Local News in Brief : Aiming for the Deadline

Officials of Southern California recycling and grocery industries Wednesday said they expect to meet a Jan. 1 deadline for establishing recycling centers to comply with new state laws.

RecyCAL of Southern California and the Southern California Grocers Assn. announced that 80% of their new recycling centers provided for in Los Angeles County and other Southern California counties under the state recycling act have been certified by the Department of Conservation.

More than 50% of those are already operating, officials for the groups announced, and they expect to open more by the New Year’s Day deadline. To provide consumers with convenient recycling facilities to return their containers and collect a refund, the law requires all retail outlets with $2 million in annual grocery sales to ensure a state-certified-center is located within a half mile of their business.