California’s Tulare County votes to end contract with C&D recycler over fee disagreement

Supervisors in Tulare County, California, have voted to end the county's contract with Peña’s Disposal for construction and demolition (C&D) debris recycling, according to a report in the Visalia Times-Delta. The two-year agreement with Peña’s expires Sept. 20.

The article states the existing contract began in 2014 and initially provided Peña’s with $42.89 per ton of material removed from landfill. In return Peña’s paid $34 per ton for anything that it could not recycle and had to landfill and half of the gate fee for fines, with 10 percent at no charge.

When Peña’s entered into a separate agreement for municipal solid waste, the agreement was amended to the MSW rate of $28 per ton for C&D, the article goes on to say.

The report says Peña’s proposed a new agreement in December 2015 for an increase to $49.60 per ton for C&D and for the county to accept 760 tons monthly at no charge.

Then in April, Peña’s sent a letter to the county requesting the contract be terminated unless an agreement was reached in 60 days. The letter, according to the Visalia Times-Delta was rejected.

Peña’s sent another termination notice in June which cited changing market conditions as the reason for the termination. It is noted in the article that metals pricing and a lack of biomass markets have provided little incentive to processing C&D materials.

Peña’s was one of two companies who responded to the county’s request for proposals for a new contract. Supervisors are expected to decide in mid-September whether they will award a contract, which would be effective Oct. 1.

According to the report, county officials estimate a second contract with Peña’s would result in $259,536 annual revenue loss to the county.

County officials say the new contracts may include a presorting and a shorter length.

Peña’s was featured on the cover of the May/June 2013 issue of Construction & Demolition Recycling.