1. Implementing Zero Waste Policies in Municipal Organics Collection Program Arlington County Department of Environmental Services: Solid Waste Bureau Virginia Recycling Association May 16, 2017

2. About Arlington County…
Land area = 26.2 miles
Population = ~225,000
Households = ~96,000
~64% of households are apartments or condos served by private haulers
~36% of households are single family style homes served by the County’s residential collection program
211,000 at-place employees each day

3. Solid Waste Management Plan
20-Year Solid Waste Management Plan (SWMP)
Adopted by County Board in June of 2004
Guide for the future growth of the County’s solid waste management system
Provides roadmap for program enhancements
over time
Established recycling rate goals:
37% by 2014
42% by 2019
47% by 2024

4. Guided by 4 C’s Approach to SWM

5. Arlington Zero Waste Resolution
Adopted on November 19, 2015
Aims to divert 90 percent of waste away from landfills and incineration by 2038

6. Solid Waste Management Strategy
Metal
White goods
Metal items
Composting
Yard Waste
Food Waste

7. Cost Effective Services
Jurisdiction
Year-Round Yard Waste Program
Virginia
City of Alexandria
Yes
Arlington County
City of Fairfax
Fairfax County
City of Falls Church
Town of Leesburg
Maryland
City of Bowie No
City of College Park
City of Frederick
Frederick County
Montgomery County
Prince George's County
*FY13 Rate
**FY14 Rate

8. Residential Solid Waste Services
Weekly curbside recycling, yard trimmings and trash collections to 33,100 homes (contracted)
Household solid waste rate = $ per year
On-call collection fee-based services for E-waste, scrap metals and bulk appliances (contracted)
On-call brush collection
Mulch pickup & on-call mulch delivery (SWB)
Household Hazardous Material drop-off every Saturday
Monthly paper shredding events
Self-haul options for small amounts of inert materials including rock, asphalt, concrete to Earth Products Recycling Yard

9. Seasonal Leaf Collections
Leaf Season:
-Bag collection (weekly)
November-January
-Vacuum Collection (2 passes)
November-December
2015 Tonnages:
659 bagged materials
552 vacuum

10. Brush Collection On-call service (paid as part of HSWR)
Performed by SWB crews
5,372 tons in 2015 from 18,000 service requests
Processed at SWB Earth Products Recycling Yard

11. Earth Products Recycling Yard
Recycle all organic materials in a closed loop system
Leaf Collection
Leaf Mulch
Tub Grinder
Brush Collection
Brush Mulch
Recycle and reuse as much inorganic material as possible
Crusher- concrete/asphalt/brick into aggregate
Trommel- topsoil
Dirt shaker-separates clean dirt from aggregate

12. Where We Were in 2015
16% of residential MSW could be recycled in blue cart
Needed to target other fractions of waste stream to increase diversion
April 2015 – March 2016

13. Opportunities & Approach
Residential collection services contracts rebid in yard waste collection pricing sought through RFP
Pricing from successful proposer (American Disposal Services):
Collections at $2.83/HH/month
Carts financed through ADS contract ($11.40 per cart per year (for first five years of contract); $1.43 per HH per year cart maintenance fee
FY 2016 impact of $33.96 on HSWR
County Board approval in November, 2015
Processing contract with Loudoun Composting for $32 per ton

14. Asking the Customer County surveyed HSWR customers via Survey Monkey:
4,283 total respondents (evenly spread across County)
70% of respondents indicated increasing recycling rate was important
60 percent supported adding yard waste collections
Made it easier for County Board to approve program

15. 2015 Year-Round Yard Waste Survey Results

16. Getting the Word Out Local press Direct mail to ratepayers
County website
Direct mail to landscapers and lawn service providers
February – April:
Carts distribution
Social media

17. Program Participation
37,400+
Total cart pickups in April 2017
33,063
Households in residential program (FY 2017)
30,515
Green organics carts in the program
*Some households have more than 1

18. Yard Waste Collected by Month
April 2015 – March 2016:
1,460 tons total
April 2016 – March 2017:
7,172 tons total
Seasonal Collection
Year Round Collection

19. Change in Residential Waste Stream
51% diversion
57% diversion
21%
7,209 ton decrease of MSW due to yard waste program and other waste reduction efforts

20. Residential v. County Recycling Rates
58.0%
46.8%
As reported to VA DEQ.
Includes 5% DEQ credits.

21. Residential Waste Profiles
April 2015 – March 2016
April 2016 – March 2017

22. Overall MSW in Arlington
Arlington County MSW Management in 2016*
Arlington County MSW
* Includes Va. source reduction & reuse credits
MSW generation has declined by ~34% since 2004

23. Other Benefits 1,300 tons of topsoil created
600 tons of avoided dirt disposal
Equates to $7,500 in avoided disposal costs for dirt
Additional cost avoidance of approx. $10,000 in top soil purchase costs
Creating topsoil (660 cubic yards) for Laporte Facility project

24. Mulch Quality
Mulch meets the Seal of Testing Assurance (STA) standards established by the U.S. Composting Council.
Test results, indicate a high level of integrity and “vigor” suitable for plant growth and soil sustainability.
Mulch is monitored for persistent herbicides

25. In-Vessel Composter Unit
School Pilot Project
Special Events Collection

26. Next Steps?
Success of yard trimmings collection program validates future food scraps collection program
Processing infrastructure & capacity key
Consideration of other program costs (in-home pails, bags, etc.)
Targeting FY19 for food scraps collection

27. Per Household Per Month Disposal/Processing Cost
Costs of Managing MSW
Collection Cost
Per Household Per Month
Disposal/Processing Cost
Per Ton
Trash
$4.88
$43.16
Recycling
$3.40
Rebate: $9.91
(average from July 2016–April 2017)
Yard Waste
$2.84
$32.00 (May–October)
(November–March: taken to EPRY)
Food Waste
Additional $0.39
Estimated $35.00–$39.00

28. Thank You! Questions?