Municipal Recycling

NSWMA Lawsuit Dismissed

A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed by the National Solid Wastes Management Association (NSWMA) challenging Wisconsin’s new $3 per ton garbage tipping fee.

The NSWMA, a nonprofit trade group representing waste collection, recycling and disposal companies, filed the lawsuit late last year, in response to the $3 tipping fee on garbage levied by municipalities, businesses and households effective Jan. 1, 2002.

U.S. District Court Judge John C. Shabaz has ruled that because the fee meets the definition of a tax, the lawsuit belongs in state and not federal court. Judge Shabaz declined to rule on the merits of the case, citing federal law requiring that lawsuits challenging taxes be filed in state courts.

Judge Shabaz also concluded that the state tipping fee isn’t based on costs the waste generators cause the state to incur. Rather, Wisconsin is using the estimated $17 million to $21 million collected through the fee to continue subsidies to municipal recycling programs.

“It strains logic to suggest that depositing waste in a landfill imposes on the state the cost of a recycling program,” the judge wrote.

The ruling allows the NSWMA to pursue its lawsuit by re-filing the action in a state court, an option that NWSMA  is considering.

Columbus Drop-Off Program Under New Management

Following passage of legislation by Columbus City Council Feb. 4, the Solid Waste Authority of Central Ohio (SWACO), Grove City, will take over management of Columbus’s drop-off recycling contract with Rumpke of Ohio Inc. SWACO also will pay for the contract estimated to cost $600,000 per year.

“Part of our mission is to provide recycling solutions throughout Franklin County and overseeing this contract will strengthen our efforts,” Mike Long, executive director of SWACO, says.

SWACO will oversee the contract in which Rumpke provides for placement, maintenance and collection of recyclable materials from 49 drop-off sites located throughout the city.

“We saw an opportunity to expand and market the recycling program offered by Columbus and we are better positioned to do so,” Long says. SWACO has indicated interest in continuing the current relationship with Rumpke and anticipates keeping the present services.

 “The only changes we envision at this time are creating a higher profile for the programs and encouraging residents to take advantage of the services already provided,” Long says.

SWACO was created in 1989 to develop an organized and planned approach to solid waste management and to avoid a solid waste crisis created by a shortage of landfill space by providing a comprehensive and sound waste management program.

Prop Certification Training Program Continues

The Professional Recyclers of Pennsylvania (PROP) will continue its Recycling Professional Certification Program in 2002. The program is designed to offer educational training that promotes the establishment of high professional standards for recycling and solid waste managers in both the public and private sector and to provide a career track for those entering the field.

PROP plans to offer at least 15 classes per year during the next three years. Courses serve a diverse audience in government, business, industry and institutional settings and include course work in program administration, recycling education, collection, processing and composting.

The program is offered in cooperation with Penn State – Altoona and with the financial support of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP).

Those interested in being placed on the certification mailing list can contact PROP at 800-769-PROP, e-mail to certification@proprecycles.org or visit the organization’s Web site at www.proprecycles.org.  

NERC Aids Communities In Electronic Recycling Efforts

Beginning in spring, the Vermont towns of Springfield and Chester, as well as the Central Vermont Solid Waste Management District, which comprises 21 towns, will begin ongoing collection of residential used electronics. The Northeast Recycling Council (NERC), Brattleboro, Vt., is assisting the towns.

NERC is providing help with program design, regulatory and operational issues, vendor selection, partnering and community outreach. With the help of a grant from the USDA’s Rural Development Agency, NERC is assisting the communities at no charge.

NERC also will assist with the planning of used electronics collections in Maine and New Hampshire communities later in the spring.

Winston Salem Looks To Add OCC

City officials in Winston Salem, N.C., have reached a tentative agreement with Waste Management of the Carolinas to add cardboard collection to the city’s recycling program. The Finance Committee unanimously approved the resolution in a hearing held in February.

The full board of aldermen will hear the proposal and either vote for or against adopting the measure.

The proposed three-year contract also would allow 2,500 small businesses and churches to participate in the program for the first time.

Under the proposal, it would cost an additional $.25 cents per household per month to pick up OCC. The city now pays $1.98 a month for each single-family household for recycling. The city would also receive 25 percent of the profits obtained from the sale of the recyclables.

If approved, residents would be required to flatten corrugated boxes and tie them together with twine or another kind of fastening material, excluding fishing line or metal.

Seventy-seven percent of households in Winston-Salem participate in the recycling program.

NYC Mayor Considers Cutting Back Recycling

New York City Mayor Michael Bloom-berg has introduced a $41.4 billion budget proposal that calls for an 18-month suspension of metal, glass and plastic recycling. Bloomberg says the move will save the city $57 million.

The city faces a $4.76 billion budget deficit, intensified by a weak economy and the World Trade Center attack. Bloomberg is calling for deep cuts across all programs in what he calls “a spread your pain, no sacred cow” proposal.

Bloomberg says much of the recycling program is costly and inefficient.

Glass, metal and plastic recycling costs $240 per ton, the mayor’s office says, far more than the $130 per ton rate for simple trash disposal. Paper recycling, which the proposal does not target for suspension, costs $87 per ton.

State law requires curbside recycling with cities deciding which materials to include. City officials say the City Council would have to approve the plan.