Editor's Focus: Fighting for a Piece of the Pie

he C&D waste flow turf wars in South Florida are heating up, if that is possible. The issue remains franchises. Many of the municipalities in that part of the Sunshine State are firm believers in flow control of all the waste in their jurisdiction, including C&D. Many of the holders of those franchises are landfill companies, which put the overwhelming majority of the material into their fill. The reason for this situation is financial. The governmental entities receive a host fee from the companies that handle the material. These franchises are usually to the detriment of the recyclers, who are shut out from the material flow, even though most of them have promised to pay the same host fee as the landfill companies. In addition, the landfill companies by and large have not shown they know how to cost effectively recycle C&D as well as the independent recyclers.

An example of what is going on recently occurred in Royal Palm Beach, where the local government called all the builders working in the town together for a meeting. There the builders were told that all the waste from their sites had to go to Waste Management, the franchise holder. Penalties were going to be enforced for violators using other services. When asked what the big company was going to do with it, it came out that they would be landfilling virtually all of it. This is despite the economically viable and vibrant C&D recycling industry in South Florida. In addition, disposal space is at a premium in the area, as there is no more room for landfills because of urban sprawl toward the Everglades.

It would be surprising if there were no lawsuits stemming from Royal Palm Beach’s move. Indeed, lawsuits seem to be filed all the time against the municipalities about C&D flow control and recycling. It seems to be an example of what has happened before, a local government espousing recycling, while it is more concerned about making sure the revenue keeps coming in from waste disposal, and it doesn’t matter if the material is recycled or landfilled. In the case of South Florida it is truly a shame, as there are established markets and needs for the recycled products.

But the other question that needs to be asked is, are the recyclers of the materials from the curbside recycling programs—the cans, bottles, and papers—also paying host fees? In many areas of the country they are not, and the reason for that is the "public" supports recycling, and the "public" pays taxes, votes, etc.—the kind of activities governmental officials pay attention to. We feel C&D recycling should be on the same footing.

                                              -William Turley