Rethink. Reset. Recycle.

From Orange County Commissioner Bryan Nelson

In last week’s column, I discussed one of two important work sessions that took place during the morning session of the March 6^th meeting of the Orange County Board of County Commissioners: The Wekiva Basin Management Action Plan (BMAP). This week, I would like to discuss the second of those work sessions: An update on Orange County’s Recycling Collection Program. The presentation, given by Utilities Section Manager of the Solid Waste Division David Gregory, gave a little more background information on the program since the last update given in December; actions taken since the last update; the program itself being developed; and recycling options that will take place after June 30, 2018.

Orange County Commissioner Bryan Nelson

With more attention being given to the contamination and recycling issue, the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has created a statewide recycling improvement initiative called “Rethink. Reset. Recycle.” The purpose of the program is to educate Florida residents about what should be placed in their recycling carts (aluminum and steel cans, plastic bottles and jugs, paper and cardboard, etc.) vs. what should not be placed in their recycling carts (clothes, food, plastic bags, tanglers, etc.), and how to recycle them properly. Items should be cleaned and dried prior to being placed in to the recycling bin. In addition, the following items should not be recycled curbside: Plastic bags; clothing; bubble wrap and styrofoam; cords, hoses and holiday lights; and pizza boxes and carry-out containers. Residents can help educate their fellow neighbors on how to recycle properly, where if several neighbors do not recycle properly, an entire load of recycling can be contaminated; when in doubt about whether an item is recyclable or not, residents should throw it out in their regular trash. By eliminating the 30% of contaminated materials in curbside recycling bins, Florida taxpayers could save $100 million in recycling costs in a year. Orange County staff collected data on the value of recyclable commodities (price per ton) for February 2018 for the following sources: Aluminum cans cost $1,450 ($1,353.10 in February 2014); Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) plastic cost $280 ($350 in February 2014); High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE) plastic cost $315 ($610 in February 2014); and cardboard cost $105 ($115.31 in February 2014). According to The Aluminum Association, “Recycling aluminum saves more than 90 percent of the energy costs required in primary production. Aluminum is 100 percent recyclable, making the metal one of the most recyclable of all materials. Recycled aluminum retains its properties indefinitely and is the only material in the consumer disposal stream that more than pays for the cost of its own collection” (Source: http://www.aluminum.org/aluminum-advantage/economic-impact-aluminum). Additionally, according to “Recycling Economics: A Cost-Benefit Analysis”, “Recycling aluminum…can reduce energy consumption by as much as 95%. Savings for other materials are lower, but still substantial: about 70% for plastics, 60% for steel, 40% for paper, and 30% for glass. (1) In all cases, the energy savings are significant and well worth the effort to recover them” (Source: http://blog.recology.com/2015/04/28/recycling-economics-a-cost-benefit-analysis/). For more information on this initiative, residents can go to the following link: http://floridarecycles.org/.

Orange County is currently working on a recycling improvement program. In the Florida Legislature, House Bill 1149 (substituted for Senate Bill 1308), had it passed during the 2018 Legislative Session, would have required any local government and private contractor to have a recycling processing agreement, identify what is excessively contaminated and the steps to improve this contamination level. The key elements that came out of the staff analysis of the research and interviews conducted included the following: The need for a coordinated education; curbside feedback; and persistence and follow-up to ensure the long-term success of the program. Orange County Utilities believes that the program should include 3 areas: Administration; communication and outreach; and field education and enforcement. The administration element will provide program management, composition studies, and measurements for improvement. Additionally, the communication and outreach element will utilize various tools to reach out to the community: Direct mail, social media, community papers, and Homeowner’s Associations (HOAs). Furthermore, the field education and enforcement element will provide recycling field representatives, who will conduct cart checks to ensure residents are recycling properly; this element includes both positive (a thank you note on their cart for recycling properly, etc.) and negative (tagging for not recycling properly, not collecting cart, eventual cart removal after 3 tags, etc.) enforcement. The Solid Waste Division plans to propose a pilot program, experimenting on a small-scale on what methods work best, and further developing the program from there.

Residents should keep in mind that the Orange County Code requires recycling. For more information on Orange County’s Automated Curbside Collection Program, including a collection schedule, instructions, and items that can/cannot be recycled, residents can go to the following link: http://www.ocfl.net/WaterGarbageRecycling/GreenClean.aspx. For questions or concerns, residents can contact the Solid Waste Hotline at (407) 836-6601 or Solid.Waste@oclf.net.

Since December, the Solid Waste Division has extended its current recycling contract through June 30, 2018. In addition, the staff has also spent a significant amount of time researching other initiatives in Florida as well as across the nation that addresses contamination and increasing recycling rates. Furthermore, the staff has worked with collection companies and our recycling processor to identify, on a neighborhood and route-by-route level, where the best opportunities for recycling could take place.

The Solid Waste Division has evaluated and considered 3 processing options for managing recyclables after June 30, 2018: Short-term routing of recyclables to the landfill for disposal; sending recyclables to a waste-to-energy facility, and extending the current processing contract. The current processor is open to the idea of extending the current agreement under terms and conditions similar to the ones in place now. Looking at the potential costs of each option, staff found that their costs would go from $220 to: $235 for landfilling recyclables; $240 for sending recyclables to a waste-to-energy facility; and $230 for extending the current processing contract. Based on their analysis, the staff has decided to extend the current contract given that the current processor is open to an extension and to offer the best value for recycling to Orange County residents.

Residents who wish to watch the full presentation from the Board Meeting may do so here: http://netapps.ocfl.net/Mod/meetings/1.