to AB 513 (Frazier), Chapter 499, Statutes of 2013,
establishes the Rubberized Asphalt Concrete Market Development
Act, which creates a grant program for local government
agencies for public works projects that use RAC and for state
and local agencies, including regional park districts, for
funding disability access projects at parks and Class I
bikeways. Sunsets this program on June 30, 2019.
7)Requires Caltrans on an annual average to use not less than
11.58 pounds of recycled crumb rubber (from tires) per metric
ton of the total amount of asphalt paving materials used.
Requires that until January 1, 2015, at least 50 percent of
the crumb rubber used be RAC. After that date, specifies that
the material used be any type of asphalt containing crumb
rubber.
8)Defines RAC as paving material that uses an asphalt rubber
binder containing an amount of reclaimed tire rubber that is
15 percent or more by weight of the total blend, and that
meets required specifications. [This definition is based on
the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) standard
specification D6114.]
9)Defines asphalt containing crumb rubber as any asphalt
pavement construction, rehabilitation, or maintenance material
that contains reclaimed tire rubber and that meets required
specifications.
THIS BILL :
1)Extends the requirement that 50 percent of asphalt paving
materials used by Caltrans be RAC until January 1, 2020.
2)Clarifies that parklets and greenways are eligible for grants
awarded by CalRecycle for public works projects that use TDP.
3)Requires CalRecycle, when awarding grants for parklets and
greenways that use TDP, to give priority to give priority to
projects located in disadvantaged communities.
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4)Defines "disadvantaged community" as a community with an
annual median household income that is less than 80 percent of
the statewide median household income.
5)Defines "greenway" as a travel corridor for pedestrians,
bicycles, nonmotorized vehicle transportation, recreation, or
a combination thereof, located along natural landscape
features, such as an urban watercourse.
6)Defines "parklet" as a small urban park that provides
amenities including, but not limited to, seating, tables, bike
racks, and landscaping.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS :
1)Tire management in California . According to CalRecycle,
approximately 40 million waste tires are generated in
California every year. CalRecycle's diversion goal is 90
percent; the most recent Five-Year Plan (2011) states that the
current diversion rate is around 74 percent. According to the
California Waste Tire Market Report: 2011, of the 40.8
million tires generated: 8.8 million were recycled as ground
rubber, of which 4.9 million were used as RAC; 2 million were
used in civil engineering projects; 6.9 million were reused
(either sold as used tires or retreaded); 6.2 million were
used as "tire derived fuel" in cement kilns or at
co-generation facilities; and, 5 million were disposed in
landfills. The remaining 2.1 million were otherwise recycled
(generally other forms of reuse, such as dock bumpers) or used
as landfill cover.
California's recent economic downturn and relatively high
unemployment rate has contributed to a decline in waste tires
generated. The same factors, along with local government
budget constraints and a decline in use by Caltrans, has
resulted in diminishing numbers of tires being recycled.
Export, generally for energy generation in Asia, has nearly
tripled since 2009. Appropriate tire recycling in California
provides significant environmental benefits and creates green
jobs.
2)Waste tire recycling . There are a number of alternatives for
recycling waste tires. CalRecycle currently has three grant
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programs available to local government agencies for public
works projects that use recycled tires.
The TDP grant program provides funding for recycled-content
products that contain waste tires generated in California.
Grant applications for this program must use a minimum of
2,500 tires, but one application may be submitted for multiple
projects within a jurisdiction. Eligible projects include
agricultural and landscaping, recreational, and transportation
projects. The types of projects that have received funding
under this program include tire-derived mulch, playground
surfacing, weed abatement coverings, horse stalls and arenas,
sport field surfacing, sidewalks and pathways, railroad ties,
and sound barriers.
The TDA grant program provides funding for projects that use a
minimum of 500 tons of California -generated TDA, which is
construction aggregate made from shredded waste tires. It is
used for a wide range of public works projects and other civil
engineering applications, including slope stabilization,
retaining wall backfill, lightweight embankment fill,
vibration mitigation, and some landfill applications.
The RAC grant program provides grants for recycled-content
road surfacing products derived from waste tires generated in
California. The grant amount is based on the difference in
cost between conventional asphalt concrete and RAC. Eligible
projects must use a minimum of 3,500 tons of RAC or 35,000
square yards of RAC chip seal material.
3)RAC use by Caltrans . AB 338 (Levine), Chapter 709, Statutes
of 2005 established the requirement that Caltrans use a
minimum amount of recycled tires in paving projects, including
the requirement that 50 percent of asphalt containing crumb
rubber be RAC. This bill extends this requirement for an
additional five years, until 2020. When AB 338 was enacted,
it was expected that there would be an American Society for
Testing and Materials (ASTM) standard specification for other
types of asphalt containing crumb rubber before the sunset
date of 2015; however, ASTM has not yet developed additional
standards.
According to CalRecycle, RAC reduces overall project costs due
to less maintenance, increases safety due to its
skid-resistant surface and prolonged color contrast, and
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reduces noise pollution with noticeably lower tire noise. It
has an additional benefit of being manufactured in California
using California-generated tires. Alternative types of
asphalt containing crumb rubber are primarily manufactured out
of state (out of non-California tires) and transported by rail
into California.
4)This bill . According to the author:
AB 2658 will ensure that parklets and greenways receive due
consideration for TDP grants, and will ensure that
preference is given to projects in disadvantaged
communities, which are often "park poor," offering little
relief from the urban environment. Additionally, by
continuing to require [Caltrans] to use RAC for state
highway construction and repair, AB 2658 will help
California continue to lead the way in resource recovery
and recycling?
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
Californians against Waste
California League of Conservation Voters
CRM Company
Los Angeles County Solid Waste Management Committee/Integrated
Waste Management Task Force
Rubber Pavements Association
Opposition
None on file
Analysis Prepared by : Elizabeth MacMillan / NAT. RES. / (916)
319-2092