Transcript Slide 1

Cooperation in Rural
Solid Waste
Management
Why and How to do it;
Where to find guidance
Laura M. Dellinger
Midwest Assistance Program
September 12, 2003
for Colorado chapter of SWANA
The Cooperative model is…
 A tradition of coalition
building
 A strategy used to reach
specific goals through
the collaborative efforts
of often disparate entities
“Disparate entities”
Traditionally, solid waste operators and
recyclers have been considered, or
considered themselves, as competitors
Experience and anecdotal evidence is
demonstrating that their activities are
symbiotic
It’s a natural!
 The concept of cooperation (co-ops) is a longstanding tradition in agricultural communities
 Can be most useful in creating diversion program
options beyond the “basics” of MSW collection
and disposal
o Composting
o Recycling
o Hazardous waste
o Large items & white goods
Diversion benefits
 Beneficial to solid waste operators who are
interested in being in business for the longest
possible time. Landfill capacity, even in rural
facilities with low daily disposal amounts, is
finite
 Beneficial to communities
o Gives them access to a nearby facility for a
longer time
o Prolongs the time before which they have to go
through the daunting task of finding or
establishing a replacement disposal facility
 Beneficial to individual citizens: it can keep their
fees lower
Create win-win solutions by…
 Identifying common needs
 Opening channels of communication
 Pooling resources
 ‘Piggy-backing’ on available programs of a larger
community or one already well-established and
functioning
o Smaller/newer community can offer new services
while larger/veteran program can obtain
additional income or resources, plus greater
volume that improves their market position or
amount of final product
Advantages & Opportunities
 Economies of scale
 Sharing vs solitary shouldering of
costs
 Grant monies can go farther
 Expanding program features offered
 Opportunities for diversion
 The arrangement can be loosely or
formally structured; short, medium or
long-term
Loosely-based cooperation
 Usually begins with informal arrangements
 Usually involves casual agreements to act jointly to meet
a need or solve a problem
 Are what most structured coalitions or cooperative
organizations evolved from
 Decisions based on practicality and a minimal amount of
structure are most effective when enacted in an
atmosphere of cooperation and equity
 Can become difficult to maintain since agreements are
not legally binding, and their success depends solely
upon the good will and philosophical consensus of the
participants
 Agreements can crumble under the economics of profit
and loss or shifting political alliances
Structured cooperation
 Involves formal incorporation or organization by
member groups
 Involves selection of a democratic body to make
decisions and possibly the hiring of staff
 Administrative oversight becomes more
necessary as revenues are generated, increased
and spent; equipment or land is purchased and
contractual relationships are established
Has it Worked Somewhere
Before?
 Coalitions have succeeded by forging alliances
between individuals and groups whose history
may be one of conflict, opposition or
competition, but whose common bond is the
desire to solve an agreed-upon problem
o Yankton Sioux Tribe, surrounding communities in
SD & northern Nebraska
o Wind River Reservation and its Wyoming county
o Multiple communities in Nebraska and Wisconsin
Sources of More Information,
Opportunities to Network
 National & State Solid Waste / Recycling
Associations
 U.S. EPA
 U.S. Dept. of Ag., Rural Utility Service & Rural
Development
 Rural Community Action Programs (RCAPs)
 Colleges and Universities
 Environmental / Solid Waste departments of
other states, counties, etc.
 Google and the Internet
Special thanks …
 to those involved in creation of the Cooperative Marketing Toolkit
o Regions V and VIII of the United States Environmental Protection
Agency
o *Deb Barton - SD Solid Waste Management Association & Mid
Continent Recycling Association (MCRA)
o *Steve Danahy - NE DEQ
o *Dale Ekart - University of Nebraska - Lincoln
o *Jim Hart - Perry Co. Recycling & Litter Prevention
o *Kathleen Jackson - Headwaters Co-op Recycling Project
o *Mickey Mills - Bluegrass Regional Recycling
o Kay Stevens - Nebraska State Recycling Association (NSRA)
o *Sandy Sturm - Creative Conservation
o *Susan Waughtal - SEMREX
o *Jeff Weaver - Mower Col. Recycling
* The above may presently be in different positions or with
different entities