Gov. Schwarzenegger Proposes Eliminating State Recycling Board

Wendy Angel

Sacramento, Calif. — In his annual State of the State address yesterday, California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger proposed the elimination of more than 90 boards and commissions, including the California Integrated Waste Management Board (CIWMB). The board, established by the state assembly in 1989, has responsibility for implementing and enforcing waste reduction and recycling policies to meet the state’s 50% waste reduction and recycling goal. CIWMB receives no money from the state’s general fund, and its activities are supported mostly by fees collected from waste haulers that dispose of waste in the state.

Several groups oppose the governor’s proposal to eliminate CIWMB, including the environmental group Californians Against Waste. Executive Director Mark Murray said, "We believe that simply ‘chopping off the administrative head’ of the state’s waste management and recycling agency would have serious consequences for the implementation and enforcement of policies designed to protect public health and the environment."