The city of Phoenix has cut a program that offered residents gift cards and other retail discounts to recycle.
The Arizona Republic reports the city spent two years and $3.3 million working with Recyclebank, a national marketing company.
City officials had a goal of diverting 40 percent of trash from the landfill by 2020.
They say while the diversion rate is up from last year, they believe it was driven by other city programs and a new composting facility.
The city ended its contract with Recyclebank last month.
Recyclebank says nearly 120,000 residents participated in the program that was growing in familiarity. Residents would use an app to accumulate points for recycling.
Company chief executive Paul Winn says it's disappointing to see those gains lost.
