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Read the Historical
Summary of Economic Development of California City
The Kern Economic Development Corporation was formed in 1988 with
the mission of stimulating a diversified and strong economic climate in
Kern County. This is accomplished through new business recruitment and
assistance with retention and expansion of existing businesses.
Kern Economic Development Corporation is a private nonprofit company
dedicated to ensuring a diverse and strong economic climate for all businesses
in Kern County. Kern EDC recruits new businesses to Kern County, helps
established businesses with relocation and/or expansion efforts and works
with local companies to provide economic data, workforce information and
facilitation of the regulatory process.
Kern EDC actively markets Kern County to seven industry sectors.
They are:
Value-Added Agriculture
Logistics and Manufacturing
Energy and Chemical
Business and Professional Services
Healthcare and Medical Technology
Small Business Initiative
Aerospace and Defense
Kern County/Lancaster Recycling Zone Expands: Local Recycling Market
Development Zone creates jobs, boosts economySACRAMENTO—The Kern County/Lancaster
Recycling Market Development Zone (RMDZ) will expand and continue to create
jobs and promote economic development, thanks to a new ten-year renewal
granted by the California Integrated Waste Management Board.
The zone boundaries include the City of Lancaster, located in Los Angeles
County, and 11 incorporated cities within Kern County: Arvin, Bakersfield,
California City, Delano, Maricopa, McFarland, Ridgecrest, Shafter, Taft,
Tehachapi, and Wasco. First established in 1994, the renewed Kern County/Lancaster
RMDZ is expected to have continued positive impacts on waste diversion,
job creation, and the local economy.
"The Kern County/Lancaster RMDZ is an important partner in attracting
and retaining recycling-based industries and jobs," said Board Chair Linda
Moulton-Patterson. "Developing markets for recyclable materials is the
key to moving this state toward zero waste. On behalf of the State of California,
we welcome this opportunity to support further economic development and
business growth in this region."
Recycling-based businesses and manufacturers currently located in Kern
County or in the City of Lancaster—or those interested in becoming established
within the area—are eligible for assistance from the renewed RMDZ, which
is administered by the Kern County Waste Management Department in collaboration
with its partner cities.
The Kern County/Lancaster RMDZ is one of 40 such zones designated throughout
California 10 years ago by the Board—the state's primary recycling agency
and a part of the California Environmental Protection Agency.
RMDZs are set up similarly to federally designated Enterprise Zones
and provide State-sponsored support to recycling-based businesses in the
form of low-interest-rate loans, grants, streamlined permitting, technical
assistance, help with siting a plant or company, and access to materials
for manufacturing feedstock to name a few services. In return, the businesses
create economic development and help cities and counties divert usable
materials from the waste stream. Recycling is good for California's economy
because it creates jobs, provides tax revenue, and conserves natural resources,
while reducing pollution and energy usage.
RMDZs promote the development of markets for both recycled materials
(as feedstocks for manufacturing) and products made from recycled-content
materials. Market development activities result in the creation and purchase
of new products made with recycled-content materials and that means California
jobs, especially when the manufacturing occurs within the state. Recycling
employs over 85,000 tax-paying Californians and generates almost $4 billion
in wages, salaries, and benefits; over 5,300 recycling and reuse establishments
do business in California with sales of over $10 billion.
The Kern County/Lancaster RMDZ is contributing greatly to the county's
current waste diversion rate of 51 percent and has given direct technical
assistance to eight businesses to date. These companies employ approximately
175 workers and divert from landfill disposal organic materials, construction
and demolition debris, paper, plastics, and textiles. Some of the end products
created in this RMDZ include: road base materials, compost, fire logs and
fire starters, soil amendments, and tumbled glass.
All companies located with the RMDZ are eligible to apply for a low-interest-rate
business loan from the Integrated Waste Management Board.
I.C. Solutions, a local company approved for loan funding by the Board,
is a manufacturer working with recycled-content materials. The company
produces paving material from recycled asphalt shingles. In 2003 alone,
I.C. Solutions diverted 21,780 tons of shingles that previously had been
disposed in local landfills.
For more information about the State of California Integrated Waste
Management Board's RMDZ business loan program, please send an e-mail to
loans@ciwmb.ca.gov or call James La Tanner, RMDZ Loan Program Manager,
at (916) 341-6534.
The Kern County Waste Management Department coordinates local zone activities
with various community partners, including the Kern Economic Development
Corporation, Kern County Board of Trade, Employers' Training Panel, Kern
County Community Development Program Department, and the economic development
departments of its partner cities.
Businesses that locate within the RMDZ are eligible for a range of services
and incentives through the Kern County Incentive Program: Industrial Development
Bonds; Employment Training Panel funds; property and sales/use tax rebates;
as well as expedited permit processing. The Kern County/Lancaster RMDZ
is also home to four Enterprise Zones and a Foreign Trade Zone, and features
targeted Redevelopment Areas. For local information, please contact Zone
Administrator Aurora Rush at aurorar@co.kern.ca.us or call (661) 862-8980.
She may also be reached at 2700 M Street, Suite 500, Bakersfield, CA 93301.
The six-member California Integrated Waste Management Board promotes
a zero waste California in partnership with local government, industry,
and the public. This means reducing waste whenever possible, promoting
the management of all materials to their highest and best use, and protecting
public health and safety and the environment.
The California Integrated Waste Management Board is one of six boards,
departments, and offices within the California Environmental Protection
Agency (Cal/EPA).