WasteSmart Plan Update to WasteSmart Open House October 16, 2018 - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Helen Lee

Environmental Program Manager

Transportation & Environmental Services

City of Alexandria, Virginia

WasteSmart Plan

Update to

WasteSmart Open House

October 16, 2018

Agenda

• Overview of Solid Waste Services in the

City of Alexandria

• Existing Conditions Around Waste
• WasteSmart Planning Process
• Community Engagement
• Technical Papers by HDR
• Environmental Action Plan Alignment
• Vision & Values of the Strategic Plan
• Framework and Short, Mid, Long Term

Actions

• Questions & Answers

10/18/2018 2

Overview of Solid Waste Services in the City

T&ES Collection Services

• Residents living in detached, single-family homes, duplexes, and some

townhouses with three or fewer units; ~20,200 households served

• ~250 small businesses and commercial accounts
• 65 schools and government buildings and 150 non-profit organizations

Commercial Collection

• Commercial properties, multi-family buildings, Homeowners

Associations are required to provide trash and recycling to tenants

• Commercial properties are required to fill out the Recycling

Implementation Plan every year

• Accounts for more than 70% of the City’s waste stream

10/18/2018 3

T&ES Waste Services

• 20,200 households served
• Residential recycling, yard waste

composting, and trash curbside collections

• Leaf/Brush Collection
• Metal and appliances collection
• Spring Clean-Up
• Bulk Trash Pick-Up
• HHW & Electronic Waste Recycling

Center

• Recycling Drop-Off Centers
• Public Space Trash & Recycling Bins
• Composting at Farmers’ Markets

10/18/2018 4

FY18 Resource Recovery Achievements

• Composting program – 5 year
• anniversary. Hit 100,000th household

served milestone and composted over 816,000 lbs.

• Public space trash and recycling bins

mapped with new efficient routing.

• Residential recycling and trash ‘waste-

audit’ completed.

• Distributed 1,000 new 64-gallon black

trash carts and repurposed green bins for yard waste only.

• HHW & Electronics Center - 11,000

visitors and recovered ~230,000 lbs of HHW and 191,000 lbs of electronics.

10/17/2018 5

Existing Conditions Around Waste

• Evolving Global Recycling Market
• Changes in packaging design
• Confusion of What Goes Where and

increasing contamination

• China’s National Sword Policies
• Limitations on sorting technologies and

finding end markets

• Changes in the Financial Landscape
• Trash - $0.00/tip fee starting 2025
• New Environmental Challenges

10/17/2018 6 Graphic courtesy How2Recycle

WasteSmart

Strategic Plan

20 Year Plan for the Future of Sustainable Solid Waste Management in the City of Alexandria

10/17/2018 7

Planning Process

10/17/2018 8

Revisit & Update Goals Implement, Monitor & Track Progress Develop & Adopt WasteSmart EAP Goal Alignment HDR's Memorandums Ongoing Stakeholder Engagement

Stakeholder Input

370 comments & questions received on

the online Feedback Form

• 9 Civic Association Presentations
• Online Feedback Form
• Letter to the Editor
• WasteSmart Open House + Facebook Live
• Dedicated WasteSmart Website
• eNews / Social Media
• Eco Café participation on solid waste

planning

• Employee town hall meeting
• EAP Public Meetings
• EPC Retreat & Working Group Presentation

10/18/2018 9

HDR White Papers

• Tasks 1 & 2 Evaluate current services and benchmarking with other

communities

• Task 3 - Costs and benefits of collecting solid waste by private contract
• Task 4 - Opportunities to increase revenue by offering new services
• Task 5 - Evaluate the collection and processing of recyclables separate from

regular trash

• Task 6 - Evaluate the environmental benefits of current waste collection

and processing practices

• Task 7 - Evaluate feasible alternatives to operating a waste-to-energy

facility in Alexandria after 2038 and recommend a general planning schedule for managing Alexandria’s solid waste beyond 2038

10/18/2018 10

Vision & Values

Environmental

• Greenhouse gas emissions
• Avoided waste sent to

WTE/Landfills (Diversion Rate)

• Residue/Contamination

Social Benefits

• Customer satisfaction
• Public Perception
• Equity
• Safety
• Job Creation

Economic

• Program cost
• Avoided disposal cost
• Revenue opportunity
• Opportunity cost

Waste Smart

10/18/2018 11

The WasteSmart Framework

Reduce & Reuse Resource Recovery

Recycling & Organics

End Disposal Effective Government Operations Education & Outreach

10/18/2018 12

Time Frames for Action Items Short-term actions: FY2019 – FY2021 Medium-term actions: FY2022 – FY2025 Long-term actions: FY2025 – FY2038

Effective Government Operations

Short Term (FY18-21)

• Resource Recovery Special Revenue Fund

to self-fund programs

• Route Optimization Study
• Review Solid Waste Fees

Mid–Long Term (FY22-38)

• Evaluate public space trash and recycling

bins and make recommendations on

• ptimizing routes and other operational

changes.

• Establish sustainable purchasing

guidelines to include for recycled content

• Fleet Greening (CNG vs. electrification)

*Green – EAP goals

10/18/2018 13

Education & Outreach

Short Term (FY18-21)

• Refresh website to be mobile friendly
• Develop digital resources (recycling/trash

signs, social media kits) for schools, commercial and multifamily properties

• Implement How to Sort Search Tool &

Collection Notification Tools

• Increase social media presence
• Recycle Right Campaign

Mid-Long Term (FY22-38)

• Improve accessibility of content (translations)
• Resource Recovery Ambassadors Volunteer

Program

10/18/2018 14

*Green – EAP goals

Photo courtesy Zero Waste DC Photo courtesy The Recycling Partnership

Reduce & Reuse

Short Term (FY18-21)

• Reuse/Repair/Donate Directory
• Evaluate PAYT feasibility
• Share a Bag Pilot
• Support the regional development of a

bottle bill & bag law Mid-Long Term (FY22-38)

• Support building material reduce, reuse and

recycling through regional partnerships

• Support the regional development of

Product Stewardship Legislation for electronics, mercury containing products, paints and pharmaceuticals

• Work with surrounding jurisdictions to

reduce plastic waste

Photo courtesy Zero Waste DC 10/18/2018 15

*Green – EAP goals

Recycling

Short Term (FY18-21)

• Implement special drop-off sites for glass recovery and

implement a glass recovery awareness campaign

• Continue monitoring the recyclability of glass, potentially

expand glass drop-off centers, and make recommendations for changes to the single stream program

• Conduct an annual Material Recovery Facility (MRF) sort
• Review recyclability of #3-7 plastics in the marketplace to

determine whether to include in the City's recycling list and update City Code Mid-Long Term (FY22-38)

• Conduct a waste characterization study
• Expand the support for commercial and multifamily recycling

education and enforcement

• Consider establishing business rebates, resource recovery

grants

9/24/2018 16

*Green – EAP goals

Organics

Short Term (FY18-21)

• Continue to meet and grow public awareness
• f food composting at farmers’ markets
• Evaluate whether to privatize composting

program

• Improve efficiency and cost-effectiveness of

yard waste collection program Mid-Long Term (FY22-38)

• Evaluate organics processing market

readiness

• Evaluate curbside organics collection

feasibility

• Develop an organics haulers license list to

support commercial and multifamily organics collection

• Support growing local composting efforts

such as backyard composting and community composting

10/18/2018 17

*Green – EAP goals

End Disposal

Short Term (FY18-21)

• Continue to closely monitor

Covanta’s preventative and corrective maintenance Mid to Long Term (FY22-38)

• Develop options and

recommendation for budget savings with $0 Covanta tip fee from 2025-2038

• Complete regional comprehensive

alternative disposal study

• Evaluate long term end disposal
• ptions, knowing that significant

time will be needed for any potential planning and implementation

10/18/2018 18

*Green – EAP goals

Thank You

alexandriava.gov/WasteSmart

10/18/2018 19