Grants for Recycling Businesses

Food Waste Reduction Grant - Closed

This special grant program offers funding to help local governments, non-profits, and businesses reduce the amount of wasted food being disposed in landfills. Download the Food Waste Reduction Grant request for proposals: PDF or Word.

Eligible applicants include food rescue organizations, local governments, compost facilities, and compost businesses. Grant funds may be used for projects that expand food donation networks or compost operations, including collection and hauling. Proposals are due by 5:00 p.m. on Thursday, January 19, 2023. For more information or assistance please contact Christine Wittmeier at 919-707-8121.

Learn more about food waste reduction.
 

Multifamily Recycling Grant Program - OPEN

This special grant program offers funding to initiate or expand multifamily recycling programs within the state. Download the Multifamily Recycling Grant request for proposals: PDF or Word.

Eligible applicants include local governments, recycling businesses or non-profits, multifamily property owners, or multifamily property management companies. Grant funds may be used to purchase typical equipment needs to start or expand the collection of traditional household recyclables (paper, cardboard, metal cans, glass and plastic bottles and containers) from multifamily residences. Examples of eligible purchases include carts, dumpsters, collection vehicles, concrete pads, recycling corrals and education. Proposals will be accepted on a rolling basis through February 16, 2023. For more information or assistance please contact Sandy Skolochenko at 919 707-8147.

Watch the Multifamily Recycling Webinar to learn more.
 

Recycling Business Development Grants - Closed

The Recycling Business Assistance Center (RBAC) offers small grants to North Carolina recycling businesses. Requests for proposals are typically issued each fall, depending on funding availability, for projects to begin the following spring.

The purpose of this grant program is to reduce the flow of solid waste to disposal facilities and encourage the sustainable recovery of materials from North Carolina’s waste stream. To achieve that purpose, RBAC seeks viable, well-planned and effective proposals from recycling businesses in North Carolina wanting to start up or expand recovery efforts.

Projects involving the collection, processing or end use of materials in the solid waste stream are eligible for funding. Generally, the grant money is intended to fund sustainable investments in equipment and buildings necessary for increasing the capacity of a recycling business to divert more materials from disposal and into economic use. Grant money cannot be used to cover labor costs, general operational costs, or the cost of contract processing. 

The 2023 Recycling Business Development Grant round is now closed. Application materials for the now-closed 2023 grant round are provided in the following links for informational purposes: PDF or Word.

For more information, contact Mike Greene at mike.greene@ncdenr.gov, 919-707-8137 or Sandy Skolochenko at sandy.skolochenko@ncdenr.gov, 919-707-8147. 

View summaries of previous years' awarded grant projects.
 

Glass Equipment and Infrastructure Grant - Closed

This special grant program provided funding for single stream material recovery facilities (MRFs) to purchase glass recycling equipment or for local governments to establish or expand community drop-off glass collection through the Glass Equipment and Infrastructure Grant program.