California's largest recycling business closes, 750 laid off

SAN JOSE (AP) – California's largest operator of recycling redemption centers has shut down and laid off 750 employees.

Reports Monday say the company RePlanet has closed all 284 of its centers.

RePlanet's President David Lawrence states that the company ceased operating due to increased business costs and falling prices for recycled aluminum and PET plastics.

The residents of the San Francisco Bay Area are now sitting with few opportunities to redeem their recycling.

The move comes three years after RePlanet closed 191 of the recycling centers and laid off nearly 300 employees.

Lawyers are urging the state to reform how it subsidizes recycling centers. They worry that now more recyclables will end up in landfills.