Municipal Recycling

California District Gets MRF Funding
The South Bayside Waste Management Authority (SBWMA), San Carlos, Calif., says it has closed the sale of $53.5 million in tax-exempt solid waste revenue enterprise bonds and paid off existing tax-exempt debt of $13.7 million. Net proceeds from the transactions, along with a $3 million loan from the city of Burlingame, Calif., will be used to transform the existing Shoreway Recycling and Disposal Center in San Carlos into what the authority is calling the “Shoreway Environmental Center, California’s Greenest Recycling Center and Transfer Station.”

According to an SBWMA news release, from September 2009 through spring of 2011, a series of capital projects will be completed in its waste district south of San Francisco. A 70,200-square-foot new material recovery facility (MRF) will handle an increase of more than 20,000 tons per year in recyclables from residential and commercial customers using new single-stream sorting and processing equipment. The new MRF will replace an existing 48,000-square-foot building. Additionally, a 14,780-square-foot expansion of the existing 62,000-square-foot transfer station will allow for a 30,000-tons-per-year increase in organic materials at the facility.

Green building features include solar (photovoltaic) panels to generate renewable energy to power site operations, rainwater capture and reuse, translucent panels to maximize daylight and the use of native and low-water-use plants. 

The MRF and transfer station buildings will have dedicated space for visitors to view facility operations and for an environmental education center for children.

New scale house and related traffic patterns will be designed to make it safer and easier for customers to use the facility, according to SBWMA. 

 “With financing secured, our old debt paid off and interim site operations initiated, we are off to a great start to fulfill our promise to deliver expanded and more convenient recycling and solid waste collection services for the 400,000-plus residents in our service area by Jan. 1, 2011,” says Kevin McCarthy, SBWMA executive director.
SBWMA is a joint powers authority of 12 member agencies in California’s San Mateo County.

NRC Board Votes to File Chapter 7 Bankruptcy
The board of directors of the National Recycling Coalition Inc. (NRC), Washington, D.C., has announced that it will file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy.

“The decision was a very difficult and troubling one, but in the end, as a matter of our fiduciary responsibility, the board was left with very few options given the organization’s cash position. Our hope—however distant right now—is that a stronger organization, with broad representation, may emerge from within our community,” says Melinda Uerling, NRC board president.

In light of NRC’s financial circumstances, it ceased operations and terminated all staff effective with the close of business Sept. 4, 2009.  

The action was a result of the proposed merger between Keep America Beautiful, Stamford, Conn., and the NRC failing to achieve the two-thirds majority vote required for approval. According to the NRC, 46 percent of its membership voted on the combined proposal, with 57 percent voting in favor. 

Seattle Recycling Rate Hits 50 Percent Mark
Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels has announced that the city has set a new city record for recycling in 2008, with 50 percent of the city’s residential, commercial and self-haul waste being recycled. The figure for last year is an increase of 1.8 percent from 2007 and marks the fifth straight year of increased recycling for the city.

Last year, Seattle’s single-family residents diverted 65.4 percent of their waste through recycling and composting, up from 64.8 percent in 2007. Multifamily residents recycled 28.3 of their waste, up from 27.6 the previous year. Commercial recycling climbed 2.2 percentage points, to 54.7 percent in 2008. And 18.4 percent of waste dropped off at the city’s two recycling and disposal stations was diverted to recycling or compost in 2008. The figures are based on an annual waste audit conducted by Seattle Public Utilities.

The city says it expects the recycling rate to continue in light of changes and improvements to its recycling program. Earlier this year the city added more paper, plastic and metal, including all rigid plastic food containers, plastic plant pots, large lids, aluminum foil and foil trays and plastic and paper cups to the materials collected.

The city of Seattle also has implemented single-stream recycling and weekly food and yard waste collections. Additionally, electronics, used motor oil and bulky items can now be collected using special services.