THE ECONOMIC FEASIBILITY OF VARIOUS RECYCLING SYSTEMS TO SERVE THE RESIDENTS OF PERKINS OKLAHOMA

Transcription

1 THE ECONOMIC FEASIBILITY OF VARIOUS RECYCLING SYSTEMS TO SERVE THE RESIDENTS OF PERKINS OKLAHOMA Ilda T. Hershey, Assistant State Extension Specialist Oklahoma State University, Stillwater Tel: (405) Brian E. Whitacre, State Extension Specialist Oklahoma State University, Stillwater Tel: (405) AE09120 RURAL DEVELOPMENT OKLAHOMA COOPERATIVE EXTENSION SERVICE OKLAHOMA STATE UNIVERSITY October 2009

2 THE ECONOMIC FEASIBILITY OF VARIOUS RECYCLING SYSTEMS TO SERVE THE RESIDENTS OF PERKINS OKLAHOMA INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES The City of Perkins is interested in upgrading its waste management services by offering additional recycling opportunities to its residents. This interest is evident from both the City Council and the community at large. A city dedicated to continued growth and prosperity, Perkins has approximately 2,400 residents. It is located in Payne County, about 12 miles south of Stillwater (population 47,653), 58 miles northeast of Oklahoma City and 67 miles west of Tulsa (US Census Bureau, 2008 Population Estimates). From 1990 to 2000, the population of Perkins grew by 18%; it is estimated that it grew another 5.5% from 2000 to 2008 (US Census Bureau). As a thriving community situated in Central Oklahoma, Perkins is in a good position to expand its current recycling activities. At this time, city residents and businesses recycle paper, cardboard, and yard waste within city limits. AbitibiBowater Paper Retriever (green and yellow) containers have been set in several locations for the collection of mixed paper: Perkins-Tryon Elementary School, 1008 E. Kirk. Perkins-Tyron Jr. High School, 103 SW 3rd. Williams Discount Foods, 200 E. Highway 33. Allied Waste Services retrieves cardboard from the public schools and some businesses, such as Oncue Express, located on North Main Street. Green waste, dropped by residents behind the City maintenance shop, is chipped and made available as mulch. The City also conducts an annual community clean-up event in spring for bulky waste. Some residents take other materials elsewhere to be recycled, such as to the Stillwater Convenience Collection Center. The nearest scrap metals recycler is American Scrap, 7101 S. Perkins Road, about 8 miles north of Perkins. Map 1 displays the locations of the Paper Retriever containers, cardboard retrieval sites and green waste collection site. 1

3 Map 1: Current Recycling Locations Based on municipal solid waste data compiled by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA, 2008), Americans generate approximately 4.6 pounds of waste per person, per day, before recycling. For the City of Perkins, this amounts to about 2,015 tons of municipal solid waste per year. This tonnage can be broken down into distinct categories based on national-level estimates from the EPA (Table 1). Given the national recycling rate of 33.4% (EPA, 2008), the potential tonnage of recyclable materials generated by Perkins residents in one year could be 673 tons or 352 tons for materials that would be accepted in a drop-off or curbside recycling program (paper products, plastics and metals). For comparison, it is estimated that the Oklahoma recycling rate is about 9% (OKRA, 2009). At that rate, the estimated tonnage of recyclable materials for Perkins would be 181 tons or 95 tons for the three items targeted for recycling. 2

4 Table 1. Estimated Total Municipal Solid Waste Generated Each Year by Perkins Residents and Recycling Potential (based on approximate population of 2,400) Waste Item or Recycled Item (Recyclables accepted in a curbside or drop-off program are % of Waste Stream* Total Tons of Waste Per Year** National Recycling Rate 33.4% Est. Oklahoma Recycling Rate 9% (tons) noted in italics) (tons) Paper & Cardboard Yard Trimmings Food Scraps Plastics Metals Rubber, Leather, Textiles Wood Glass Other Total Waste Generated Total Recycling Potential Recycling Potential for Items in a Curbside Recycling Program *EPA 2007 US municipal solid waste generation by material before recycling. **EPA 2007 estimates 4.6 pounds generated per person, per day, before recycling. Source: EPA, 2008 The objective of this report is to provide a preliminary analysis of the feasibility of several recycling system options. We will discuss the potential locations and associated costs for the following recycling options: Curbside Service: Based on utilizing the City s current garbage service provider. Community Convenience Center: Recycling drop off facility attended by paid staff. Community Convenience Center: Recycling drop off facility attended by volunteers. CURBSIDE RECYCLING SERVICE A curbside recycling program could be operated by the City or contracted with a municipal solid waste hauler and recycler such as Allied Waste Systems. Allied has provided such services for other municipalities such as the Village in Oklahoma City. At this time, Allied handles Perkins waste collection and hauling services as well as cardboard collection from the Perkins-Tyron schools and other Perkins businesses. For the purposes of providing estimated costs to the City of Perkins, a per household curbside recycling service monthly fee was estimated by Allied Waste Services. This fee is based on participation by all Perkins households that are currently enrolled in garbage service (approximately 1,000), with a frequency of every other week for the collection of recyclables. The recyclables included in this pricing are: newsprint, other paper (office paper, junk mail, magazines, chipboard, phone books), plastics #1 and #2, tin cans and aluminum cans. Glass would not be accepted in this program. 3

5 The program, as estimated by Allied, would require contracting with them for a minimum of five years in conjunction with the City s waste collection contract. Allied would supply each household with a single, rectangular, plastic recycling bin of about 18 gallon capacity. The bins would remain property of Allied Waste Systems. Allied would be responsible for sorting recyclables at the curb from the household bins into their truck. The recyclables would then be transported by Allied to their facility in Stillwater for processing. The estimated flat rate per household is $4.00 per month if all households are enrolled in the curbside program. Thus, this cost would be assessed to all Perkins households regardless of whether they participate in curbside recycling. This is an estimated amount; determining a definite fee would require the City to issue a request for proposals. Supplemental side of the house service will be provided at no extra cost for elderly or disabled residents who need additional help with either their garbage or recycling bins. Also, the Paper Retriever collection containers at the locations shown in Map 1 would not be affected by a curbside program and can remain in place. A successful curbside recycling program requires constant public education. A curbside recycling service contract should include provisions for cooperation with the City on a promotional and educational program that includes, but is not limited to, news articles, presentations at schools and civic meetings, and printed materials mailed to households with utility bill communications. Oklahoma State University Cooperative Extension Service has experience with this type of educational effort and can provide community leaders with information and examples of educational material at no cost. COMMUNITY CONVENIENCE CENTER A Community Convenience Center, or CCC, is a site where recyclables and other materials may be dropped off by residents. A small CCC may have only a few containers as small as 2 cubic yards (6 feet X 2.75 feet), while a full-service CCC may have several containers of various sizes, equipment and services. Minimal requirements for a center include: All-weather surfaces on the access road and site Easy access by residents A security fence Facility attendants Convenient hours of operation that include weekends Depending on the types of materials accepted, recycling equipment may include: Crushers Compactors Shredders Storage bins Scales Chippers 4

6 Small operations that do not process recyclable materials onsite may arrange for a contractor to remove the materials on a regular basis and thereby avoid the acquisition and maintenance of recycling equipment. Collection containers may be owned by the CCC, leased or provided by the contractor as part of the contractual agreement. POTENTIAL COMMUNITY CONVENIENCE CENTER SITES Five sites within Perkins were examined as potential locations for a Community Convenience Center: The Perkins-Tryon High School, Junior High, Middle School, Elementary School and the City Maintenance Shop (see Map 2). The school sites are convenient due to their central locations; however, the only viable space on school property that we could determine was at the elementary school, in the southeast corner. Developing this site for public use as a CCC would create additional traffic flow, which may not be welcomed around an elementary school. We do not recommend the elementary school site for this reason. Map 2: Potential CCC Recycling Sites City grounds around the maintenance shop and animal control shelter seem to be best suited for a Community Convenience Center (Figure 1). The location is near downtown, but not visible to passersby driving through the center of town. Located on the northwest corner of W. Knipe Avenue and W. Industrial Road, the site is about ½ mile west of Main Street, which is the most accessed road in Perkins. At this time, there is a gravel path that runs from Industrial Road west between Knipe Avenue and the animal control shelter to an opening behind the shelter and maintenance shop buildings. The land here is currently used to collect yard waste for compost. 5

7 Various items also are stored here including metal and PVC pipe (new and scrap), scrap metal, construction and demolition debris, worn equipment and a dumpster. Figure 1: Current status of proposed CCC site (east-facing view showing existing metal building, gravel access road and partial incline on the south side). At this time, the site is not fenced, but it is separated from Knipe Avenue to the south by a substantial incline. It also seems to be separated from land to the west by a ravine. The maintenance shop area is partially fenced on the front (east-facing) side. Two street lamps are connected to the front of the maintenance shop building, another one is attached to the front of the metal building behind the maintenance shop and a smaller light is affixed to the front of the animal control shelter. The estimated size of the land behind the animal control shelter and maintenance shop buildings is ¾ of an acre, not including the initial section of gravel roadway that leads to the area behind the buildings. This land area currently includes space for yard waste collection and wood chip distribution, which could remain as services of the new CCC. Illegal dumping is a valid concern of City leaders and the community. Given that the location of the property being considered is not on a major thoroughfare, it is not likely to attract transient 6

8 opportunists. Furthermore, appropriate fencing would make it difficult for trespassers to access the site after hours. An additional safeguard may include a closed circuit monitoring system. COMMUNITY CONVENIENCE CENTER CAPITAL AND OPERATING COSTS The costs of setting up and running a community convenience center can be broken into two distinct groups: capital costs and operating costs. Capital costs are one-time facility construction and equipment costs. Operating costs are incurred annually and refer to the operation and maintenance of the facility. All costs can vary considerably as they depend on the services offered, site location, local prices and the design of the center. Capital costs for a community convenience drop-off recycling center on city property behind the maintenance shop and animal control shelter are shown in Table 2. Given the small amount of available space, it is recommended that the City limit its recycling operations to collection only, rather than collection and processing. Processing would require the purchase, maintenance and operation of equipment such as compactors, crushers, shredders and balers as well as storage facilities and specialized labor to prepare and possibly broker the collected commodities. Therefore, the scenario represented in Table 2 reflects the utilization of a private hauler to remove the collected recyclable materials. The largest cost for the example shown in Table 2 is for purchasing crushed rock ($18,000). This is necessary to provide an all-weather surface that can handle the traffic and material weight associated with the center. Other significant costs include fencing ($9,200) and signs ($2,000). Although the City would not be processing materials in this scenario, it is still recommended that improvements be made to city property both for the safe collection of materials and protection against illegal dumping. Table 2 specifies fencing, gating, signage and security lighting that will serve to deter trespassing and dumping of unwanted materials. A closed circuit monitoring system would help in this endeavor, but is not required. There is an existing metal building behind the City maintenance shop that may be used to shelter Center attendants in bad weather, but it should not be required as a storage facility since a private hauler would remove materials once collection containers are full. Table 2 shows costs for various sizes of dumpsters and roll-off containers, however, a private hauler would normally retain ownership of this equipment and provide it for use to the City as part of their recyclable materials collection contract. The City may still wish to consider purchasing a small dumpster for the collection of scrap metal. Additional containers to be placed by the private hauler would include at least one each for cardboard, mixed paper, plastic #1 & 2, tin cans and aluminum cans. Glass is currently a difficult material to recycle due to extremely low commodity pricing and distance to markets. This may change, however, as new markets develop. Annual capital costs, such as the depreciation of equipment, can be avoided by contracting with a private company that provides collection equipment (i.e. roll-off containers). However, items 7

9 such as fencing, crushed rock, lighting and signage do depreciate over time and will eventually need to be replaced. Table 2 shows the estimated life in years for these items. Table 2. Capital Costs for a Community Convenience Drop-off Recycling Center on City property behind the Maintenance Shop and Animal Control Shelter. Item Dollars per Unit Life Years Small Scale Example # of Units Dollars Land Existing property Metal Building Existing building Retaining Wall Varies with size Fencing (installed) 6 high chain link 15/linear ft ,100 Rolling Gate (installed) 6 X 20 chain 1, ,000 link Crushed Rock (approx. 1.5 diameter; $5/sq. yd. 5 3,600 18,000 6 deep; labor not included) Concrete (6 deep; labor not included) $15/sq. yd Security Lighting and Power Pole 1, Security Lighting Installed on Existing Power Pole Closed Circuit Monitoring System 2, Signage 1, ,000 Dumpsters 6-8 cu. yds Roll-off Boxes open top, 40 cu. yds. 3,200-5, Roll-off Boxes closed top, 42 cu. yds. 4,250 6, Total capital costs for a small scale collection center (no onsite processing of recyclable materials) 30,375 Not calculated in Table 2 is the cost of removing existing scrap materials from the site and clearing the site for the application of crushed rock. Labor costs are not included either, except for the installation of fence, gate and lighting. A retaining wall on the south side of the proposed site is recommended, but may not be necessary. Collection containers for used motor oil are not included in the table, however, these are usually provided by the motor oil collection vendor, making motor oil collection an easy service to add to a CCC. Annual operating costs for a facility as described above would be limited to attendant labor, utilities and the fees for a private company to service the facility on a regular basis (when containers are full and need to be emptied or replaced). The more hours an attendant could be on site, the less likely there will be incidents of illegal dumping or trespassing. We recommend keeping the site open 20 hours per week including at least 4 hours on Saturdays. Table 3 shows the annual operating costs for a community convenience center on city property behind the maintenance shop and animal control shelter. Two distinct options are explored: 1) paid part-time staff, and 2) volunteer staff. The paid option is based on a part-time employee to attend to the center 20 hours per week. This onsite attendant would be available to assist citizens 8

10 with unloading, keep the site clean and properly sort recyclable materials. Perhaps most importantly, the attendant can prevent hazardous and other undesirable items from being left at the center. Both the paid and volunteer options include a full time equivalent (FTE) of 0.10 for a City of Perkins employee to manage the center and staff remotely, whether the onsite attendant is paid or not. This City employee would be responsible for scheduling attendants, site supervision and arranging for the hauling of collected materials. While the expense of employing a 0.10 FTE manager is shown here to give an idea of the associated costs, in reality this may simply be an adjustment to a current City employee s work load, which would mean no additional funds would be necessary for this position. Table 3. Annual Operating Costs for a Community Convenience Center on City property behind the Maintenance Shop and Animal Control Shelter with paid staff and with volunteer staff. Item Attended by Staff Attended by Volunteers Unit Dollars Unit Dollars Labor - Management 0.10 FTE 2, FTE 2,800 Fringe Benefits* 0.10 FTE 1, FTE 1,200 Labor -Attendant 20 hours per 7, $7.25 Fringe Benefits* 0.50 FTE 2, Volunteer recognition Special Event 200 Hauling fees estimate $100 p/month 1,200 $100 p/month 1,200 Utilities estimate $100 p/month 1,200 $100 p/month 1,200 Totals 16,200 6,600 *Fringe Benefits estimated at 30% of salary. Monthly or weekly hauling fees associated with the removal of recyclable materials would need to be negotiated directly with a private vendor. Allied Waste estimated such a fee to be approximately $3.50 per cubic yard for weekly service. Based on an annual collection of 95 tons of recyclables (paper, metal and plastic), we can estimate total volume at about 350 cubic yards per year, more or less, depending on density. This volume translates to about seven cubic yards per week or about $100 per month in hauling fees. If collection volume were based on the national recycling rate of 33.4% rather than the state recycling rate of about 9%, then up to 352 tons may be collected per year, which would produce an estimated volume of 1,300 cubic yards or about $350 per month in hauling fees. Utilities will be minimal as no electrical equipment other than lighting will be needed at a small scale center. ALTERNATIVE OPTIONS The small space size available for recycling on City property behind the maintenance shop and animal control shelter limits such a facility to collection only. Although processing and some storage may be accommodated in the existing metal building behind the maintenance shop, there would still be little room for a large trailer to access the facility. Typically, when materials are 9

11 baled or otherwise prepared for shipping on site, they need to be loaded into a trailer large enough to make transport a worthwhile endeavor, either to a recycling vendor or a direct market. The City of Perkins may wish to consider partnering with County governments or the Iowa Nation in developing a more extensive Convenience Collection Center that could serve a larger area. Such a center could be expanded to include a reuse or free exchange component and a municipal-scale compost facility. The Iowa Tribe of Oklahoma s Office of Environmental Services Solid Waste Program is currently conducting projects funded by the Bureau of Indian Affairs to clean up roadside and open dumps on Iowa lands and to finalize the Tribe s Solid Waste Code and Solid Waste Management Plan. The Iowa Solid Waste Program Office encourages recycling and has expressed an interest in collaborative efforts to develop a recycling collection facility. POTENTIAL FUNDING SOURCES Funding for making land improvements and purchasing equipment is often the greatest challenge to implementing a CCC. Grants and loans can be secured through state, federal or private sources and rural development programs may be available as well, such as the USDA Rural Development Business and Industry Guaranteed Loans. Community Development Block grants may also be available through the US Department of Housing and Urban Development. A good resource for potential federal funding is the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA). Local funding could also be developed through sales or ad valorem taxes or user fees. Some revenue may be realized from the sale of recyclable materials; however, the market for recyclables can be highly volatile. In terms of recycling equipment purchase, including chippers, the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality can provide reimbursement of up to 25% of the total investment, limited to $20,000 per transaction, per year. Some Oklahoma communities have started their recycling drop-off sites with as little as a $10,000 Wal-Mart grant (Yukon Recycles). In the City of Stillwater s case, some construction labor costs were absorbed by other divisions within the city. For example, concrete work was performed by street crews, additional lighting was provided by Stillwater Electric Utility and Traffic Control built their signage. CONCLUSION The City of Perkins is poised to expand its recycling programs given its rapid growth, community interest and political will. Unless a larger site can be identified by City leaders, the City has land on W. Industrial Road that could be utilized by making property improvements to develop a drop-off recycling site or small-scale Convenience Collection Center. Partnering with another group to develop a larger scale CCC is also an option. Three options have been detailed in this study. The option of developing a small-scale CCC open 20 hours per week would cost approximately $30,000 plus $6,600 in annual operating 10

12 expenses, based on volunteer labor. The option of developing the same small-scale CCC based on paid staff would cost approximately $30,000 plus $16,200 in annual operating expenses. Although curbside recycling would be more convenient for residents and could generate more recyclable materials, public support would need to be obtained for the additional $4 per month, per household fee for this third option. In addition to public support, a signification amount of public education would be required. This study has focused on two opportunities for managing materials that could be diverted from the waste stream: a recycling drop-off facility and a curbside recycling program. We would like to stress that a very important benefit of recycling is waste diversion. In some communities, waste disposal fees can be reduced substantially with the diversion of recyclable materials. However, considering that approximately 58% of the waste generated in the US is organic matter (paper products, cardboard, yard waste and food waste) there is enormous potential for diverting this material from the waste stream as well. For Perkins residents alone, organic waste generation is estimated at nearly 1,200 tons of material per year (before any current recycling or composting efforts). Therefore, in addition to expanding the City s recycling efforts, we recommend expanding the existing yard waste collection program and promoting the backyard composting of organic materials. A backyard composting campaign could help residents realize the benefits of keeping organic matter in their backyards and would not involve the expense of collection or processing by City workers. In addition to recycling information and educational resources, Oklahoma State University Cooperative Extension Service can provide community leaders with composting information and materials. This report makes no recommendations, but instead seeks to provide City leaders with enough information for the community to make an educated decision. Should additional information be needed or other options explored, please contact your county extension office or the state specialists that authored this report. 11

13 REFERENCES Drummond, David. Allied Waste Services of Stillwater. Conversation, August 20 and exchange October 9, Eilrich, Fred, Doeksen, Gerald A., and Gordon Sloggett, A Guidebook for Community Convenience Centers: One Solution to Illegal Roadside Dumping. Rural Development Cooperative Extension Service, Oklahoma State University, March Kimball, Sarah L., Eilrich, Fred, Doeksen, Gerald A., and Joe Fitzgibbon, Rural Community Convenience Centers. Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service AGEG-894, August Kimball, Sarah L., Doeksen, Gerald A., Nowlin, David L., Roberts, William, Rood, R. Fenton, Fitzgibbon, Joe, and Bob Packer, Feasibility Study for a Convenience Center Program Located in Caddo County in Southwest Oklahoma. Rural Development Cooperative Extension Service Oklahoma State University, January, Oklahoma Recycling Association. Oklahoma 2009 recycling rate estimate. OKRA Board Meeting, September 28, US Census Bureau, 2008 Population Estimates, Census 2000, Census Demographic profile for Perkins, Oklahoma. US Census Bureau, 2008 Population Estimates, Census 2000, Census Demographic profile for Stillwater, Oklahoma. US Environmental Protection Agency, Solid Waste and Emergency Response, Municipal Solid Waste Generation, Recycling, and Disposal in the United States: Facts and Figures for EPA-530-R , November