Transcript Document

City of Loveland
Solid Waste Division
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Diversion Versus Disposal: Determining the
Costs
Conventional Industry Assumptions
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Landfill space is abundant and inexpensive in
Colorado.
Recycling markets are far away.
Many smaller communities don’t have access to
facilities to sort and process recyclables for
market.
Diversion, while it may be a good idea, is too
expensive relative to cheap disposal.
No federal or state mandates to divert materials
from landfill disposal.
Community and Program
Information
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Loveland population: 60,000
Solid Waste Division operates
as an enterprise fund in an
open, competitive market with
private waste haulers.
City has approximately 96%
market share.
Households served: 22,000
single-family, duplex, and
triplex.
Historical Perspective
1992: flat monthly fee of $5.75 for up to ten
bags collected weekly.
 No incentive for waste reduction/recycling.
 Worker injuries from lifting heavy bags of
grass.
 Increased worker compensation costs.
 Community interest in recycling.
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1993: New Program Implemented
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Base rate currently $5.25/month.
Volume-based, “pay-as-you-throw” rates for
refuse.
Curbside and drop-off recycling and yard waste
composting.
PAYT Options
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City trash stamp: $1.00 for 32-gallons.
PAYT Options
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Trash carts:
32-G $5.00/month.
64-G $10.00/month
96-G $15.00/month
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Carts used by about 70% of City customers.
Program Compatibility with
Collection Equipment
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Residential front loaders: manual or
automated collection.
Recycling Services
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Curbside collection:
Glass bottles and jars,
metal cans and plastic
bottles in green bin;
mixed paper in blue bin.
Drop-off: all curbside
materials, plus scrap
metal, appliances,
batteries, tires, TVs and
motor/cooking oil.
Yard Waste Composting Services
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Curbside pickup: 96-gallon cart provided
for weekly collection April through
November for $6.00/month.
Yard Waste Composting Services
Free drop-off for Loveland residents.
 Materials accepted: branches, leaves, grass
clippings, garden trimmings and lumber.
 A-1 Organics produces high-quality
compost for wholesale.
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The Results
Residential diversion rate has exceeded
50% annually since ’93.
 Average weekly trash setouts decreased
from three to one 32-gallon bag.
 Workers are staying healthy since yard
waste (and increasingly refuse)
containerized.
 Customers are very happy with services.
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Determining Costs
Since more than one-half of residential
waste stream is diverted from landfill
disposal, is it cheaper or most expensive
than disposal?
 How do we determine costs per ton for
disposal versus diversion?
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Cost Methodology
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Each activity area (refuse, recycling and yard waste) has its
own assigned personnel and equipment.
Costs specific to an activity are charged solely to that
activity.
Across the board expenses (work clothing, printing,
postage, etc.) are allocated among the three activities,
based on the allocation of labor.
Costs are inclusive: labor, benefits, supplies, services,
equipment, transfers, PILT and capital.
Refuse includes landfill disposal fees, while income from
sale of recyclables is credited against recycling expenses.
2005 Data
Disposal Expenses: $1,749,624
 Disposal Tons: 16,339
 Cost Per Ton: $107
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Diversion Expenses: $1,489,318
 Diversion Tons: 20,756
 Cost Per Ton: $72
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The Bottom Line
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In 2005, diversion was $35 per ton cheaper
than disposal.
Key Factors
Pay-As-You-Throw rates encourage a high
level of waste reduction and recycling.
 As diversion increases, the cost per ton
decreases.
 Aggressive recycling and composting
efforts pay big dividends.
 Yard waste makes up two-thirds of all
diversion tons – the low-hanging fruit.
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New Initiatives
Automation of recycling and single-stream,
fully-commingled cart-based collection:
2009.
 Automation of refuse collection: 2010.
 New fleet and five-year replacement
schedule in future.
 Add new recyclables and compostables,
when feasible: aseptic boxes, textiles, other
plastics, food waste, etc.
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Summary
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Plan for high levels of diversion.
Create incentives for residents to recycle: PAYT.
Make waste diversion and recycling convenient.
Provide drop-off options, especially for yard
debris: These are cheaper per ton than curbside.
Understand costs and how they are allocated.
Waste diversion does make economic sense for
Colorado.