HomeMy WebLinkAboutProposed Market Development Zone White PaperPROPOSED EXPANSION OF THE SAN DIEGO COUNTY RECYCLING
MARKET DEVELOPMENT ZONE (RMDZ)
The cities of Chula Vista and San Diego, along with the County of San Diego are
considering expansion of the Recycling Market Development Zones (RMDZ) within San
Diego County.
RMDZs were established by the State to combine recyclable materials with business
development and expansion, creating green jobs, and developing local markets for
materials diverted from landfills. The RMDZ program does this by providing businesses
with low interest business loans, offering free technical assistance, material sourcing
assistance and marketing of products made with recycled content. More information about
the State program may be found at www.calrecycle.ca.gov/RMDZ.
There are approximately 33 zones throughout the State administered by the Department
of Resources Recycling and Recovery (Ca1Recycle). The San Diego RMDZs are
defined as follows:
North San Diego County Recycling Market Development Zone
Located 30 miles north of downtown San Diego via 1-15 or 1-5. The zone spans from the
south, including Poway and the Mira Mesa area, to the northern communities of Fallbrook
and Valley Center, and west to the coastal cities along the 1-5 corridor. Partner
jurisdictions include the cities of Carlsbad, Del Mar, Escondido, Oceanside, Poway, San
Diego, San Marcos, Solana Beach, Vista, and the County of San Diego. More details are
available at www.calrecycle.ca.gov/rmdz/NoSanDiego.
South San Diego's Recycling Market Development Zone
The south zone includes the City of Chula Vista; a portion of the City of San Diego referred
to as Otay Mesa, which encompasses the southeastern most portion of the city; and an
adjacent unincorporated area of the County of San Diego. The zone has over 7,500 acres
zoned for industrial purposes. In addition, 1,416 acres of the zone have been designated a
Foreign Trade Zone, which provides duty reductions and other benefits to importers,
exporters, and certain product assemblers. More details are available at
www.calrecycle.ca.gov/rmdz/SanDiego.
An expansion would allow all jurisdictions to be eligible to participate in the RMDZ,
including the jurisdictions of Coronado, El Cajon, Imperial Beach, La Mesa, Lemon Grove,
National City, Santee and the portions of the City of San Diego and the unincorporated
areas of the County that are currently excluded. Expansion of this program could also
transcend county boundaries to include the Imperial Valley cities of Brawley, Calexico,
Calipatria, El Centro, Holtville, Imperial, Westmoreland and unincorporated County of
Imperial. During the expansion process the name of this program will be changed to the
more inclusive San Diego/Imperial Valley Border Region Recycling Market
Development Zone.
2010-11 Expansion Project 1
Benefits for each jurisdiction may include the creation of green jobs, business recruitment
and/or expansion, tax base expansion, reduced costs for waste management, an increased
recycling rate and carbon emission reductions. Benefits for the region would be the
establishment of additional local markets for recyclable materials.
The expansion of both the North San Diego and South San Diego County RMDZs will not
have negative land use or environmental impacts. The RMDZ program does not
supersede any current land use policies or regulations. The RMDZ does not relax any
permitting or environmental regulations. Businesses which operate in the RMDZ must still
meet the same zoning standards and obtain the same environmental permits and
clearance as businesses that are not in the RMDZ. Therefore, it will be consistent with
existing zoning, plans, and other applicable land use controls. Projects that apply for
assistance through the RMDZ are required to be in compliance with all land use policies
and regulations in order to qualify for assistance.
Some jurisdictions have little or no industrial zoning and may not be able to site a recycling
facility. Although not capable of siting a recycling business, the support of all jurisdictions is
respectfully requested in this expansion since all jurisdictions create waste and will benefit
from regional solutions to manage waste materials.
RMDZ administrators from the North and South San Diego zones will be contacting each
jurisdiction to arrange a meeting to discuss details and benefits of the RMDZ program.
Please contact the RMDZ Administrators if have questions, need clarification or are ready
to set up a meeting to discuss the proposed expansion.
North San Diego County RMDZ- Michael Wonsidler, County of San Diego, (858) 874-4081
South San Diego County RMDZ — Manuel Medrano, City of Chula Vista, (619) 585-5766
2010-11 Expansion Project 2